By Cindy Petersen and Carl J. Petersen

“The big joke on democracy is that it gives its mortal enemies the tools to its own destruction.”

 –Joseph Goebbels

Donald Trump has shown he doesn’t care about the law. He has built his power on a cult of personality that has made him immune to accountability within his base. As he proudly stated prior during his first campaign for the presidency, he “could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and [he] wouldn't lose any voters”.

Our Constitution protects against overreach through checks and balances, but this requires active participation by the other two branches of the Government. Unfortunately, we cannot depend on Congress, with its Republican majority, to do its duty as it seems that those who are not full-blown MAGA are too scared of being primaried to take any action against the “Dear Leader” that could be interpreted as disloyalty. Spines are in short supply as Trump routinely violates the oath he took just a few short weeks ago to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States." 

With Congress having sidelined itself, it is up to the judiciary to enforce the limits of the power of the executive branch of the government that is spelled out in the Constitution. Unless the courts put a stay on the administration’s unconstitutional or illegal behavior, they will continue their actions because the legal system is so slow. This is evidenced by the criminal trials that were forced to be abandoned after Trump’s reelection. Even if the courts eventually prevent the most obscene of Trump’s actions, the damage might have already been done. Also, the Trump-leaning majority on the Supreme Court cannot be counted on to provide justice with their abandonment of stare decisis and the principle that no man is above the law, especially the President.

One example of Trump’s violation of the separation of powers is the shuttering of USAID (United States Agency for International Development). This agency was created and funded by Congress, leaving the Executive Branch with the obligation of providing the services set by law on behalf of the American people. He cannot unilaterally disband it. 

While Trump claims USAID is corrupt and inefficient, he has offered no proof. It’s interesting that, during his first administration, Melania and Ivanka both supported the agency. On separate trips to Africa, Melania commended USAID's funding for projects there. Melania was accompanied by staff from USAID during her 2018 tour to Ghana, Malawi, Kenya, and Egypt. Ivanka visited Ivory Coast and Ethiopia to announce millions in USAID assistance for women entrepreneurs.

Swinging the hatchet against USAID is Trump’s co-president, Elon Musk. The world’s richest man deprives the world’s poorest of food and healthcare, even though he has not been elected or appointed to any oversight commission nor has he had a security check that every other person who works in the White House is compelled to have. Congress allows him to act without authority or accountability.

If Musk cared about the mission of USAID or the welfare of the people who depend on the agency, he would not eliminate it or indiscriminately fire its employees before he understood how the department works. This would be a significant job for a $40 billion agency with employees deployed worldwide. Claiming a mission to cut spending and reduce waste immediately, Musk does not have the time for impediments like gathering facts. Instead, he is using the same strategy for the $6.75 trillion national budget that he used to destroy Twitter.

After spending just two weeks on the job, Musk said he understood the complexities of the agency and declared his intention to feed it “into the woodchipper.” Instead of providing facts to support his actions he promotes conspiracy theories. As the agency was abruptly shuttered without a plan, American citizens were stranded overseas, farmers were left worrying about contracts they had with the agency to provide $2 billion of surplus crops and China was given an opening to step in and gain influence in countries we have abandoned.

Also dead in the water is an investigation by USAID of its relationship with Musk’s Starlink. Does anyone think that this was a coincidence?

Trump and Musk have also raided the Justice Department, attempting to fire prosecutors and FBI agents in retribution for the investigation of Trump’s part in the attempted coup on January 6th. This will deprive the department of experienced agents who prevent illegal drugs from entering or being distributed throughout the country. Without a functioning Justice Department, our country will be more susceptible to a terrorist attack and human traffickers will be allowed to operate more freely. While Republicans spent the last three election cycles attacking Democrats for labeling their efforts at criminal justice reform as “Defund the Police,” they idly sit by as Trump gets rid of the actual police.

Next on Musk’s agenda is the Department of Education. With 4,400 employees, this department has the smallest staff of the Cabinet agencies. The $238 billion it spends is just 3.5% of the Federal budget. This includes funding for children with disabilities (IDEA), pandemic recovery, early childhood education, Pell Grants, Title I, and work assistance, among other programs. It is next on Trump and Musk’s hit list.

Shuttering the Department of Education would put our economy in danger since it depends on an educated population. The Department of Education also ensures schools do not engage in discrimination, guaranteeing equal access to education for all, including for those with disabilities. It also provides financial aid for higher education and monitors those funds. 

Trump says that his action will return power to the states, but the Department of Education does not determine what is taught in schools.  Individual states are responsible for their schools' curriculum.

What we want is a government that works for us. Instead, Trump has put us on track to have a lawless, ineffectual, underfunded government run by a dictator who yields all the power. If you doubt this, do nothing and watch it unfold. If you are concerned, know that If we are to save our democracy, it must come from the people.  The Congress is too cowardly and ineffectual to come to the rescue. 

See something, say something! And then do something!

“The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it.”
– Albert Einstein