Transition To Power Begins

The light that President Trump thought he saw at the end of his “election results lawsuits” tunnel, appears to have dimmed to a flicker, as funds for president-elect Joe Biden’s transition team have been approved. The head of the General Services Administration(GSA), Emily Murphy had refused to released federally mandated funds allocated by law to the Biden transition team so there could be what many thought, wouldn’t be a smooth transition to the new administration. Before president Trump, there was the traditional peaceful transition between the outgoing and incoming president, even during the 2000 election where Florida was the deciding state for a Republican victory. But President Trump, despite all of the evidence pointing to a Biden victory refused to concede a loss, but instead hired a battery of lawyers to file lawsuits challenging the results of the Electoral College tally. Trump had long said that he would not accept the election results, as he went all out to convince his supporters that the election would be rigged. True to form, the president has tweeted more than speaking, that there was widespread voter fraud in Democratic(blue) states, but not in a single Republican(red) state, without offering a shred of evidence. He went after the Black vote in places like Detroit, MI in an effort to invalidate them because Biden took Michigan with the Black vote. That’s like a stab in the back to those Black people that voted for Trump. Trump’s brand of justice is truly blind, but only through his eyes. Trump’s lawyers are taking him to the bank, as lawsuit after lawsuit has been dismissed by judges across the nation. But still, the president persists in fighting a losing battle, knowing that his eventual last day in the White House is rapidly coming to an end.

The fact that President Trump refused to make a concession speech didn’t change the outcome of his many legal challenges. The gamble that the president made to install conservatives to the federal court would be his Hail Mary Pass. But, absence of any evidence to even suggest widespread voter fraud, those judges upheld the dignity of the courts, handing the president defeat after defeat. Now Joe Biden can forge ahead assembling his administration, one that will reflect the diversity of the nation. Not even Republicans, except a few, have the kahunas to tell the president that it is all over. Republicans like Mitch McConnell, Lindsay Graham or even Louisiana’s Republican delegation will tell Mr. Trump that it is all over publicly. They dare not say anything to suggest that President Trump lost, only to say that he has a right to contest the results and have his day in court. But as Kenny Rogers said, “you got to know when to hold them, know when to fold them and walk away”. Only thing wrong is the president’s massive ego that won’t allow him to do just that. He will have to wear the label that he said of so many others(those not loyal to him) and that is of being a “loser”.

As the president is winding down his remaining days in office, he is doing one thing to keep “his spirits” up. And that is playing golf. Remember, when he said that he wouldn’t have time for golf, even as he criticized President Obama, saying that the former president played too much? He said that he “would be too easy” doing the job of being president. 250,000 Americans and counting if they could, would disagree with him. Though vaccines are on the horizon, the president will want to take all of the credit because they were developed on his watch. But just as equally fair, the president has to take the blame for the way he mismanaged the pandemic in this nation and all credit should go to the companies that made the vaccines. They have given hope to billions of people worldwide and the workload of our doctors and nurses will be less as people recover. President Trump can walk out of the White House with some dignity if he chooses. The first step is to step aside and let the new president enter. After all, that is what Barack Obama did with dignity and grace when Trump became president. Mr. Trump should show the same grace to president-elect Joe Biden. That’s the American way. Remember, the world is watching. So is God.