Fearing jail and facing defeat, Trump will not leave office quietly – By Bill Blum (Salon) / July 16 2020
In the Age of Trump, no depravities are beyond the realm of possibility
The presidency of Donald John Trump is collapsing. Unwilling or unable to confront the deadly realities of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed more than 138,000 American lives, the president’s job-approval ratings have plummeted. The ravages of the virus, in turn, have triggered a deep economic slump, pushing unemployment rates to levels not seen since the Great Depression of the 1930s. There is a growing perception that our 45th commander in chief, never known for his intellectual acuity or moral rectitude, is unfit to lead the nation in this moment of extreme crisis.
Even the Supreme Court, with two of his own appointees on the bench, has seemingly turned against him. On the last day of its just-completed 2019-2020 term, the court released a pair of landmark decisions on presidential power, rejecting Trump’s desperate attempt to quash subpoenas issued by Congress and Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance for his tax returns and personal financial records. Writing for a 7-2 majority in both cases, Chief Justice John Roberts rebuffed Trump’s claims of sweeping presidential immunity and reaffirmed the bedrock principle that no one—including the president—is above the law.
According to many polls, if the election were held today, Trump would lose in a classic landslide. If the pundits are correct, the entire Republican Party could be dragged down with him.
Trump’s abiding corruption and incompetence have prompted urgent calls for his resignation by newspaper editorial boards, columnists and activists like Ralph Nader. Even before his stunning setbacks in the Supreme Court, there was considerable and widespread speculation that rather than face humiliation in November, Trump will step down in the fashion of Richard Nixon, or announce à la Lyndon Johnson that he won’t seek reelection after all.
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