Democracy is under threat

The metamorphosis of the Republican Party is now complete. From a party of stalwarts like Bob Ray, Jim Leach and John McCain, conservatives who could reach across the aisle and work with Democrats for common good, to election deniers and shape shifters like Lindsey Graham, Ted Cruz and Harriet Hageman. There can no longer be any denying that this is the new Republican Party, replaced with conspiracists, insurrectionist and the tin foil hats that former President Donald Trump still commands.

Harriet Hageman was recently in Cedar Rapids with Iowa Republican Party Chair Jeff Kaufmann to energize party supporters. At that event, Kaufmann called out Liz Cheney, for not being a “team player, for not helping the political party on the right side of things.” I applaud Liz Cheney for her unwillingness to be a team player, for refusing to go along with the charade of election denying that her party continues to propagate and her willingness to question the actions of a president who was twice impeached and continues to be out of control to this day. A president who some of his own cabinet and party members believed should resign or have the 25th amendment invoked. For Cheney and fellow Republican Adam Kinzinger, thank you for your efforts to protect our democracy. Kaufmann’s team is one that anyone who believes in democracy should not be on.

Political bravery is in short supply today. Maybe that is why it is easier for some elected officials who should know better still showed up at the Harriet Hageman event. Calling governors who accepted COVID relief aid “crack addicts,” and continuing to accept the “Big Lie,” Hageman and leaders within the party spew misinformation and attack the credibility of the institutions of our democracy that separate us from Third World autocratic banana republics.

Recent attacks by Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley and Congresswoman Ashley Hinson on the IRS and FBI are all part of a not-so-subtle organized effort by Republicans to vilify the two departments before formal charges are brought against the former President by the Justice Department. The FBI is great when they go after terrorists, but when they develop evidence that the leader of your party broke the law and conspired to lead an insurrection then it’s time to rein the Justice Department in. To elected officials engaged in this reckless betrayal, shame on you. You know better, but as “team players” you also understand that the best defense is a good offense, especially when you cannot defend, the indefensible.

Today, there is no denying that our democracy is under threat. This is not politics as usual, but one last “Hail Mary pass,” by Republicans to maintain their hold on power. Their acknowledged refusal to accept election results and failure to legislate based on facts, fuels the lack of trust that many citizens have in government and the institutions that were meant to protect us all. Circus barkers like Kaufmann and elected officials with no conscience who continue to peddle the “Big Lie,” need to look in the mirror and ask themselves the question “is this worth it? Is the selling of one’s soul, dignity and integrity worth it?” Or they can look to Liz Cheney who said, “If the cost of standing up for the Constitution is losing my House seat, then that’s the price I’m willing to pay.” It is time for Republican voters to ask themselves these same questions.

Dale Todd lives in Cedar Rapids.