With every redaction, democracy dies a little; with every concealment, popular sovereignty is compromised.
Without attention to the conduct of government, democracy cannot be sustained. The one side of this preservation is through oversight; the other, the need for an informed electorate. In absence of the first, the second becomes a paper democracy. Full disclosure is at the foundation of meaningful franchise. Of what purpose is a vote, if you don’t know?
By sleight of chicanery and diversion of issue, recalcitrant partisanship has blanketed the nation with a dust bowl of disinformation. And, who shall lead the blind, if not the blind?
At the center of this cyclone of confusion is a man of questionable character. President Donald Trump may believe his intentions are good, but the means by which he carries out the responsibilities of office are inimical to democracy. Deceit and deception, falsehood and denial, defamation and denigration mark nearly every step along the way of his presidency.
Surrounding himself with unquestioning loyalty, he lashes out against the slightest of perceived offenses. His followers serve as a wall of deflection, hurling stones of vituperation. Through divisiveness, Trump has gained a political base, but the country has lost its solidarity. Paralysis is the condition and neglect is the consequence.
Enough of “fake news,” exoneration and redaction. Truth will out. It is a question of who will come to its aid. In order to go forward, full disclosure is necessary. A sanitized edition by a Trump appointee is not sufficient.
Eugene Clemens
Elizabethtown