When the phrase “throw down the gauntlet” was first uttered, it meant that a formal challenge to a duel between 2 people using either swords or handguns had been issued. In modern times throwing down the gauntlet no longer means a physical fight, now it means to challenge or confront someone or something philosophically, verbally, tactfully or all the above with all of one’s might and resources. Based on what’s happening throughout the United States President Joe Biden has to throw down the gauntlet NOW in order to save America!!!
The last few weeks have reflected the broad range of issues and concerns every American President has responsibility for, everything from foreign relations to a domestic Covid-19 virus plagued economy. It was important for American prosperity that Joe Biden, as America’s new President, attended the G-7 Summit 2 weeks ago to deliver the message that America was abandoning former President Donald Trump’s America First go-it-alone policy, and returning to its traditional policy of encouraging democracy, peace, and prosperity for all nations through U.S. foreign aid and military assistance.
America’s humanitarian commitment at the summit to donate 500 million doses of the Covid-19 virus vaccine for use by about 100 low- and middle-income countries over the next year demonstrated America’s renewed leadership. Military wise it was strategically important that Joe Biden left the G-7 Summit and attended the NATO Summit. Where he successfully united all 30 member nations behind America’s planned withdrawal from Afghanistan and officially refuted any negative questions about America’s commitment to or membership in NATO, caused by the now-voided Trump America First go-it-alone policy.
Joe Biden returned to what he left in America when he departed for the 2 summits, bi-partisan negotiations for 2 new laws that directly impact American society. The American Society of Civil Engineers released its 2021 report card on the condition of America’s infrastructure, and America received a C minus. The status of many of America’s tunnels, bridges, crumbling schools that are vulnerable to earthquakes, municipal water purification facilities, the 15,600 high-hazard potential dams according to the Association of State Dam Safety Officials, and many levees are life-threatening desperately in need of repair or rebuilding. Hopefully, the bi-partisan infrastructure deal struck and announced after Biden’s return home will be voted into law.
Bi-partisan negotiations on the other law, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, have produced an announced preliminary bipartisan agreement. Sens. Tim Scott, R-S.C., and Cory Booker, D-N.J., and Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., said in a joint statement “After months of working in good faith, we have reached an agreement on a framework addressing the major issues for bipartisan police reform, there is still more work to be done on the final bill, and nothing is agreed to until everything is agreed to. Over the next few weeks, we look forward to continuing our work toward getting a finalized proposal across the finish line.” The issue of reforming qualified immunity and making it easier to sue police officers over allegations of brutality was a major sticking point in negotiations. Hopefully, Republicans won’t allow what recently appears as “for public appearance sake only” support for law enforcement to blind them from doing what’s right for American society.
In his election victory speech, President-elect Joe Biden said, “Especially at those moments when this campaign was at its lowest ebb the African American community stood up again for me, you’ve always had my back, and I’ll have yours.” Last Friday the Biden administration took a major step towards honoring his pledge. United States Attorney General Merrick Garland announced a lawsuit against the state of Georgia, it alleges that parts of the law “were adopted with the purpose of denying or abridging Black citizens’ equal access to the political process, in violation” of the Voting Rights Act. Garland added that the Dept. of Justice was prepared to also prosecute any other states that pass similar racial vote suppression laws. His previous announcement of doubling the number of lawyers in the civil rights division is proving to be prophetic. Because as of June 21, 17 states enacted 28 new laws that restrict access to the vote. And overall according to the Brennan Center for Justice, lawmakers have currently introduced at least 389 voter restrictive bills in 48 states in the 2021 legislative sessions.
All the aforementioned issues along with successfully administering both the Covid-19 virus war and the 1.9 trillion stimulus and economic relief law, have consumed the primary focus of President Biden. However recent developments in America now dictate that America’s world leadership standing, America’s military alliances, negotiations with Republicans to reach bipartisan agreements on foreign and domestic policy, fulfilling campaign promises to any political supporters, converting any Democratic Party policy initiatives into law through reconciliation, and even leading the Covid-19 virus war all have to take a back seat to the new catastrophic threat to American democracy.
The federal prosecution and most criticism of the new Georgia law center on the racial voter suppression aspects of it, such as outlawing giving food and water to people waiting in line to vote or eliminating no-excuse absentee voting, while practically ignoring the lethal aspect of the law to American democracy. Racial vote suppression is both morally wrong and illegal but with determination and sacrifice it can be overcome. A citizen can be unjustly denied an absentee ballot and still show up at the polls on Election Day and cast a vote, even if it means standing in a line for hours with no food or water. But when a citizen legally cast a vote and a partisan politician can legally decide, for any reason at all, that the vote will not be counted!!! As the Georgia law allows. A voter can never overcome the obstacle of their legally cast vote legally not being counted, regardless of how much determination they have or how large of a sacrifice they are willing to make.
Republicans are passing all type of suppressive and discriminatory laws to make sure this type of vote participation never happens again
Georgia is not the only state seeking to implement Jim Crow 2.0, the new practice of not counting votes based on political party affiliation or political ideology. According to the bipartisan organization, States United Democracy Center, 41 Republican-controlled state legislatures have introduced 216 bills that do everything from stripping their secretaries of state, governors, and nonpartisan election boards of authority to count votes in future elections and giving that authority to state legislators who will determine whose vote will or will not be counted, to criminalizing election procedures and practices that have traditionally been legal.
An American citizen’s legally cast vote legally not being counted is the American democracy and the United States market-driven economy KILLER!!! The one person one vote counted principle is the main foundation pillar of American political and economic democracy, if that pillar is removed or altered it would bring the entire house of American democracy tumbling down, making the building that came tumbling down last week in Surfside, Florida and its tragic loss of multiple lives look like a pleasant walk in the park.
President Biden is fond of saying “there is nothing America cannot do when we all work together.” The most basic way all Americans work together, and the 1st step to all Americans working together, is when all eligible Americans show up on Election Day vote their preference and have it counted among the total of all votes cast no matter how they voted. President Biden has to stop the pursuit of all other policy initiatives and focus 100% of his working attention on one goal, saving American democracy!!! By signing a bill into law that will at a minimum prevent an American President, any political party, any state legislature, any appointed or elected politician, or any federal, state, or municipal judge from stopping any eligible American citizen’s vote from being counted regardless of their political affiliation and who or what they voted for.
Since the United States Supreme Court let American democracy down its up to President Joe Biden to throw down the gauntlet and save American democracy
A law that would also eliminate gerrymandering, grant a national holiday for Election Day, prevent limiting absentee voting, prevent limiting ballot drop-off boxes or early voting, and removes dark money from campaign financing would be a plus and make American democracy more efficient, however, none of these proposed law changes is necessary for American democracy’s survival like the counting of every eligible vote is. As long as every vote cast is counted there is always hope those changes can be achieved in the future. If every eligible vote is ever legally not counted then American democracy transforms into an autocracy or worst a Hitler-style dictatorship and all hopes die.
Only a terrorist attack or military strike on America by a foreign power should stop President Biden from abandoning any and all other policy objectives, except for guaranteeing that every eligible vote cast in America is counted regardless of who or what the vote is cast for. Another consistent theme of President Biden is the battle between democracy and autocracy. As he has said “It is clear, absolutely clear that this is a battle between the utility of democracies in the 21st century and autocracies, we have to prove democracy still works. That our government still works and can deliver for the people.” Now is the time for American democracy, led by President Biden, to come through for the American people by guaranteeing that their most fundamental right to ALWAYS have their vote counted the way they voted regardless of who they voted for, regardless of what they voted for, or regardless of what political party they are affiliated with, is an American ABSOLUTE.
This is the very near future of American democracy if President Joe Biden doesn’t throw down the gauntlet to save it
Therefore to borrow and paraphrase the words of the repentant and reformed OG segregationist George Wallace. President Biden on behalf of the greatest democracy and the greatest people ever to trod the earth, the American people, must draw a line in the dust and throw down the gauntlet before the feet of Republican Party tyranny and vote theft, by declaring that he will use all his presidential bully-pulpit persuasive powers and 100% of any possible executive order authority to guarantee one person one vote will be counted today, one person one vote will be counted tomorrow, and one person one vote will be counted forever in America!!!