Authoritarian Party
To the Editor:
MOUNT VERNON – On Dec. 11, 2020, Rep. Bob Gibbs proved himself to no longer be a card-carrying member of the Republican Party. Instead, he is now a candidate for the newly formed “Authoritarian Party.”
Gibbs, along with 125 other Republican congressmen, signed an amicus curiae brief in the Supreme Court to overturn the election results in Georgia, Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. Never mind that Gibbs is not a representative of these states, nor does he apparently believe in the Republican principle of federalism — that the states should choose their own electoral laws. Rather, let us focus on what Gibb’s signature means in realpolitik: he no longer cares for the Constitution or the electoral process.
The brief (and thus Gibbs) asserts “[voting] rules were deliberately changed” in these swing states in the months preceding the 2020 election. State governments are allowed to create and change election laws, and Republican legislatures in these states did so as a simple and necessary step to ensure a safe election in a pandemic. Only now, seven weeks after the election and a presidential loss, does Gibbs protest. Should the Supreme Court have ruled in Gibb’s favor, then the votes of 20 million Americans that Gibbs does not represent would be thrown out, the result overturned and President Trump reinstalled for four more years against the will of the people.
This is nothing more than political theater for Gibbs, who wants to keep his Republican base happy and avoid a primary challenge. But make no mistake, this act is an acquiescence to authoritarianism. President Trump wishes to remain in power for four more years, even if it requires overturning the will of the people and the rule of law; and because even in his loss President Trump continues to control the Republican party, Gibbs acquiesces to his seditious demands.
In ink, Gibbs has endorsed a process that would be reported as a coup attempt in any other country. Instead of backing up an electoral process that has reelected him in a landslide, Gibbs instead attacks its very foundation. As a former Republican, Gibbs’ principles are as far from Lincoln as I can imagine. They are now more in line with the seditious opponents Lincoln faced at the onset of his presidency than the founder of the Republican Party. Gibbs has proven he cares little for democracy, our Constitution, our principles and his constituents.
Trevor Rhodes
Mount Vernon
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