Could it be that the Republican members of Congress have studied Japanese philosophy and are following Confucian teachings epitomized by the three monkeys who see no evil, hear no evil, and speak no evil? One monkey has his hands over his eyes, another over his ears, and a third one covering his mouth. The monkeys named by the Japanese are Mizaru, Kikazaru, and Iwazaru. They are supposed to represent Confucian precepts of averting impropriety by being timid and not seeking confrontation.
It is unlikely that the GOP members of Congress are students of Confucian thought. Though they are mimicking the actions of the three monkeys, they are following the directions of Donald Trump to see no problems in what he has said or done, to hear nothing, and to say nothing to castigate him, particularly in public or to the media. Though Congress actually has the ability to control the president’s actions, Republicans appear to live in mortal fear of what the president might do. Because of their cowardice, the president feels emboldened and believes he will pay no price for any of his behavior, utterances, or tweets.
In all probability, few of the members of Congress are familiar with Shakespeare’s works. They should read Julius Caesar and remember these lines- “A coward dies a thousand times before his death, but the valiant taste of death but once. It seems most strange to me that men should fear, seeing that death, a necessary end, will come when it will come.”
The Republican members of Congress in the House and the Senate have to stop acting like cowards and show a little backbone, standing up to President Trump with his threats, lies and arrogant conduct. At worst, they can lose a primary or an election to a challenger, but they need to show character and confront a president who has none. Trump is vile and vindictive, anxious to seek vengeance against anyone he believes has crossed him as he showed with Andrew McCabe, James Comey, and members of his inner circle who he treats badly or has dismissed. How could Jeff Sessions have remained in office when he has been disrespected and abused so many times by Trump?
Members of Congress have been elected independently of the president, are answerable to the American people and have pledged to uphold the Constitution. Presidential norms and the Constitution have been disregarded on numerous occasions by Trump and it is up to Congress to remind him when his behavior is inappropriate and to discipline him when he goes too far.
Trump bragged about lying to Justin Trudeau of our ally Canada about trade issues, and Congress heard no evil and the Republican leaders did not open their mouths to reprimand him. This whole dirty business with the porn star Stormy Daniels has elicited little reaction from the GOP. Trump’s firing of Secretary of State Tillerson by Twitter also resulted in Republican silence. But most disturbing has been Congressional inaction regarding Trump’s unwillingness to deal properly with Putin and Russia, for their meddling in the election and their killings of Russian expatriates on British soil.
Are the Congressional Republicans so afraid of Trump that they continue to act like the three monkeys with their hands over their eyes, ears, and mouth, to see, hear and say nothing that might anger the president? How does one instill intestinal fortitude (guts) in men and women who are cowards, thinking only about their chances for reelection? Character counts!
Resurrecting Democracy
www.robertlevinebooks.com
Political junkie, Vietnam vet, neurologist- three books on aging and dementia. Book on health care reform in 2009- Shock Therapy for the American Health Care System. Book on the need for a centrist third party- Resurrecting Democracy- A Citizen’s Call for a Centrist Third Party published in 2011. Aging Wisely, published in August 2014 by Rowman and Littlefield. Latest book- The Uninformed Voter published May 2020