Politipress: Trump is destroying the transition of power
Credit: WSPN Staff
In the latest installment of Politipress, WSPN’s Atharva Weling discusses the new restrictive voting law in Georgia and what it reveals about the need for continued vigilance in the fight for social equality.
When president-elect Joe Biden won the presidential election on Nov. 7, President Trump set into motion his plan to turn the government into shambles. Trump has demanded a recount in many states, declared fraud nationwide and has totally disregarded Biden’s win. Trump is disrupting the transition of power, which is threatening the state of our democracy. A peaceful transition of power represents a healthy democracy, which we vitally need, especially during a pandemic.
The election of 1800 marked the first time in which the leader of a political party handed the reins of government to his opponent. In 1801, when John Adams lost the presidency to Thomas Jefferson, he committed to the first peaceful transition of power. This was a humiliating defeat for Adams, but his willingness to peacefully surrender power to Jefferson, despite whatever personal quarrels stood in the way, was an important moment in history.
The transition begins with a concession speech, in which the defeated candidate acknowledges their rival’s victory. The concession speech also traditionally covers the importance of American values, praises the democratic system and assures people of the fair process of the election. The next steps in this transition include a long list of meetings, filling in the president on national security, etc.
Inauguration Day is the final step in the transition of power, in which the outgoing president, their spouse and the vice president ride to the capitol with the president-elect, their spouse and the vice president-elect. This is where power is ultimately handed off to the new president. Inauguration Day has been an American ritual since the 1800s.
Now let’s get to Trump. The meetings in the transition of power allow for both health teams to discuss with each other. Now more than ever, we need to have these crucial meetings. We are living in a pandemic, deaths are totaling over 1,000 a day, and we need Biden’s COVID-19 plan immediately. Biden’s team has been pushing to start holding these talks, but Trump is holding back; he is too busy forcing states to hold recounts. Trump is responsible for some of these deaths; by not allowing for this new plan to activate, he is only hurting the health of U.S. patients suffering from the virus.
Trump is pushing our country towards autocracy. People believe what the president says. When Trump states that the election was unfair, his supporters believe this as well, which makes the new president seem illegitimate. Because all of these people will begin to question our system, democracy could take a fall. Trump is creating bigger issues in the government than ever imagined.
The last thing we want is violence during the transition of power. However, if Trump continues to guide his Republican supporters in the wrong direction, violence will likely become an issue. His supporters are angered by the results of the election now that they believe it was fraudulent too. Most concerning is that their next step could be violence. We could see these supporters take to the streets and use violence to “save their country,” as they view it. Trump needs to begin this transition of power before things get out of hand.
The destruction of our rituals by a president who is trying to hold onto his power should inflict worry. By straying away from these traditions, he could bring severe consequences to our system of democracy. This could lead our nation in the wrong direction, and regress the years it took for America to become a leading global democracy.
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Julia Raymond, Class of 2022, is a copy editor for WSPN. She does soccer and lacrosse for Wayland High School. Outside of school, she enjoys spending time...
Wayland Non • Sep 18, 2021 at 8:37 PM
WWG1WGA!!!
Linda Roche. LMHC. MA • Dec 5, 2020 at 7:23 PM
Reporter wrote a A factual and opinion column on the Transition of Power in our democratic society under the Trump Administration ! The article transcends not only why our country is so divided but more importantly where our country was headed under Trump And his Loyalists! This is the United States of America and the Voters Spoke ! God bless America ?? ! Finally the opinion piece or shall we say Free Speech written by this reporter was so positive and speaks to young people being the future and the inclusion of all people! Excellent! Thank you Julia
Jim Johns ancestor • Dec 3, 2020 at 7:55 PM
Jim John you have obviously lost your mind. You are either uneducated or selfish. Please realize that this article is a matter of facts and not opinions. Even if this was an opinion article, it should should not side with Trump as he is a racist, white supremacist, sexist, homophobe, incompetent, and narcissistic man – or should I say little boy.
Kevin Delaney • Dec 3, 2020 at 4:52 AM
Julia, your argument is proven valid with shocking news of unprecedented recklessness nearly every day. Last night (12/2), the president delivered a 45 minute speech fomenting even more bizarre lies that only cause increased chaos. His recently-pardoned former national security advisor Michael Flynn tweeted for him to suspend the Constitution, declare martial law, and order the army to orchestrate a national re-do the election because of their contrived, dangerous, and unprecedented challenges to what every reasonable state election official (where the results have all been certified), judges (who have thrown out 30 of 31 baseless lawsuits alleging fraud), and state officials on both sides of the political aisle know to be true.
Your views emphasize the age-old truth being systematically and dangerously undermined by zealots who refuse to accept evidence as determined by long-established conventions: that we are entitled to our own opinions, but not to our own facts. For consideration, here’s a link to the NYT piece on President Trump’s latest “concession” that bolsters your position: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/02/us/politics/trump-election-video.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage
Jim John • Dec 2, 2020 at 10:58 PM
Check this article out: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/23/us/politics/trump-transition-biden.html
There is a difference between LEGALLY disputing the election by making a case that showcases voter fraud vs. “The destruction of our rituals by a president who is trying to hold onto his power”
Kevin Delaney • Dec 2, 2020 at 7:31 PM
Important points Julia. As for Mr. John’s flippant assertions above, your position that the current president’s defiance of traditional peaceful transition norms is not a left or right issue, it’s an American democracy issue, pure and simple. Fabrication of dangerous untruths and encouragement of discord threatens very basic imperatives that are 230 years old, principles that hundreds of thousands have died to protect.
Jim John • Dec 2, 2020 at 12:37 PM
What happened to “Opinion articles written by staff members represent their personal views. The opinions expressed do not necessarily represent WSPN as a publication.” at the end of every opinion article? Or does WSPN truly endorse a left wing view every single time?
Meredith Prince • Dec 2, 2020 at 1:25 PM
Hi,
This opinion policy, which lists that statement, is now listed underneath the “About WSPN” tab in our “Policies,” under the section “Opinion Articles.” We felt it was redundant to write it under every opinion article, so it is now listed in our policies. WSPN does not endorse a political view as a publication, this is the view of the reporter who wrote this opinion piece.
Thank you,
Meredith Prince, Editor-in-Chief