How and why Trump was dumped even by Republicans

The acts of outgoing US president Donald Trump on the eve of the US Congress joint session, for the purpose of confirming the Electoral College votes in the last presidential elections, to say the least, and in the most respectful manner, were totally unbecoming of a chief executive of the most powerful nation on earth.

But stated more bluntly, it was tantamount to instigating a rebellion against the duly-constituted authority of a civilized country. And it emanated from the inducement of the highest official of the land. Once he vacates his office after the twentieth of this month, and with the Democrats controlling the White House and both chambers of the US Congress, private citizen Trump might be answerable for being a principal by inducement. There were five lives which were lost in the mayhem, and multiple damages to properties were caused proximately by the mob. Trump also had a moral accountability for inciting the people to take the law in their own hands. He disappointed even his own family and close supporters.

Trump's last-ditch efforts to derail the certification by Congress have caused many Republicans, including the vice president and the Senate majority leader, Mitch Maconnel, as well as former presidential candidate, Senator Mitt Romney, to withdraw their opposition to the certification of the votes in Pennsylvania and Georgia. What the outgoing president did boomeranged on his face. Trump lost his composure and in his desperation, he impulsively instigated a mob that placed the lives of senators and congressmen under clear and imminent dangers. Because of the president's immature, reckless and capricious actuations, even many of his close advisers and cabinet members abandoned him. He is a lameduck, and in a matter of two weeks, he needs to leave the White House in number 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. His belated address was a sham afterthought to lend a semblance of propriety to his position relative to the melee in the US capitol.

In contrast, incoming president Joe Biden from the state of Delaware, and vice-president Kamala Harris from the great state of California, are both persons of decency, with the highest respect for the rule of law and for the human rights of all races, white, blacks, Latinos and Asians. I have my highest respect for the GOP, the party of the great Abraham Lincoln, Ronald Reagan, Dwight Eisenhower and Theodore Roosevelt. But this outgoing president, with due respect to the office of the US president has caused me to lose some measure of esteem for the presidency. There are people who honor their positions, such great men like Washington, Jefferson, FDR and JFK as well as LBJ and Barack Obama. But others desecrated their offices and brought shame to their positions.

I have my biggest admiration for Vice President Mike Pence, who did his constitutional duty despite tremendous pressures from the president. He was cool, collected and patient. He listened to the filibusters of senator Ted Cruz and other Trump loyalists. He called for a recess twice to hear the objections to the votes in Arkansas and Pennsylvania and stayed till the end with Speaker Nancy Pelosi. He acted as a perfect gentleman, honorable, decent and patriotic. I give him my snappy salute and even in his defeat, like then vice president Joe Biden, in 2016 when he confirmed Trump as elected, these guys are the complete opposite of this outgoing president. Pence and Biden are truly decent, respectable and upright. I also remember Al Gore, who won in the 2000 popular vote (48.4% to 47.9%), but being the vice president then, calmly proclaimed his opponent George Bush as elected by 271 electors, to Al Gore's 266..That, to me, was honorable.

I think that the Democrats who will be in power will reexamine this voting system, where millions of voters can be overruled by only 270 electors. This seems to be incongruous in a truly democratic system of government. Well, we Filipinos learned Democracy 101 from the Americans, but on this one, the US seems to institutionalize an undemocratic system of choosing their head of state and head of government. The Democrats are likely to change this.