From the Democrats of Hemet-San Jacinto
United We Stand – Divided We Fail
This past Saturday was the 76th anniversary of D-Day. The 15,500 men of the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions were dropped into Normandy at night. Another 57,500 soldiers landed at Utah and Omaha beaches at sunrise bringing the American number to 73,000. Along with British and Canadian troops the number of Allies totaled about 156,000. Germany under Hitler had swallowed up most of Europe and while by June of 1944 was retreating from Russia it was only because Hitler was keeping many troops in France to repel the expected invasion of the Allies. Hitler’s Germany presented the greatest threat to freedom and democracy that America has ever experienced ……until now. The oath taken by all military service personnel states: "I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. Today we have an even greater threat from a domestic source, an erratic, mentality challenged, narcissistic President who has clearly demonstrated a total lack of leadership. You don't need to take my word for it, read the complete article printed in the Atlantic by a highly decorated Marine General and former Defense Secretary, General James Mattis.
President Roosevelt gave the military specific goals and left the planning and details to the professionals, the military. He gave Gen. Eisenhower one goal, WIN, and tell me what you need. Roosevelt provided the leadership on the home front and let Eisenhower manage the war. Roosevelt rallied the American people, brought them together, rationing critical materials such as sugar, meat, coffee, typewriters, fuel oil, gasoline, rubber, and automobiles. Food rationing probably affected most Americans the most. Each American was issued a book of ration coupons each month. Rationed goods were assigned a price and point value. American’s were asked to grow “freedom gardens” to help save food for the 16,000,000 Americans in uniform who served in the war. Roosevelt united the American people.
The war could have easily been lost. A beach landing like Normandy is a big risk. An overwhelming force is needed. Hitler had the military strength to thwart the invasion. Fortunately for America and the world, Hitler thought he knew more than the generals. He refused to allow his generals to reposition troops without his personal approval and thus a weak and delayed response to the invasion allowed the invasion to succeed. We have a President today that thinks he knows more than the generals, knows more than his advisors, who thinks his instincts are infallible. But look at what some of his generals and advisors, both current and former are now saying. Current Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Gen. Mark Milley, head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff have resisted Trump’s push to invoke a 19th century law that would allow him to deploy active-duty military troops in American cities. Former Secretary of State under George W. Bush, Gen. Colin Powell denounced President Trump for “drifting away from the Constitution” this past Sunday and praised the national protest movement sweeping the country after the police killing of George Floyd. The retired war hero said Trump has completely lost control of the country with his mishandling of the protests and the coronavirus pandemic. John Kelly, President Donald Trump's longest-serving chief of staff and a retired Marine Corps general, said on Friday that he agreed with former Secretary of Defense James Mattis' assessment that Trump was harming the U.S. Kelly said that Mattis was right to raise the alarm about Trump sending in active-duty troops to quash protests. Mattis had long been reluctant to publicly criticize Trump but broke his silence this week after Trump called for the military to "dominate the streets" and had peaceful protesters cleared from the White House perimeter with tear gas so he could have a photo-op at St. John's Church. Kelly also alluded to deficiencies in Trump's character. "I think we need to look harder at who we elect," Kelly said, adding, "I think we should look at people that are running for office and put them through the filter: What is their character like? What are their ethics?"
General Mattis wrote in The Atlantic “Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people—does not even pretend to try. Instead, he tries to divide us,” Mattis writes. “We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort. We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership. We can unite without him, drawing on the strengths inherent in our civil society. This will not be easy, as the past few days have shown, but we owe it to our fellow citizens; to past generations that bled to defend our promise; and to our children.”
Dick Gale
President of Democrats of Hemet-San Jacinto