Inside the Party, Voices Speak — Then Go Silent
2015 — Lindsey Graham — CNN interview
“He’s a race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot.”¹⁸
2016 — Lindsey Graham — Public statement
“If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed… and we will deserve it.”¹⁹
2020 — James Mattis — Public statement
“Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people — does not even pretend to try.”²⁰
2023 — John Kelly — Interview
“He certainly falls into the general definition of fascist.”²¹
2021 — Liz Cheney — Congressional speech
“The President summoned this mob, assembled the mob, and lit the flame of this attack.”²²
2016 — Mitt Romney — Speech
“Donald Trump is a phony, a fraud… His promises are as worthless as a degree from Trump University.”²³
The Military Establishment Restates Its Oath
2020 — Mark Milley — Congressional testimony
“We do not take an oath to a king or a queen, or to a tyrant or dictator. We take an oath to the Constitution.”²⁴
The words remain.
Unedited.
Unexplained.
Standing alone.
The record is public.
The question is whether it will be remembered.
Biibliography
1. Donald J. Trump, campaign press release, December 7, 2015. Statement announcing proposed Muslim immigration ban.
2. Josh Dawsey, “Trump Derides Protections for Immigrants From ‘Shithole Countries,’” Washington Post, January 11, 2018. Reporting on immigration remarks during White House negotiations.
3. Donald J. Trump, Twitter post, July 14, 2019. Statements directed at four Democratic members of Congress.