Vengeance: the perfect way to destroy a functional democracy

If we were playing word association, you saying “Liz Cheney” would elicit only one response from me: “Black Angel of Death”. After all, how else could you reasonably describe a woman who feels it perfectly acceptable to impugn the patriotism of Justice Department lawyers who defend suspected terrorists? Never mind advocating for breaching the one thing that keeps this country from flying apart into violent, bloody revolution?

As satisfying as it might be to summarily execute those suspected of planning and/or carrying out acts of terrorism directed against the US, there’s this one little thing that separates us from so much of the world. It’s called the rule of law, and it’s what keeps this country from imploding in paroxysms of self-righteous violence of the sort that Liz Cheney seems to favor. The rule of law is why we enjoy the freedoms we do today. The rule of law is not swayed by convenience or passion or even expedience. Yes, it can be inconvenient and unpopular, but it is as transparent and fair as any human-designed system can hope to be.

Sometimes, the rule of law means that unpopular people accused of heinous crimes are accorded rights we might understandably find offensive. Terrorism provokes an understandably strong reaction within most Americans…but the rule of law can be, and is, maddeningly dispassionate. It neither recognizes nor respects emotion…and this is the thread that holds this country together.

When confirmed, hardened Conservatives like Starr, Graham, and even Charles Krauthammer come out and publicly condemn Cheney for her incendiary attack on democracy, even I have to smile. I may agree with this troika about as often as the Washington Nationals win a World Series, but even I have to applaud their commitment to the values that have made this country what it is and continue to hold it together. Democracy is not convenient. The Constitution, as John Adams once said, is not a suicide pact. Preserving and protecting democracy is neither easy nor convenient. We still hold that an accused is innocent until proven guilty…NOT that an accused is innocent unless they’re accused of terrorism or some other heinous crime…in which case they can, should, and indeed must, be summarily executed.

Liz Cheney is free to voice her opinion. Despite her best efforts, this is still a free country. Good and decent people are free to call her on her thinly-veiled assault on democratic values and the rule of law. From where I sit, Ms. Cheney really is the Black Angel of Death. Wow…the apple certainly doesn’t fall far from the tree, does it?