A Little More Courage Please…

Said Dorothy to the Cowardly Lion

I picked up a new copy of Profiles in Courage a couple of weeks ago to give it a quick reread. I received my first copy from my Mom while still in grammar school (and it wasn't the" junior readers edition").

Betty, an elementary school teacher with a Master's in Reading and a well-deserved reputation for not only getting all of her students up to and beyond grade level mastery (but also to love reading), firmly believed in challenging kids to reach beyond their grade level. So, even though I was in fourth grade when I decided I was fascinated by politics, I got the adult version.

I managed to read the copy from my Mom enough that, over the years, it pretty much fell apart. My second copy disappeared at some point while I was teaching at the Naval Postgraduate School. -I had a habit of lending my personal books to students that sometimes went unreturned -and as long as it was read and then either treasured or passed to someone else, I'm good with that-

If you've never read the book—get it NOW! It is a volume of essays -short biographies, really- of eight Senators who, when faced with great moral dilemmas in times of national crises, defied both their parties and constituents to do what they felt was the right thing, all the while knowing that they would face great personal and political losses as a result of their actions.

One of the classic chapters tells the story of Senator Edmond Ross of Kansas, who cast the key vote to acquit President Andrew Johnson at his impeachment trial, and the other six Republican Senators who joined him in breaking with their party.

Indeed, one of them suffered a stroke only two days before the key vote due to the stress of the abuse and threats, including death threats, that were heaped on him. Though paralyzed, he defied doctor's orders and had four friends carry him into the Senate chamber to cast one of the key votes, acquitting Johnson and thus saving the system of checks and balances.

So I was sorta dumbstruck when I saw a video of Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska at a recent public appearance there, confessing to being "very anxious" about speaking out when she disagrees with the President.

"We are all afraid," Sen Murkowski told constituents. "It's quite a statement. But we are … we're in a time & place where I don't know, I certainly have not, I have not been here before. And I'll tell you. I'm often times very anxious myself about using my voice because retaliation is real. And that's not right…"

A Little More Courage, Please…..

Having just finished the chapter in Profiles on Ross, I was, to say the least, disgusted. However, in fairness to Lisa, she's not the only one scared. In 2021, Mitt Romney, the former Republican senator, and presidential candidate, told his biographer, McKay Coppins, of a senior Senate colleague who intended to vote for Trump's conviction at his Senate impeachment trial the previous year, only to change course when a colleague told him: "Think of your personal safety. Think of your children."

In September 2024, Mitt said he would not vote for Donald Trump but cited concern for his family's safety as one of the reasons he had not publicly supported Kamala Harris. "How am I going to protect 25 grandkids and two great-grandkids?" Romney asked The Atlantic. "I've got five sons, five daughters-in-law—it's like, we're a big group."

Liz Cheney, who played a leading role in the House committee investigating the January 6th insurrection and lost her Wyoming seat after being defeated in a GOP primary by a Trump supporter, told CNN that some of her Republican colleagues had voted against impeaching Trump because "they were afraid for their own security – afraid, in some instances, for their lives."

I'm sure most of us can spare a bit of empathy for all of these guys -surely threats by... let's face it, some pretty unhinged MAGA followers would scare the bejesus out of any of us-However, I have a few things to say:

First, GET A BACKBONE!! You've all been elected -in many cases multiple times- by the citizens of your state to provide LEADERSHIP. And that's not an easy job. Many of us speak out locally and online, go to protests, sign petitions, write letters to editors, write blogs, etc. It's not easy for us either. And yet we have no access to paid protection by the Capital Police when we're threatened or trolled online.

If so many of you are all afraid of these MAGA peeps, why don't you just band together with the Democrats, impeach (the House did it twice already, so they know it can be done!), and CONVICT him. I recognize that it requires a 2/3rd vote in the Senate -a heavy lift for sure, given the current political makeup of that body- but it sounds like there's more than enough of you confessing that you "wish" you could get rid of him to actually get rid of him! Don't you realize you could make history by saving our democracy? Instead, your inaction is dooming not only your party but, most likely, our country forever.

But just when I start to despair, Senator Chris Van Hollen - a sorta colorless, white guy—gets on a plane by himself and flies to El Salvador-even in the face of warnings from some commentators who worried that he could be walking into a "Leo Ryan" moment. Through quiet but persistent diplomatic pressure, he managed to get a meeting with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who has become the “face” of the ~ 240 Venezuelans who were deported to El Salvador, and returned the focus of the debate away from the individual and back to what is the issue: the shredding of the concept of due process. And there has been a steady stream of other Democratic representatives who've shown up in El Salvador since -though you'd be hard-pressed to find coverage of their actions by any mainstream media organizations .

Governor JB Pritzker of Illinois has come out swinging in New Hampshire, criticizing Democrats who have admonished the party for its perceived overreach as "timid, not bold." Senator Chris Murphy and Representative Jim Himes (both of Connecticut) consistently speak out, as do Represenatives Jasmine Crockett of Texas, and Jamie Raskin of Maryland. And of course, there’s the ever energetic-and consistent-Senator Bernie Sanders, and AOC.

But the real source of political courage these days is being demonstrated on a weekly basis by the judicial branch-and by individual lawyers. A string of state and federal district and appeals courts judges appointed by presidents of both parties-and including some appointed by Trump himself- have consistently ruled against this administration’s atttempts to bypass the rule of law and to replace our system of checks and balances with the unorthodox concept of a “unitary executive.” Indeed, even the current Supreme Court, in a 9-0 opinion, ruled that the right to due process applied to every person in this country, regardless of their immigration status or citizenship. Additionally, veteran lawyers and legal scholars such as Andrew Weissmann, Mary McCord, Melissa Murray, Marc Elias, Mark Zaid, Norm Eisen and —frankly, too many others to list!-have been consistent voices warning of the slide into authoritarianism.

So Lisa, take this for what it's worth: Look first to your fellow attorneys for inspiration. And in a world of Chuck Schumers, Gavin Newsoms, and James Carvilles, don't be a Chamberlain; be a Churchill.