I’ve just heard the news that the Administrator of the Government Services Administration (GSA) has signed off on acknowledging Joe Biden is the President-Elect and officially allowing the presidential transition to begin. What a relief! For the last few weeks I’ve swung from celebrating Biden’s election and the end of Trump’s awful reign and worrying that somehow, some way, Trump would be able to so undermine our electoral process as to steal the election. As recently as last Thursday, when the Republican members of the Wayne County, Michigan canvas board refused to certify the election, I feared the anti-democratic cancer would spread to other boards, aided and abetted by Trump and his stooges. With today’s action, my fears have abated and I feel certain a peaceful transfer of power will occur, but the fact that I and so many other American have witnessed the assault on our most fundamental democratic institutions means we will never again take our free and fair elections for granted. I’m grateful to those Republicans at the state and local levels of government who stood tall and incredulous at the behavior of Republican leaders like Mitch McConnell who tacitly aided and abetted Trumps efforts to destroy our democratic institutions.
I’m sure Republican leaders will now defend themselves by once again asserting they merely supported Trump having the opportunity to present his case. Yes, but. The door had only to open a crack from one of Trump’s assaults and they would have amplified his lies, condoned his behavior and further undermined our democracy.
With our national election drama now entering its final acts, my focus on Montana’s ’s biannual legislative process will sharpen and I suspect that same is true for many other legislators on both sides of the aisle.