Subject: Re: To Be clear
But the question remains, "do you believe that we literally were about to lose our democracy as a result of the J6 "insurrection?" If so, I would like to hear your speculation about how that occurs.

I'm the one who floated that most recently here, so let me give you my thoughts.

It's January 7, Mike Pence is dead, the insurrectionists are barricaded in the capitol. Trump wakes up at the Whitehouse, has a nice breakfast, then he..... <fill in the roadmap that leads to Trump becoming a dictator>

First off, that's not how it starts. That's a path to failure. If they killed Pence, they've already failed. If they kill Pence before counting the Electoral College votes, someone will have to replace him in the role that Pence filled. I'm guessing that would be the majority leader. With a 50/50 Senate and the Trump administration still in place, that would be Mitch McConnell. McConnell was against this whole plan from the get go. He openly encouraged his party not to engage in this. So he would have been just as much against it as Pence. And with the insurrectionists already having killed Pence, the appetite for the plan among the GOP membership would have dried up. Even in our real world, while there were 12 Senators who had said they would object to one or more of the states votes, after the riot, several of them did not follow through on those plans. Even more would likely abandon their previously announced plans, particularly with McConnell not cooperating in it.

So that alternate reality is a non-starter.

How the insurrection succeeds is by convincing Pence to go along with the plan. Here's how that works.

The riot finishes up, the Capitol building is cleared, and Pence is now scared enough to go along with the plan. He gets the "alternate" slates of electors, stands up in front of the re-convened joint session, and when he gets to certain states, announces that the state has submitted two slates and there is no way to tell which one is the actual slate. With those disputed and uncounted votes, neither candidate gets 270 electors and the decision is tossed to the House, where each state gets a vote. With more than half of the states having Republicans as the majority of their House delegation, Trump will win.

Are there potential legal objections to this result? Of course. But those objections will happen with Trump still as president - either finishing out the remainder of his proper term, or having taken the oath of office for second time. And with the office of the Presidency in his pocket, along with a majority in the House and Senate, he will expand his role over the next 4 years, incrementally changing the country from a democracy to a dictatorship. Judicial appointments will be of only those beholden to Trump. Executive branch Departments and Agencies are staffed with loyalists. Any judicial decisions contrary to Trump will not be enforced. The offending judge likely impeached and removed from office as a penalty.

The gist is not that Trump would instantly become a dictator, but that he will use the wrappings of democracy to enforce his dictatorial will. We'd still have Congress and courts and probably even elections. Remember that even Putin and Xi and Kim get re-elected from time to time. Bills would be debated and voted on in Congress. Judges would continue to make their rulings. But the only things that happen will be the things the dictator allows to happen. If anyone attempts to do something that is against the dictator's will, that person will be removed and their decisions immediately reversed in some way that appears to be consistent with our historical democracy, even though it is the dictator calling the shots. A state law passed that is "wrong"? The government officials will suddenly resign or die or simply change their mind. A new bill repealing the "wrong" bill will be passed. But nothing is actually democratic - done by the will of the people. It's all dictatorial - done in accordance with the dictator's wishes.

--Peter