(ThyBlackMan.com)
The Twist No One Saw Coming
As this writer looks back on 2024; it has been a wild ride of its own, what with all this Trump business exploding on everyone’s social media feeds. Let’s face it, no one could have imagined sober discussions of whether or not Biden should pardon Trump for all the obnoxious things that went down. But here we are, living in this utterly bonkers timeline where anything can happen.
Some people might think I’ve lost my mind even stating this but bear with me for a moment. After Biden just flippantly dropped the mother of all pardons for Hunter, out of the clear blue, political analysts started connecting some pretty interesting dots. Democratic strategists were whispering quietly and looking toward bigger plays behind the scenes, while Republican heavyweights sitting on the sidelines, just unsure where this all goes next.
Look — nobody’s arguing that Trump’s legal woes aren’t serious business. Four indictments? That’s never-before-seen territory for any ex-president but especially one who’s currently one for the records. These cases really had everyone from law professors all the way down to the people sitting around at coffee shops thinking what this does this mean for the future of America, they were puzzling over it; and with good reasons.
Some law professors down at prestigious universities have been staying up late burning the midnight oil studying fine-grained historical precedents but to no avail because nothing like this has ever happened before. Just when they believe they finally got it right, however, boom — another curve ball comes outta left field to force everyone to reconsider everything they thought they knew about presidential power and its legal limitations. I can remember telling a class of my enthusiastic students at RDH University in Chicago, that there has never been a time in history where a person has perpetrated so much wrong, yet, got away with so much!
If you were watching any news channel you could find, there was thunderous debate over whether to pardon Hunter Biden or not. Conservative pundits pounced right away while liberal commentators attempted to parse convoluted legal distinctions among various kinds of cases. And average Americans are simply trying to make sense of what all of this means for the future of this country.
A Gender History That Will Blow Your Mind
Do you all remember learning about President Gerald Ford pardoning Nixon? Teachers were likely not emphasizing how controversial that decision was at the time. Ford literally burned his political future to the ground when he made that call, but most historians will agree decades down the line that in the end he likely saved America from tearing itself apart.
Let’s view this from the lens of a Historian: After the Civil War, President Andrew Johnson pardoned Jefferson Davis. We’re discussing pardoning a guy who literally tried shattering America into pieces! Makes today’s political beefs seem a bit a tame in comparison, don’t you think?
Real talk — the United States hasn’t been this fractured since bell-bottoms were still hip. Social media algorithms are radicalizing people into their own echo chambers, and cable news networks are living in completely different facts at this point. Families can’t make it through Thanksgiving dinner without someone sparking political arguments anymore.
Some religious leaders from various faiths began to argue that perhaps forgiveness could help heal these deep divisions in American society. They’re saying that holding onto anger continues to harm everyone, and that mercy just might begin healing the wounds. Does not sound too radical nowadays but, history shows, they could be on to something.
Economic Instability Effects That No One’s Discussing
Having taught college level History/Economics; this writer is aware that bigwigs on Wall Street typically keep their mouths shut on political stuff, but behind closed doors they are sweating bullets over all this uncertainty. International investors began to eye American markets sideways wondering if all this means our political system remains stable enough, however bruised, for long-term investments.
Foreign rivals observing this soap opera play out in real time while trying to figure out how to weaponize our internal divisions against us. And small business owners all over America are just trying to figure out how to make future plans when nobody can tell you what tomorrow might bring in a purely political sense.
Twitter (X), Facebook, TikTok — take your pick: People are fighting in the comments about these cases. Some are posting novel-length threads that break down legal technicalities, while others are posting spicy memes about the whole thing. Nightlines are controlled by keyboard warriors on both sides showing real guts while any of the real peeps that have been there and done it to share a balanced perspective are largely ignored. What else is new?
What This Might Mean for The Future of America
But this is where it gets really, interesting. Some political science professors have even begun to argue that pardoning Trump might, in a long view, foster healing rather than fracture the country further even if to do so feels like the most repulsive political betrayal imaginable in the short time frame. They’re arguing how ongoing prosecutions may turn him into a martyr and why letting him off could diminish his political power.
Democratic party insiders now privately concede they fear trials will linger through election season. Republican moderates suggest that pardoning Trump would help their party finally push past MAGA. Meanwhile independent voters want the country to address real problems that matter to everyday Americans.
President Joseph Biden is grappling with arguably the most difficult decision any president has faced since the Cold War era. His own base — they would go insane if he even thought of pardoning President-Elect Donald Trump. But sometimes real leadership is doing things that aren’t popular but are for the greater good.
Historical precedent suggests that some of the most significant presidential decisions often become the most controversial when they occur. Washington’s Farewell Address cautioned against just this sort of political tribalism tearing the nation apart in the present.
Some civil rights veterans see the current moment in contemporary history as like past junctures when the country was forced to choose between justice and reconciliation. They emphasize how choosing healing instead of punishment often worked out better over the long haul even if it seemed impossible over the short haul. Think about it!
The Bottom Line
This writer can well remember my last trip to the optometrist for new prescription glasses. Noticing a new Ophthalmologist had my file, a voice inside me said: “let’s have a little fun with the new doctor!” When asked to read the lowest line of type with the smallest font; I blurted out from behind the eye contraption; “This chart was made in China; copyright 2020.” Seeming to be a bit startled and responsive with a sense of humor of her own; Dr. Jenkins smiled and replied, “Well Mr. Buford; I see you have a sense of humor!”
Perhaps America needs to think bigger than mere legal fine print at the moment. Sometimes doing the right thing involves making choices a few people won’t like. History books are going to scrutinize this moment closely, no matter what happens next.
That’s exactly why future generations will study how we handled these unprecedented challenges. Question is meanwhile whether we’ll take the road that ends up with wedges driven farther and farther between various American communities — or whether we’ll opt for the route that helps undo this all and take a shot on getting us back together again as a nation of positive minded individuals from all walks of life.
Traditional justice certainly matters but national healing matters most currently. This really is not about whether Donald J. Trump merits a pardon or not. It is letting us know what kind of country we want to be going forward. Sometimes the greatest acts of leadership feel insane in the moment but register in retrospect through history’s prism of interventions. Just as Dr. Jenkins remained comfortable and professional in the face of reality; let us not become bitter and resentful at the idea of a pardon of perhaps the most notable and undeserving president in American history. The healing virtue of the process itself will far outweigh any negatives it might engender.
Associate Editor; Stanley G. Buford
Feel free to connect with this brother via Twitter; Stanley G. and also facebook; http://www.facebook.com/sgbuford.
Also his email addy is; StanleyG@ThyBlackMan.com.
