It is now day twenty of the partial American government shut down. The press reports that there is no end in sight, as both sides are deeply entrenched. In fact, the government is effectively dysfunctional, unable to pass any pieces of legislation. The partial shut down is about to expand, as the money for the federal courts is expected to run out in a day or two. After that, a great many more federal agencies will shut down on February 8, as that is the day they too will run out of money.
It is now abundantly clear that the ruling class, the bourgeoisie, can no longer rule in the old way. Let us examine the facts:
President Trump is a Republican and is determined to build his wall with Mexico
The majority of the Senate is also Republican and the leader of the Senate refuses to consider any bill passed by the House of Representatives – the Congress – if they think Trump will veto it
The majority of the Congress is Democratic and absolutely opposed to the wall
The Speaker of the House is supremely well aware that there are a great many new members of the House and if she gives in to Trump on the wall issue, she will face a rebellion and almost certainly lose her position
The Speaker of the House and the minority Democratic leader of the Senate met with Trump and Trump merely threw a tantrum and walked out
Trump now claims that the Chinese leaders are more honourable than the leaders of the Democrats
Trump now denies that he ever said that Mexico would pay for the wall – one of his main campaign promises
The Secretary of State contradicted Trump when he said that American troops in Syria were about to go on the offensive – as opposed to being withdrawn, as Trump has announced
It has been revealed that the former campaign manager of Trump was in the pay of the Russians
The press reports that the Special Prosecutor investigation is almost finished
The White House has just hired seventeen more lawyers, bringing the total up to thirty five, with plans to hire even more, in order to protect Trump
The White House is anxious to protect the ”executive privilege” of Trump
There are reports that the Special Prosecutor may consider the tweets of Trump as a form of obstruction of justice
The White House lawyers are determined to keep the report of the Special Prosecutor a secret from the public and the members of congress
The press is also reporting a ”new world order” in Washington
Trump says he will ”almost certainly” declare a state of emergency
A great many federal workers who have been forced to work without pay are now calling in sick – who can blame them? – and are being threatened with dismissal
The former personal lawyer of Trump will soon be forced to testify before Congress
This is the very definition of a crisis in capitalism, in which the ruling class cannot rule in the old way and has to change their method of rule. The vacillations in the ranks of the enemy is at its peak. It is perhaps not an exaggeration to say that they are at the throats of each other. The executive branch of the government, led by Trump, is at war with the legislative branch of the government. Further, within the executive branch, there exists a self styled resistance, which is determined to stop Trump, ”one way or another”.
Strangely enough, the press has largely forgotten about this resistance. They have managed to expose the lies and hypocrisy of Trump and the impotence within the government as a whole, but have overlooked the resistance. This faction within the Trump administration may be the most dangerous.
The members of the House and Senate, commonly referred to as both houses of Congress, are members of the legislative branch of government. It is their duty to enact laws, and it is the duty of the executive branch of government, headed by the president, to enforce those laws. But now the president wants to take over the authority of the legislative branch, and it remains to be seen if they are prepared to abdicate their authority. If Trump indeed declares a state of emergency, then the legislatures, the members of congress, plan to appeal that executive decision in the federal courts, which could take a while, especially as the federal courts will soon be shut down.
This could well explain the reason that Trump has held off on declaring a state of emergency. He may be waiting for the federal courts to shut down. Then the only way the democrats can challenge the state of emergency is by providing money for the courts and the only way that can happen is by agreeing to the funding for the wall. Either way, Trump wins.
It is not clear just how this proposed state of emergency is different from a state of martial law, although I suspect that in the eyes of Trump, they are one and the same. As soon as a state of emergency is declared, Trump may send in troops to build the wall and also send in troops to other parts of the country to restore ”law and order”.
That proposed state of emergency may be just the thing the White House Resistance is planning, as a means of seizing political power. They could well place Trump in ”protective custody” and take over the government.
That could well trigger the revolution as the working class rises up to defend their democratic rights. The activity of the most advanced strata of the working class is very high and may well rise to new heights as the revolution breaks out into open revolt. The vacillation and back stabbing within the ranks of the enemy can only help our cause.
Now it is up to class conscious people to raise the level of awareness of the working class, and in particular the most advanced strata of the working class, to the level of Marxists. The most advanced will lead, while the less advanced will follow.
For the moment, that ball is in our court, and time is not on our side.
Gerald McIsaac Science Project 