The international working class revolutionary movement continues to expand and gain strength. The uprisings in America, France and Hong Kong are most encouraging. Even the bourgeois journalists are impressed by their strength, and they expect these ”uprisings”, as they refer to them, to only intensify.
On the American front, so to speak, a simple phone call may spell the end of Trump. Even the strongest supporters of capitalism are outraged. It should be noted that such people do not refer to this as capitalism, but as democracy. In all fairness to such supporters, it is indeed democracy, but democracy for the ruling class of capitalists, the bourgeoisie. For the working class, the proletariat, it is a dictatorship. The dictatorship of the bourgeoisie.
This particular phone call, which Trump insists was ”perfect”, was a conversation between Trump and the president of Ukraine. The Ukrainian president raised the topic of the vast quantity of military aid which the American congress had voted to be sent to the Ukraine. Trump responded by saying that he first wanted a ”favour”, which is to say that he first wanted ”dirt” on his main political rival.
The press is reporting on this conversation with considerable enthusiasm. They are using the term ”quid pro quo”, while at the same time assuming that their audience is aware of the meaning of the term. To most working people, this is ”Greek”, as indeed it may well be. With that in mind, I will explain that the term means ”a favour for a favour”. Then again, the Speaker of the House is bluntly referring to it as a bribe.
The significance of that statement is that bribery is mentioned in the Constitution as grounds for impeachment and subsequent removal from office of the presidency. We will soon see if the charge of bribery is included in his trial by the Senate.
The individual who reported this phone call is referred to as a ”whistleblower”, and is a very brave soul, someone who just committed career suicide. This person took a stand on principle, sacrificing career in the interest of doing the right thing. It has just been reported that a second such ”whistleblower” has also come forward, with even more incriminating information, with possible reports of alleged tax evasions.
Such people are few and far between. It is almost certain that their jobs will be lost, and the chances of getting a similar job are negligible. For that matter, as soon as the identity of these people are made public, their safety is in jeopardy. Trump has all but called for those people to be executed. He is suggesting that the people in question are guilty of treason. It is very likely that the identity of those people will soon be revealed. After that, Trump will have to assume responsibility for any harm which may come to them.
That report of one simple telephone conversation appears to have opened the flood gates, so that reports of other conversations are now being made public. Among other things, it is alleged that Trump told the Russians that he did not care if they meddled in American elections, as the Americans meddled in the elections of other countries around the world.
This particular phone call is a rather wild allegation, and has yet to be confirmed. If proven to be true, it marks one of the few times that Trump has spoken the truth. Of course the capitalists, the bourgeoisie, meddle in the elections of other countries, as well as their own. It is the common practice of all candidates for political office to seek ”dirt” on their opponents, in an effort to slander them and hopefully, win the election. As far as they are concerned, it is an ancient and time honoured method of campaigning for office. It is effective but also strictly illegal, a fact which seems to have escaped the attention of Trump.
More or less as a result of this, various starry eyed optimists are now questioning the sanity of Trump. They are now wondering if Trump knows the difference between right and wrong. With time and patience, such optimists may soon come to realize that Trump is a capitalist, a member of the bourgeoisie, and merely a typical member of that class. All such people are extremely rich and accustomed to doing whatever they want, and getting away with this. They have been doing this all their lives and do not concern themselves with such niceties as moral distinctions. At best, they may give some thought to legalities, but then that is the purpose of lawyers. They tend to have a small army of such people, ”legal representation”, to tend to such inconveniences.
At least, that is the way it used to be, but is no longer. The revolutionary up surge of the people, and not just working people but members of the middle class, even those who tend to be staunch supporters of imperialism, have changed the situation dramatically. Now the monopoly capitalists, the bourgeoisie, are being held accountable, and that includes Trump. Of course he has responded with rage, threatening one and all, issuing countless tweets which the journalists are now largely ignoring, as they are so meaningless.
The political pressure is so intense that the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, was forced to initiate impeachment proceedings against the president, something which she has long resisted. The late night comedians are the only ones who are really profiting from this. They have not had this much material with which to work since Nixon was in office. As the comedians pointed out, this is merely one more example of Trump doing that which he does best. He is forcing a woman to do exactly what she does not want to do.
The only requirement for impeachment is a simple majority of the House of Representatives, and that is almost certain to happen. Then, by law, the Senate is required to place the president on trial. In order to be removed from office, the president has to be voted guilty, by a two thirds majority, which is to say that sixty seven of the one hundred Senators must vote to convict. According to the Constitution, they must be convinced that he is guilty of ”high crimes and misdemeanors”. It is up to the Senate to determine that which constitutes such ”high crimes and misdemeanors”.
The situation has been compared to that of Nixon, when he was faced with impeachment and almost certain removal from office. But there are critical differences. Now the revolutionary motion is far stronger. The tricks which Nixon used to avoid removal from office and possible prison time are not available to Trump. Nixon made a deal with his Vice President, Jerry Ford. Nixon agreed to resign and allow Ford to automatically become president, but only in return for a presidential pardon. Of course Ford accepted, and Nixon avoided the humiliation of being removed from office. He also avoided any possible charges, such as ordering a burglary, which would almost certainly have resulted in jail time.
It is very doubtful that Pence will even consider such an offer from Trump, assuming Trump makes the offer. Pence may not be an intellectual giant, but neither is he entirely stupid. To grant Trump a presidential pardon would amount to political career suicide, at best. At worst, it could lead to further impeachment proceedings, this time against Pence, on the grounds of obstruction of justice and abuse of power.
Then too, at no point did Nixon involve his family in his crimes, which included the Watergate burglary. The same cannot be said of Trump, who has taken great delight in the matter. In particular, his daughter, son in law, and two older sons are allegedly deeply involved in various illegal acts, including such alleged crimes as election tampering, fraud, money laundering, obstruction of justice and tax evasion. It is not just the federal agencies who are investigating the Trump family. Numerous state agencies are also anxious to drag them into court. It should be noted that the president does not have the power to pardon people convicted of state crimes.
It is entirely possible that the one person whom Trump trusted completely, is the one person whom he had no reason to trust. This one person was his personal lawyer, and no doubt Trump thought that anything he said to his lawyer was strictly confidential. While there is considerable truth to this, the press is reporting that it is entirely possible that this lawyer was being paid by a federal agency within the White House, and not by Trump. It is quite possible that Trump chose to save a great deal of money by having the American tax payer foot the bill for his personal lawyer. If that is indeed the case, it was a huge mistake.
By law, the lawyer was representing the federal agency which was paying him, and not Trump. Any conversations between the lawyer and Trump are not covered by lawyer-client confidentiality. This lawyer, who was formerly the mayor of New York City, may well be forced to testify against Trump. As he was allegedly also involved in various crimes, orchestrated by Trump, he may also face various serious charges. If that is the case, he could well choose to testify against Trump, in return for a lighter sentence.
As long as Trump is president, the head of state, then he is quite well immune from prosecution. As soon as he is out of office, then it is open season on him. The same cannot be said of his associates and family members, as they can be charged at any time. Many, if not all of them, are facing some serious prison time. It remains to be seen if those same members of his family will turn upon Trump and each other.
As for those who dispute that, may I call your attention to Epstein, a man who was very likely as rich as Trump. Yet he was a convicted sex offender, a pedophile, one who made a great fortune selling underage children to various clients, many of whom were very rich, powerful members of society. In short, these people who bought children, fellow pedophiles, were also members of the same class, that of the bourgeoisie. No doubt these former clients of Epstein were concerned that he might be tempted to rat them out, as he was facing a life sentence.
To the great delight of these other pedophiles, those who have yet to be caught, Epstein very conveniently committed suicide while in prison. At least, that is the official version of events. Other people who have investigated the event, not in an official capacity, have come to completely different conclusions. They are convinced that Epstein was murdered. Either way, there are a great many rich and powerful pedophiles who are quite happy that Epstein cannot testify against them.
Perhaps the most serious allegation, given by a most devoted member of the establishment, a most devout supporter of capitalism, is that Trump is guilty of sedition. That is a most serious crime, similar to treason, and in years gone by, the penalty was the same, that of execution. Sedition consists of the crime of encouraging the people to rise up against the government, to undermine the government.
Surprising as this accusation is, there is some truth to this. The so called whistle blowers, those who report crimes which have taken place, are protected by law. This does not impress Trump, who is encouraging people to hunt these individuals down, or at least the people who have exposed the crimes which Trump has allegedly committed, and kill them. In short, Trump is defying the very constitution he has sworn to uphold. That is the very definition of sedition. After he is out of office, he may well be facing charges that are even more serious than I thought. The penalty for sedition may well be the firing squad. As the president is Commander in Chief of the American military, Trump is subject to military law. Military justice tends to be rather swift and unforgiving.
The important thing is that the members of the public, the American working class, is now paying strict attention to these developments. They are receiving a most valuable education. Their level of awareness is rising. They are becoming aware, if as yet only instinctively, of the awareness of classes. Now it is imperative for conscious people, those who are Marxists, to bring to the working people, the proletariat, the awareness of themselves as a class. Further, they must be made aware of the irreconcilable differences of the classes, of the necessity of revolution and the subsequent Dictatorship Of the Proletariat.
As a step in this direction, I can once again suggest that all American citizens join the two mainstream political parties, Democratic and Republican. It is open to all, is free to join, and as card carrying members of the parties, such party bosses decide the candidates to run for any and all political offices. Washington can then be flooded with Leftist people. For that matter, all state capitals can also be flooded.
This brings us to the revolutionary motion taking place in a different part of the world. The city of Hong Kong, an autonomous region of China with seven million people, is also experiencing revolutionary motion. The protests have been going on for several months now, and are growing in intensity. Many of the protesters are now wearing face masks, as well as gas masks, rubber soled shoes and gloves. They are throwing back the tear gas canisters which are being thrown by the police. They are also throwing petrol bombs, Molotov cocktails, which are glass bottles filled with gasoline. The police are responding by firing live ammunition. The violence is increasing in intensity. It is very likely that demonstrations are taking place in Mainland China, in support of their comrades in Hong Kong, but for the moment, the Chinese authorities have managed to keep this under wraps.
As yet, the biggest problem is one of Marxist revolutionary leadership. If they exist, the press is making no mention of this. Either way, it is just a matter of time before the true revolutionary leaders, very likely the veterans of the Chinese Cultural Revolution, make an appearance. Then we can expect the revolution to be focused and spread to the rest of China.
In Europe, France is also experiencing revolutionary motion, referred to as the Yellow Vest movement. The press is reporting that the movement is spreading to neighbouring countries, such as Belgium, Britain, Greece, the Netherlands and others. This is characteristic of revolutionary movements. In France also, the police are using tear gas and water cannons against the protesters. As yet the protesters have not turned on the fire hydrants in an attempt to reduce the pressure in the system, disabling the water cannon weapons.
The revolutionary motion which is going on in France is of particular interest for us, as historically that country has played a key role.
Engels had a few words to say about the country of France: ”France is the land where, more than anywhere else, the historical class struggles were each time fought out to a decision”. With that in mind, Lenin also had a few words to say concerning the country with a most proud revolutionary history. As he phrased it in State and Revolution, ”in the coming proletarian revolution, France may once again reveal itself as the classic land of the class struggle to a decision”.
For possibly the first time in history, we have proletarian revolutionary motion on three continents. As the history of revolutions confirms, it is rare that any revolution is confined to one country. They tend to spread. We can expect these revolutions to also spread.
It is entirely possible, if not likely, that we are on the eve of the world defeat of capitalism. The age of socialism is about to begin. A great deal depends upon us, conscious people. Now it is up to us to do our part. We have got to raise the level of awareness of all working people, to ensure that workers are aware of themselves as a class, with their own class interests, and with their duty to establish the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat.
As Lenin phrased it, (italics by Lenin), ”The severe and arduous struggle against capital was victoriously begun in Russia. It is now spreading to all countries.
It will end in the victory of the World Socialist Republic.”
Gerald McIsaac Science Project 