President Trump recently sent the American military on a mission, an invasion of the sovereign country of Venezuela, in order to kidnap the President of that country, Nicolas Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores. Both he and his wife were immediately brought to the United States, have been charged, and are now being held for trial.
The former Vice President of Venezuela, Delcy Rodriguez, has been given the title of ‘’Interim President’’. This is a mere formality, as Trump has made it clear that he ‘’plans to run Venezuela’’, and to ‘’extract the oil’’, of which Venezuela has such a great abundance. But then, Trump quickly changed his mind, and announced that he, Donald Trump, is now the ‘’Acting President of Venezuela’’.
Without doubt, Donald Trump is a man of action. Also completely impulsive. He acts upon any stray thought that crosses his mind. As he is now the President of the United States, he has considerable power. For that reason, those impulsive ‘’acts’’ can have most serious consequences.
One of those impulsive acts, was the invasion of Venezuela, and subsequent abduction of President Maduro. The people of Venezuela are not about to ‘’take this lying down’’. Their President may or may not have been well loved. It matters not. The Americans had no right to invade their country and kidnap their President. They certainly had no right to set Trump up, as their ‘’Acting President’’, to ‘’run’’ their country, and ‘’extract’’ their oil. They are about to make this abundantly clear!
This is by no means the first time the American imperialists have attempted to invade another country, take over the existing government, and run it, to their satisfaction. The only difference is that the invasion of Venezuela is more blatant. Yet the outcome is sure to be the same.
Perhaps the most clear cut example, was the American invasion of Vietnam. It was more subtle than the Venezuelan invasion. It started in 1950, when American ‘’military advisers’’ were sent to Vietnam, as part of the ‘’Military Assistance Advisory Group’’, (MAAG).
At that time, the French were at war with the democratic forces of Vietnam, referred to as the ’’Viet Minh’’. The official ‘’role’’ of those American advisers, was to ‘’provide logistical and technical support’’ to the French.
As is well known, the French were defeated, by the Viet Minh, in 1955, and this resulted in the country being divided, along the seventeenth parallel, into a northern zone, or Democratic Republic of Vietnam, and a southern zone, or Republic of Vietnam. This certainly did not end the war, or American involvement. The role of the American ‘’advisers’’ merely changed to ‘’provide logistical and technical support’’ to the military forces of the South Vietnamese, referred to as the Army of the Republic of Vietnam, (ARVN).
From a historical perspective, 1955 marked the beginning of the ‘’Vietnam War’’, which is to say the war between the ‘’North’’ and the ‘’South’’. In the South, the ‘’National Liberation Front for South Vietnam’’, or ‘’Viet Cong’’, came into existence. The American ‘’advisers’’ assisted the South Vietnamese army, the ARVN, in their war with the Viet Cong, as well as with troops from the North.
As is well known, this American ‘’advice’’, to the ARVN, was not sufficient to crush the democratic forces of the Vietnamese. So in 1964, President Johnson began a full scale bombing campaign of the North. As well, he sent ground troops into the South, so called ‘’boots on the ground’’, in an attempt to ‘’pacify’’ the South. At one point, a half million American troops were stationed in South Vietnam. Even this massive display of military power, failed to crush the democratic forces. The Americans were defeated, with the last of the troops leaving South Vietnam, in 1973. This American defeat, in Vietnam, is officially referred to as a ‘’withdrawl’’.
It may seem reasonable to assume that this ‘’involvement’’, within Vietnam, this attempt to subjugate another country, which lasted for over twenty years, would have taught the American imperialists a valuable lesson. It clearly did not. Or perhaps they have merely forgotten. Vietnam was not exceptional! It was typical! No other country is about to submit to American aggression! That includes Venezuela!
Without doubt, now the democratic forces of Venezuela are organizing, preparing to oppose this American invasion, this attempt to ‘’take over’’ their country, to steal their oil, among other things. Not about to happen! The Americans are about to find themselves involved in ‘’another Vietnam’’!
As if that is not ‘’bad enough’’, Trump also plans to invade Greenland, which will result in a war with Denmark; to invade Columbia; to invade Panama, in order to ‘’take over’’ the Panama Canal; to invade Canada, in order to make Canada the ‘’Fifty First State’’; to go to war with Iran! War on numerous fronts! Madness!
Now even the American imperialists, the monopoly capitalists, the multi billionaires, those who are determined to establish an Oligarchy, are aware that they have made a ‘’serious mistake’’. They thought they could control Donald Trump. They cannot. He is a ‘’loose cannon’’, completely out of control. Now they have to find a way to remove him from office. That is where the Twenty Fifth Amendment to the Constitution, and in particular, Section 4, comes into play. As it is so important, I have chosen to copy it here, in its entirety:
‘’Section 4, Declaration by Vice President and Others:
‘’Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.
‘’Thereafter, when the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that no inability exists, he shall resume the powers and duties of his office unless the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive department or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit within four days to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office. Thereupon Congress shall decide the issue, assembling within forty-eight hours for that purpose if not in session. If the Congress, within twenty-one days after receipt of the latter written declaration, or, if Congress is not in session, within twenty-one days after Congress is required to assemble, determines by two-thirds vote of both Houses that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President; otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of his office.’’
In more popular terms, this means that, if the Vice President and a majority of the Cabinet, which is to say eight Members, are convinced that the President is unable to perform his duties, then they can submit such a declaration to the Speaker of the House, and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate. The Vice President then becomes the Acting President. But then a similar response, by the President, in writing, to the effect that he is still alive and well, shall result in his resumption of the office of President. At that time, the Vice President, and the majority of the Cabinet, have four days to resubmit that same statement. At that point, both Houses of Congress, the House of Representatives and the Senate, have twenty one days to decide if the President is able to ‘’discharge the power and duties of his office’’. It requires ‘’two thirds of both Houses of Congress’’, in order to remove him from office.
As there are one hundred Senators, it requires sixty seven votes. As well, there are 435 Members of the House of Representatives, so it also requires the vote of 290 Members of the House, in order to remove the President from office. That is considered to be a very ‘’high bar’’, and with good reason. Both Houses of Congress, the House of Representatives and the Senate, are controlled by the Republican Party, the Party of Donald Trump. Such a ‘’two thirds vote’’, by both ‘’Houses of Congress’’, in order to remove him from office, is not about to happen. At least, not at present.
On the other hand, the revolutionary motion, which is currently sweeping the country, may ‘’inspire’’ the vast majority to vote for the removal of Trump, from the office of Presidency. It depends upon the power of the common people, as expressed in the strength of the revolutionary motion.
The only reason I have gone into this detailed description, of Section 4 of the Twenty Fifth Amendment, is because it is being considered, very seriously, by the ruling class of monopoly capitalists. The mainstream press is certainly covering it. As well, the Leftist press is devoting a considerable amount of attention to the matter. Yet even the Leftist press is failing to point out the class interests, which are involved. Sadly, that is typical of the Leftist press. Leftist in name only!
As well, there are a great many common people, by whom I mean workers and family farmers, who still have great faith in the existing legal system. It will take something more than a ‘’stern lecture’’, to persuade them of the correctness of Scientific Socialism. It is to their credit, that they are convinced by their own personal experience, along with the proper arguments, concerning the revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin.
For the moment, the ruling class of monopoly capitalists, the bourgeoisie, do not know ‘’which way to jump’’, to state it in popular terms. They are ‘’at their wits ends’’, so to speak. They succeeded in placing Trump back in the White House, at great expense, I might add, as a means of establishing the rule of the Oligarchy. Success! And now their ‘’Golden Boy’’ has turned against them! He is determined to act upon every stray impulse. In the process, he is sure to destroy the very state apparatus he is supposed to protect!
Yet this was foreseen, in the Communist Manifesto. As it states: ‘’Finally, in times when the class struggle nears the decisive hour, the process of dissolution going on within the ruling class, in fact within the whole range of old society, assumes such a violent, glaring character, that a small section of the ruling class cuts itself adrift, and joins the revolutionary class, the class that holds the future in its hands. Just as, therefore, at an earlier period, a section of the nobility went over to the bourgeoisie, so now a portion of the bourgeoisie goes over to the proletariat, and in particular, a portion of the bourgeois ideologists, who have raised themselves to the level of comprehending theoretically the historical movement as a whole.’’
The ruling class of monopoly capitalists, are currently in a ‘’process of dissolution’’. They are fighting among themselves, as well as with the ruling class of monopoly capitalists of other countries. Now we can expect a ‘’small section of the ruling class’’, to ‘’join the revolutionary class’’, the proletariat, the ‘’class that holds the future in its hands’’.
For our part, we must ‘’welcome them with open arms’’! Their class background must not be held against them! Bear in mind that both Marx and Lenin were middle class. Petty bourgeois. To be prejudiced against a fellow revolutionary, because of their class background, is to be prejudiced against Marx and Lenin!
On the contrary, their previous careers, as loyal and devoted servants of the monopoly capitalists, the bourgeoisie, will serve as valuable teaching aids. They will advise working people of the fact that such a service counted for nothing. The multi billionaires care only about themselves. There is absolutely no reward, for many years of faithful service.
These middle class professionals can also provide a most valuable service, after the revolution, in rebuilding the country. They have the education and training, necessary to organize any and all large businesses. These are skills which working people, proletarians, simply do not have.
With Most Sincere Communist Greetings,
Gerald McIsaac
Gerald McIsaac Science Project 