More Memorials than Inductees at Hall in 2021

More Memorials than Inductees at Hall in 2021
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
January 19, 2021

The 2020 Major League Baseball season, we hardly knew ye. Thanks to the evil Covid, the home plate umpires were not the only ones who donned masks. The 60 game season came and went in an instant, with the Los Angeles Dodgers winning their first World Series since 1988. With the 2020 season in the books, let’s hope 2021 will be a complete 162 game season, attended by at least some fans, and with a return to the traditional rules of the game.

Gone should be seven inning doubleheaders, extra innings beginning with a runner on second base, relief pitchers required to pitch to either three batters or end the inning, circumstances where the home team bats in the tops of innings and a visiting team has the opportunity for the very unusual walk-off. Also, the designated hitter should be dropped from the National League, and quite frankly the American League as well, but that seems like a pipedream. 

Now with the rather active Hot Stove season underway, with no umpires or players on the fields, many of which are blanketed under a bed of smooth, white, crusted snow - silent, slightly more silent than they were during the regular season. Yet while the ballparks enjoy their winter slumber, there is business of the utmost importance emerging from Cooperstown on Tuesday, January 26.

The Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) is finalizing their votes to determine who will fill the Hall of Fame Class of 2021. Is this the year for Curt Schilling? How about the likes or Barry Bonds or Roger Clemens - tainted by substance allegations? The only way steroid/HGH-addled balloteers should be admitted to the Hall of Fame is with a paid ticket for admission to the museum.

“We hope the day never comes when known steroid users are voted into the Hall of Fame. They cheated. Steroid users don’t belong here,” wrote late Hall of Famer Joe Morgan in a November 2017 letter to the BBWAA, hoping to influence their Hall votes in 2018. Hopefully Morgan’s letter continues to resonate in 2021 as cheaters such as Bonds and Clemens inch closer to the magic number of 75 percent - enough to grant one admission to the Hall.

The cloud of controversy has been dark and heavy, while initially eliminating some from Hall of Fame contention. Yet in the cases of Bonds and Clemens, the BBWAA voters’ support of Bonds rose from 59.1 percent in 2019 to 60.7 percent in 2020, and Clemens’ totals jumped from 59.5 percent in 2019 to 61 percent in 2020. Fortunately, remaining in low numbers are Sammy Sosa and Manny Ramirez. Sosa’s support moved from 8.5 percent in 2019 to 13.9 percent in 2020, while voting for Ramirez moved from 22.8 percent in 2019 to 28.2 percent in 2020, his fourth year on the ballot. Bonds, Clemens, and Sosa are on the ballot for their penultimate ninth year, and hopefully they will not reach the vaunted 75 percent by 2022.

The voting results are due to be released on Tuesday, January 26. What is not released are the ballots of the voting members of the BBWAA. Those votes should be disclosed to the public. Let the BBWAA voters defend their votes as I defend mine, even if not as a member of the BBWAA.

The National Baseball Hall of Fame has a so-called character clause. “Voting shall be based upon the player’s record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character and contribution to the team(s) on which the player played.” So-called because it has existed since 1945 and more than a fair share of miscreants have found their way to Cooperstown. (https://baseballhall.org/hall-of-famers/bbwaa-rules-for-election)

With voting in mind, were I a privileged member of the BBWAA charged with the task of electing the Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2021, only three former major leaguers would earn my votes - all three, holdovers. Of those three, maybe one will be enshrined on July 25. Candidates must receive at least five percent of the vote in order to remain on the ballot should they not attain 75 percent the previous year.

Curt Schilling could finally reach 75 percent in this, his ninth year on the ballot. Schilling’s stock rose more than nine points from 60.9 percent in 2020, up to 70 percent in 2020. Schilling, bloody sock and all, is a six-time All Star who pitched 20 seasons in the big leagues – three with the Orioles, one with the Astros, eight-plus with the Phillies, three-plus with the Arizona Diamondbacks, then calling it a career with the Boston Red Sox. Schilling tossed 83 complete games, appeared in three World Series, and had three 20-plus win seasons within a four year span at ages 36, 38, and 39. Schilling should have his ticket stamped this summer – was my mistaken prediction the last eight years, and while I believe some members of the BBWAA are holding his politics against him, Schilling still belongs among those earning a plaque in Cooperstown.

Omar Vizquel, was the quintessential shortstop of a generation, having won 11 Gold Glove awards during his 24 year career, second most at that position all time. Vizquel was also the oldest shortstop to win a Gold Glove, having done so at age 39 in 2006. After five years with the Seattle Mariners, Vizquel took his talents to Cleveland continuing to be the defensive gem that will vault him into Cooperstown.

Vizquel was three times an All Star, overshadowed by Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees, who was elected to Cooperstown in a near-unanimous vote in 2020. On the field, Vizquel led the league in Fielding Percentage six times as a shortstop and is the all time leader in Fielding Percentage at .985. Vizquel shares the season record with Cal Ripken, Jr. for committing the fewest errors by a shortstop playing in at least 150 games with a paltry three. Additionally, Vizquel is first all time in double plays turned by a shortstop, third all time in assists at shortstop, and 11th all time in putouts made by a shortstop.

At bat, Vizquel compares rather favorably to Hall of Fame shortstops Ozzie Smith, Luis Aparicio, and Luke Appling. Vizquel hit more home runs than Smith and Appling, trailing Aparicio by only three. Vizquel drove in more runs than Smith and Aparicio, stole more bases than Appling, hit for a higher batting average than Smith and Aparicio, while collecting more hits than all three. This is the fourth year on the ballot for Vizquel, having earned 52.6 percent of the vote in 2020.

In his third year on the ballot, Todd Helton has earned my support. The 17-year MLB veteran played his entire career with the Colorado Rockies (1997-2013) batting .316 in 2,247 games with 2,519 hits, 369 home runs, scoring 1,401 runs, and driving in 1,406 runs. The Knoxville native finished second in the 1998 Rookie of the Year balloting, earning five All Star game selections in consecutive years, from 2000 through 2004. Appearing on MVP ballots in six years, Helton’s breakout season was in 2000, leading the National League in hits with 216 and all of MLB with 59 doubles, 147 RBI and a .372 batting average, yet could only manage a fifth place finish in the MVP race that season. Earning 29.2 percent of the votes in 2020, Helton will more than likely not earn induction this summer.

While it is important to not sully the Baseball Hall of Fame with the likes of Bonds, Clemens, Ramirez, and Sosa, the focus must be on the greats who will be enshrined this July and how they will continue to be the true ambassadors to the community as so many before them have been. Sadly, this is an ever shrinking community. The Class of 2020, Derek Jeter, Marvin Miller, Ted Simmons, and Larry Walker, to be enshrined this July, as Covid “rained out” last summer’s ceremony, raised the total membership to 333, of which, as of March 20, 2020, 82 were living. Sadly, as of January 20, 2021, that number has dwindled to 73. A daunting record seven Hall of Famers passed away in 2020, five within a 42 day period.

Al Kaline, “Mr. Tiger,” who never played a game in the minor leagues, and spent the entirety of his MLB career with Detroit, lived December 19, 1934 to April 6, 2020. Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1980, Kaline accumulated 3,007 hits, 399 home runs, 1,582 RBI, and scored 1,622 runs during a career that ran from 1953 through 1974. The right fielder earned 10 Gold Glove Awards, was voted into 18 All Star games, and garnered MVP votes in 14 seasons. In 1955, Kaline led the American League with 200 hits and a .340 batting average. Kaline was  particularly effective in the postseason, batting .379 in the 1968 World Series win over the St. Louis Cardinals. In seven games Kaline had 11 hits, cracked two home runs, and drove in eight runs. 

“Tom Terrific, The Franchise,” Tom Seaver, who put the then hapless New York Mets on the map lived November 17, 1944 to August 31, 2020. Seaver pitched 12 of his 20 year career, from 1967 through 1986, with the Mets achieving fame as the ace of the staff recording 311 wins and 205 loses, with a 2.86 ERA and 3,640 strikeouts. Seaver, a US Marine, earned election into the Hall of Fame in 1992, with the then highest percentage of the vote at 98.8 percent. Along the way, Seaver won Rookie of the Year honors in 1967, three Cy Young Awards, selected to 12 All Star games, earned MVP votes in 10 years, and was the Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year in 1969. Although he pitched many gems while with the Mets, it was not until Seaver became a member of the Cincinnati Reds that he finally tossed his lone no-hitter, on June 16, 1978 in a 4-0 win against the St. Louis Cardinals, at Riverfront Stadium. Seaver won 20 or more games in five seasons while leading the National League in wins three times and in strikeouts five times.

Lou Brock, the “Rocket,” who retired leading all Major League Baseball with 938 stolen bases, and still ranks number two, lived June 18, 1939 to September 6, 2020. The speedy left fielder played from 1961 through 1979, was selected to six All Star games and entered the Hall of Fame in 1985. In a record 12 consecutive years Brock stole 50 or more bases and stroked 200 or more hits four times, amassing 3,023 hits for his career, batting .293. In 1968 Brock led the National League with 46 doubles, 14 triples, and 62 stolen bases. Brock put up prolific numbers in three World Series, batting .391 in 21 games with 34 hits seven doubles, two triples, four homeruns, 13 RBI, while scoring 16 runs and stealing 14 bases.

Bob “Gibby” Gibson, who pitched with such ferocity he would have thrown at his own mother, or so the myth went. The career St. Louis Cardinal, who played from 1959 through 1975, lived November 9, 1935 to October 2, 2020. Elected to the Hall of Fame in 1981, the right-hander won 251 games and lost 174 with an ERA of 2.91, while striking out 3,117 batters. Gibson won an MVP Award, two Cy Youngs, an impressive nine Gold Gloves, while also being named to nine All Star teams. So dominant was Gibson in 1968 with a miniscule 1.12 ERA, that Major League Baseball lowered the pitcher’s mound from 15 inches to 10 inches after his brilliant season. During the 1968 campaign, Gibson won 22 games while losing an astounding nine - talk about a lack of run support. Gibson led the National League with 13 shutouts and 268 strikeouts, along with the almost invisible ERA, en route to capturing the Gold Glove, Cy Young, and MVP awards that year. Gibson also put up solid postseason numbers, pitching in three World Series, winning seven games, losing but two, with a 1.89 ERA. He started nine games, completed eight, striking out 92 batters in just 81 innings.

Edward Charles “Whitey” Ford a.k.a. The “Chairman of the Board,” lived October 21, 1928 to October 8, 2020. He played the entirety of his career, 1950 through 1967, with the  New York Yankees, earning induction into the Hall of Fame in 1974. Ford won 236 games and lost 106, with an ERA of 2.75. Throughout his career, the southpaw Ford averaged 230 innings pitched per season and was selected to 10 All Star games. He led the American League in wins three times and in ERA twice. Ford posted career highs in 1961 with 25 wins, 283 innings pitched, and 209 strike outs, on his way to winning the Cy Young Award. He followed up his regular season by winning the World Series MVP winning two games, losing none, with a spotless ERA of 0.00. In total Ford won 10 and lost eight in 11 World Series with a 2.71 ERA.

Joe Morgan, “Little Joe,” the “Little General,” lived September 19, 1943 to October 11, 2020. He played the bulk of his 22 year career with the Houston Astros and Cincinnati Reds, which ran from 1963 through 1984. At the time of his death, Morgan had been serving as Vice Chairman of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum Board of Directors. An integral part of the Big Red Machine and a slick fielding second baseman, Morgan won five consecutive Gold Gloves, one each in 1975 and 1976 while winning the National League MVP both years. In those two years Morgan batted .327 and .320, stole 67 and 60 bases, drove in 94 and 111 runs - all career highs. His defensive career at second base continues to hold up, even 34 years after his retirement. Morgan ranks second in games played at the keystone sack, third in assists, fourth in putouts, and sixth in double plays turned. Morgan also successfully worked in the ESPN booth with Jon Miller calling Sunday Night Baseball for a number of years.

Phil “Knucksie” Niekro, who pitched until he was 48, looked every bit the part while still just in his 30s. Niekro lived April 1, 1939 to December 26, 2020. Niekro spent 21 of his 24 years in the majors with the Braves - the first two while the team still played in Milwaukee. The righthander pitched from 1964 through 1987, and was enshrined in the Hall of Fame in 1997. Niekro won 318 games and lost 274, pitching 245 complete games with 3,342 strikeouts in 5,404 innings - fourth all time. The knuckleball will take a pitcher a long way for a long time. He earned five Gold Gloves, votes for the Cy Young five times, and selected to five All Star games. Niekro worked like a veritable horse from 1977 through 1979, during his ages 38-40. In those three seasons, he pitched an average of 335 innings totaling 1,006, 18.6 percent of his career total, with 65 complete games. Niekro won 20 or more games three times, while losing 20 or more twice, including 1979 when he led the National League in both wins and loses, going 21-20, the last pitcher to win and lose 20-plus in the same season.

May their memories be for a Blessing, and may 2021 be a better year for one and all.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He has been a Patron-level member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame since 2007.

Silencing Trump, Silences Millions

Silencing Trump, Silences Millions

Commentary by Sanford D. Horn

January 13, 2021

“A government big enough to give you everything you want, is a government big enough to take away everything you have,” is erroneously oft-attributed to Founding Father, Thomas Jefferson.*

Now, substitute government with big tech, and one can understand the current quagmire the United States has entered. More than understand, the American people should be downright frightened. The far left socialist progressives are using George Orwell’s 1984 as a template and taking it to places Orwell could never have fathomed. 

The far left, which encompasses the so-called mainstream media, the behemoth tech companies, and the incoming Biden administration which includes the already sworn in 117th Congress are marching in lockstep - goose-stepping - past political oppression, past speech suppression, straight to totalitarianism. They are playing a dangerous game and they are playing for keeps, starting with amending all gender specific language to gender neutral language in Congress.

Here’s an example of the insanity before Biden is even sworn in. “(3) In clause 8(c)(3) of rule XXIII, strike ‘father, mother, son, daughter, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, first cousin, nephew, niece, husband, wife, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, stepfather, stepmother, stepson, stepdaughter, stepbrother, stepsister, half brother, half sister, grandson, or grand daughter’ and insert ‘parent, child, sibling, parent’s sibling, first cousin, sibling’s child, spouse, parent-in-law, child-in-law, sibling-in-law, stepparent, step child, stepsibling, half-sibling, or grandchild.’” (Wall Street Journal, January 5, 2021) This will only heighten confusion, not decrease it, and is merely the beginning of the insanity. 

President Donald Trump has been unceremoniously stricken from Facebook, Google, Instagram, PayPal, Pintrist, Reddit, Shopify, Snapchat, Spotify, Tik Tok, Twitch, Twitter, and You Tube. What is to prevent any of these companies from cancelling anyone they choose for any reason or no reason? The age in which we live could turn into one reminiscent of Nazi Germany where children were told to spy on their parents and report seditious speech against Hitler to their teachers. Americans could turn their neighbors in to tech companies for spying a Trump bumper sticker on their neighbor’s car, or a Trump sign on their lawn. Those tech companies could just as easily banish any one of us from any of the above or other sites.

And for good measure, Michelle Obama supports the ousting of Trump from his multiple social media accounts and stifling his free speech. “Now is the time for Silicon Valley companies to stop enabling this monstrous behavior - and go even further then they have already by permanently banning this man from their platforms,” Obama said on January 7.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel opposes Trump’s banishment from Twitter, saying, “the right of freedom of opinion is of the utmost importance; it’s not big tech’s job to decide what speech should be blocked.” So, the German Chancellor understands the concept of free speech in the United States better than an American First Lady.

These Silicon Valley oligarchs have foisted draconian measures on the president in a way so frightening as if to tell him, “we dictate to you, and you are nobody.” Silicon Valley next set its sights on Parler, a conservative social media site, and in an act of collusion Amazon, Apple, and Google shut Parler down in a matter of hours.

While Parler has been banished from the internet on baseless accusations of being the site used by people planning the invasion at the Capitol on January 6, in reality, Facebook, Twitter, and You Tube were the hosts of the overwhelming majority of pre-invasion chatter and planning, but they keep chugging merrily along. Parler’s exile, because it caters to a more conservative clientele, is just one of a number of slights to the right. So much for the open forums these behemoth tech companies brag about, and an example of antitrust abuse. Demonstrative of how wrong the ouster of Parler was, US Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) supported its removal, but not that of Facebook, Twitter, or You Tube.

“It’s not about holding everyone to account equally… it’s about giving preferential treatment to certain people and taking it out on others. Amazon, Apple, Google, they don’t care. They are using this to squash the first real competitor in this space in so many years. If there’s a cast for antitrust I think this is an example,” said John Matze, Parler CEO on January 11. Parler is subsequently suing Amazon for violating antitrust laws.

“Silencing people, not to mention the President of the United States, is what happens in China, not our country,” said Nikki Haley (R-SC) former governor and United States Ambassador to the United Nations.

According to Twitter’s so-called Civic Integrity Policy, “we want to make it clear today that the accounts of world leaders are not above our policies entirely… We will err on the side of leaving the content up if there is a clear public interest in doing so.”

Such total… hypocrisy. World leaders? Iran’s Ayatollah is still on Twitter. He’s less of a threat to public safety than President Trump? If Amazon, Apple, and Google have the power, and quite frankly the temerity, to take Parler offline, why is the Ayatollah still posting? Or Antifa? And for that matter, why haven’t these three so-called arbiters of internet decency shut down every single site trafficking in child pornography? Seems knocking those filthy animals out would take priority, but no, it’s about sacking millions of conservatives.

Err on the side of leaving content up if there is a clear public interest in doing so? More than 74 million Trump voters and countless other Americans simply supporting free speech is certainly a clear public interest. Clearly a double standard on the part of tyrannical tech.

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey still grants Holocaust deniers a platform, yet Trump supporters pose a greater threat to American civilization? While Parler was forcibly going dark, “Hang Mike Pence” was horrifyingly trending on Twitter. In reality, big tech, the media, as well as the liberal left socialist progressives actually believe the conservative movement poses a serious threat to their desires to turn the United States into a socialist country, enjoined with its evil trappings such as  the Green New Deal, Medicare for all, a minimum guaranteed monthly income, raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, a return to mandatory Obamacare membership, abortion on demand - full term, citizenship for illegals, continued support of sanctuary cities, a return to the Paris Climate Accords, and a reinstatement of the pathetic Iran deal.

Additionally, Twitter is busy lecturing foreign countries, specifically Uganda, having banned social media on the eve of its elections for president and parliament, scheduled for Thursday, January 14 on the importance of free speech, the importance of access to information, and to deny those, violates basic human rights, and that censoring people’s internet access is immoral. Such utter hypocrisy coming from the same company that has done just that to millions and millions of Americans. 

And as noted above it’s not just behemoth tech working to silence millions of conservatives. Forbes magazine announced it will not hire anyone affiliated or associated with the Trump administration, and it will doggedly pursue and attempt to ruin, financially, any business or company that does hire those linked to the Trump administration. “Forbes magazine’s chief content officer, Randall Lane, warned companies that may consider hiring Kayleigh McEnany, Kellyanne Conway, Sarah Huckabee Sanders and others who worked for the Trump administration. ‘Let it be known to the business world: Hire any of Trump’s fellow fabulists above, and Forbes will assume that everything your company or firm talks about is a lie.’”

“Cancelling anyone associated with President Trump, is not going to unite the country,” said Kelsey Bolar, an analyst with Independence Woman’s Forum. “This is just the latest example of cancel culture and the great purge that we’re seeing come from the left and never-Trump Republicans. This dangerous cancel culture, which wants to ban any American who had the audacity to support President Trump or work in his administration from being able to do something as basic as have a new job,” continued Bolar.

But back up on Capitol Hill, members are seeking to do more than just cancel some of their colleagues from across the aisle. US Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), and Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security called both Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Josh Hawley (R-MO) “domestic terrorists” who should be placed on the No-Fly list for the unimpeachable act of supporting the 10 day emergency audit of the votes in several states during the certification process of the Electoral College. 

Cruz and Hawley have been called insurrectionists, when nothing they did were the acts of insurrectionists. They were simply following their Constitutionally outlined duties and rights as senators. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) called for the pair to resign immediately. Even Joe Biden had the unmitigated audacity to compare Cruz and Hawley to infamous Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels. Is this Biden’s brand of unity? Will the more than 74 million Trump supporters also be labeled insurrectionists, domestic terrorists, or Nazis and also be denied air travel, or credit cards, or bank accounts on the way to becoming unpersons?

Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Ethics Committee, sought censure or expulsion of Cruz and Hawley. And digging even lower, US Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) compared Trump to Osama bin Laden - this coming from a member of the House Intelligence Committee, literally in bed with a Chinese spy.

None of this consternation and angst were directed at the Democrats who challenged the results of the presidential elections and thus the certification processes of the Electoral College votes in 1969, 2001, 2005, and most recently in 2017. No one called for anyone’s censuring, expulsion, or resignation, meaning, none of the Republicans balked at the free speech and Constitutional rights of the Democrats in the Senate. Even after Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) Tweeted that the 2016 presidential election was “hijacked,” there were no repercussions.

Additionally, while also not suffering any punishment, Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) encouraged the illegal actions in Minneapolis to continue following the burning down of the Third Precinct police station. “Everyone beware, they’re not going to stop, and they shouldn’t stop,” said Harris, who is slated to be inaugurated Vice President on January 20.

Then there’s the incendiary statement made by Biden, and applauded, not condemned, but applauded by many in the media. When asked if he would like to debate Trump, Biden said he wanted to “take Trump out behind the gym and beat the hell out of him.” When did this become acceptable, to threaten the president of the United States without retribution?

Ridding the internet of those evil, pesky conservatives allows the liberal left, socialists, and progressives to enjoy life in their echo chamber… chamber… chamber. But beware liberals, socialists, and progressives, once the conservatives are gone, they will come for you next once the infighting begins, and inevitably it will. “The cancel culture will come for us all,” said US Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH). This only exacerbates the problem of how free our free speech is, actually.

The diminishing of free speech in the United States is never more glaring than by the chilling words offered by Eugene Robinson, an associate editor with The Washington Post. Robinson actually called for the “reprogramming of Trump supporters,” and that “they are in a cult.”

CNN, in a most dastardly statement, having called for censorship, is working to have FNC removed from the airwaves, in an effort to eliminate its competition as it heads down a path toward totalitarianism. 

And only because it is relevant regarding the ever shrinking freedom of speech, a sham of an impeachment “hearing” was conducted on January 13 - one week prior to the end of Trump’s term. This was the Democrats response to the Capitol invasion of January 6. It really can’t be called a hearing as there was  no actual hearing, no witnesses, a complete lack of due process, no involvement by the Judiciary Committee - a total abuse of power. No matter, as the Democrats achieved their goal, casting enough votes to have President Trump the first president to be impeached twice. There were 232 yea votes, of which 10 came from Republicans, 197 nay votes - all Republicans, and four members not voting. No official word yet, as to a Senate trial.

Clearly there is an erosion of civil liberties in the United States commencing with a shrinking of free speech. Stand up for free speech before it no longer is free or even permitted. Once free speech is curtailed, what will they take next - our right to worship openly? Certainly the pandemic already set that in motion. And that would just be dangerous, toxic, and absolutely unAmerican. 

While the following refers to the deaths of multitudes during the Holocaust, it can also speak of the silenced. This passage is prominently featured in the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, of which I am a proud charter member.

“First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a socialist.

Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out - because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me - and there was no one left to speak for me.” 

--Pastor Martin Niemoller (1892-1984) a German pastor outspoken against the Nazi regime. His Continental manual typewriter, on which this brave pastor typed his sermons, is on display at the museum.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. 

*US Senator Barry Goldwater used the phrase during his 1964 run for President; and President Gerald Ford uttered it while addressing a joint session of Congress on August 12, 1974.

Chaos Cripples Capitol

Chaos Cripples Capitol
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
January 7, 2021

For the third time in the history of the US Capitol Building invaders disrupted the activities of the House and Senate. It will forever tarnish the legacy of President Donald Trump, and cost one veteran her life.

On August 24, 1814, on the heels of their victory in the Battle of Bladensburg (MD), British soldiers entered Washington, DC, and among the buildings set ablaze, the largely empty Capitol Building was among them. This followed the August 23 burning of the White House, then known as the Presidential Mansion, famously known for First Lady Dolley Madison running through the building saving the portrait of first President George Washington.

One hundred forty years later, on March 1, 1954, four Puerto Rican nationals, three men and one woman, invaded the House chamber, spraying 30 rounds from semi-automatic pistols wounding five Representatives: Alvin Morell Bentley (R-MI), Clifford Davis (D-TN), George Hyde Fallon (D-MD), Ben F. Jensen (R-IA), and Kenneth A. Roberts (D-AL).

The invasion of the Capitol Building on January 6, 2021, perpetrated mostly by supporters of the president, but with evidence of Antifa infiltrators, followed a peaceful rally for Trump at The Ellipse. These miscreants had a goal of disrupting the certification of the Electoral College votes, confirming, officially, the election of Joe Biden (D-DE) President and Kamala Harris (D-CA) Vice President, and as such the peaceful transfer of power from one administration to the next and from one political party to another.

Following the election of 1800, the nation held its collective breath wondering if there would, for the first time in history, be a peaceful transfer of power from Federalist President John Adams to his Vice President, the Democratic-Republican Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson defeated his longtime rival and sometimes friend Adams 73 Electoral Votes to 65. However, as there were four candidates for president, Adams was the lesser of Jefferson’s problems. In fact, Aaron Burr also garnered 73 Electoral Votes, sending the election to the House for a decision. After not one, not two, but 36 ballots, Jefferson became President-elect. Of note, Adams did not attend Jefferson’s inauguration.

For the first time in 220 years, that there would be a peaceful transfer of power was in doubt. On this date, January 6, the protesters ostensibly stormed the Capitol Building, attempting to breach the closed door to the House chamber. A couple windows would be broken, and sadly, one woman would be shot and killed. Ashli Babbitt of San Diego, a 14-year Air Force veteran and Trump supporter, died at the hands of Capitol police. 
Babbitt tweeted, a day before the “Stop the Steal” rally “Nothing will stop us… they can try and try and try but the storm is here and it is descending upon DC in less than 24 hours… dark to light.” According to several witnesses, Babbitt did absolutely nothing warranting getting shot, nor was she a threat to officers.

The following morning her husband, Aaron Babbitt, spoke with KSWB San Diego. “Joining up with people, like-minded people that also loved their president and their country. And she was voicing her opinion. And she got killed for it.”

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said “Disgraceful scenes in U.S. Congress. The United States stands for democracy around the world and it is now vital that there should be a peaceful and orderly transfer of power.”

In addition to the ruckus going on inside the Capitol Building, created by a few hundred people, outside the building many thousands behaved wildly creating a scene of total chaos reminiscent of downtown Beirut or Kabul, not the capital of the greatest nation on earth “a Republic, if you can keep it,” as Benjamin Franklin said leaving the Constitutional Convention in 1787.

One of the aspects of the certification of the Electoral College votes in a joint session of Congress, is the allowance for legal challenges which include calls for an audit of the voting process in the several states. Such challenges require a letter supported by at least one member of the House and one from the Senate. Several states were called out for such objections - Arizona and Pennsylvania while Nevada and Wisconsin lost their Senator support in light of the violent breach of the Capitol. 

These challenges became necessary, to those bringing them forth, due to accusations of voter fraud, witnesses being removed from the vote counting rooms, votes cast by the deceased, those who moved from that state, and a lack of purging from the voter rolls of those who should no longer be listed. There were also accusations of votes being cast illegally by felons, and by people whose signatures did not match the official registration forms. President Trump had maintained and continued to ascertain the occurrence of such fraud from the time the media declared Biden the winner. Continued rallies and speeches by Trump calling for recounts, the issuance of lawsuits, and calling the election stolen from him played to his base, as they remained loyal to Trump. Perhaps those sentiments and the inability to accept the decisions of the Electoral College led to the riot at the Capitol.

While I believe chicanery ran rampant in the 2020 presidential election, I applaud both Vice President Mike Pence and Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) for their words and actions. Although Pence and Cruz may have been at loggerheads in those words and actions, both followed the Constitution and should be recognized for that. Loggerheads because “It is my considered judgement that my oath to support and defend the Constitution constrains me from unilateral authority to determine which electoral votes should be counted and which should not,” said Pence, which in turn disappointed Trump who believed Pence could and should unilaterally overturn the voice of the people and the vote of the Electoral College. 
 
Trump tweeted, “Mike Pence didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution, giving States a chance to certify a corrected set of facts, not the fraudulent or inaccurate ones which they were asked to previously certify. USA demands the truth!” The truth is, Mr. President, Vice President Pence followed the path exactly as laid out by the Constitution of the United States.
Cruz, on the other hand, challenged the Electoral College votes of several states, as the most vociferous objector, perhaps along with Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO), also among their rights according to the same Constitution.

Because of his outspoken stance regarding the certification of the Electoral College votes, Hawley faced extreme backlash from Antifa or Antifa-like protesters showing up at his home terrorizing his wife and newborn baby - in the dead of night, calling them out, making all sorts of noise even after neighbors called police. Hawley appropriately called the trespassing thugs “scumbags.”

Cruz, Hawley, and the other GOP objector members should not be bullied into standing down, but should represent those 74-plus million Trump voters with increased vigor. However, in light of the devastating actions taken by several hundred domestic terrorists, many having been Trump supporters, but others who have also been identified as Antifa infiltrators, many of the slated objections were rescinded.
 
Yes, domestic terrorism, defined, as per 28CFR (Code of Federal Regulation), as “the unlawful use of force against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.”

I voted for Donald Trump - twice. But where was President Trump? He should have been on national television telling everyone to disperse and go home. These are mostly his supporters who attended a peaceful rally - “Stop the Steal” rally. That was peaceful. Peaceful protests - yes - all day long - that's patriotism. What followed was in no way peaceful. It's sad to say these are mostly hypocritical people who claim to be peaceful protesters, law and order supporters. The vandals, and other criminals, many of whom have been caught on camera breaking windows, scaling the Capitol Building, carrying off a Congressional podium, sitting in the chairs of the Speaker of the House and the Senate president, as well as trespassing in the inner offices of several members of both houses, should not only be arrested, but made to make restitution for destruction of the People's House. These hooligans should not have sunk to the level of BLM and Antifa. They have damaged the reputation of a movement that, heretofore, has been non-violent. And that is not patriotic. 
 
Taking personal offense specifically by the pinhead sitting in the chair of the Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich said “this is the center for freedom for the whole planet.” Gingrich had every right to be offended as he earned the right to sit in that chair having been elected to serve as Speaker of the House twice, from 1995-99 as a Republican Representative from Georgia.
 
It should be noted that the Washington Times reported spotting members of Antifa having infiltrated the mob. Certain hand gestures, tattoos, and modes of dress were their “tells.” Dressing in all black with hoods, tattoos with hammer and sickle were dead giveaways.
 
Regardless of who committed what crimes, these acts were egregious and destruction of government property is punishable with upwards of a 10 year prison sentence. The FBI stepped in asking people to identify those involved in the Capitol chaos, yet their sense of urgency did not seem to reach this level during the summer regarding the arson, looting, rioting, attacking and even the killing of innocent people in places like Kenosha, Minneapolis, New York City, Portland, Seattle, and Washington, DC.
 
I appreciated Biden making comments about the outrageous invasion at the Capitol Building, however, let the record show he too is a hypocrite for not offering the same appropriate condemnation of Antifa and BLM for the aforementioned crimes. Biden said that words of the president can both inspire and incite. His later words, along with those of Harris should definitely be considered inciting. Both Democrats said straight out that were BLM involved in the Capitol melee, they would be treated differently, implying that BLM would receive harsher treatment than that which was meted out on January 6. False. With targets on the backs of white police officers and phone cameras in everyone’s hands, BLM’s criminal behavior has mostly been overlooked. After all, for Exhibits A through E, see the above mentioned cities that fell prey to destruction this past summer. And in DC, especially false; in a city run by a black mayor, black police chief, and a majority black police force.  It’s important to remember, the police did not force Antifa or BLM to do anything. They acted under their own volition. 

More inciting words. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) compared the Capitol protesters to al-Qaeda on 9-11. Such extreme words would unlikely be uttered by Hoyer defining Antifa/BLM activities.  Additionally, the Congressional Democrats blocked a resolution condemning violence this past summer at the hands of Antifa and BLM.

Yet, I again wonder where President Trump was - he enjoys his camera time, and this would be the perfect opportunity to demonstrate real leadership.

“These are the things and events that happen when a sacred landslide election victory is so unceremoniously & viciously stripped away from great patriots who have been badly & unfairly treated for so long. Go home with love & in peace. Remember this day forever!” tweeted Trump late in the afternoon, which seemed like an afterthought.

Washington, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) demonstrated false indignation, first accusing Americans of “breaking into that building,” referring to the Capitol Building, which is open to the public. The questions she should have asked is how did so many people get past security or was security asleep at the switch? How did these thugs breach the Capitol perimeter? Bowser, never letting a crisis go to waste, suggested she was more upset about the activities at the Capitol than those perpetrated by Antifa and BLM throughout the summer. She also used her soapbox to beg for DC statehood, which is unconstitutional; but that’s an argument for another column.

The confluence of being bamboozled into believing there was a genuine chance of overturning the November election results, foisted upon Trump supporters by Trump himself, declaring voter fraud at every turn, and the frustration of being in Washington, DC on the day the Electoral College vote was being certified, lit the torch that many figuratively carried to the Capitol Building with their “pitchforks” and anger won out. To be fair, I too believe the Presidential election was rife with fraud.

But is Trump really to blame? This is a man who was ridiculed from the moment he and First Lady Melania traversed the escalator at Trump Towers in 2015. The media has been an unabashed arm of the Democrat Party, not even attempting to hide their biases. Then there’s 2016 Trump opponent Hillary Clinton who called Trump supporters “deplorables.” That went over like a lead balloon. Congressional Democrats called for the impeachment of Trump before he even took the oath of office; and when they finally brought impeachment charges, a party line vote sent it to the Senate for a trial where Trump was ultimately vindicated. Don’t forget the antagonistic and disgraceful display Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) made by publicly tearing up her copy of President Trump’s State of the Union address almost 11 months ago to the day. Media and Democrats constantly denigrating half the country. Constantly being demonized as rubes, white supremacists, Nazis, Nationalists - in a bad way, rednecks, and uneducated eventually takes its toll. Not to mention faux conservatives not supporting their constituencies. 

But make no mistake - Trump did not tell anybody to storm the Capitol Building, nor did he encourage them to do so. That they were able to breach the perimeter of the Capitol also is not the fault of Trump. That security may have been weak, is on Capitol police. Capitol Police Chief and the Sergeant of Arms both resigned with more heads to roll. Biden is right about one thing - there should be an investigation. While I in no way condone or endorse the behavior and actions that occurred inside the Capitol, and all involved should be charged and prosecuted for their various crimes, that it happened is not a total shock. These were not the actions of patriotic Americans, but instead thugs hell bent on destruction, those from Antifa with the goal of destroying Trump’s legacy. To be sure, what unfolded was a frightening scene that would normally be relegated to cable news footage from any number of Third World countries, not the United States, the beacon of Democracy.

All the comparisons to Antifa and BLM are not to defend the actions of the miscreant thugs at the Capitol Building, but instead to shine a bright light on the hypocrisy of those who appropriately called out those miscreant thugs while remaining silent during the summer of violence.

“Trump and I had a hell of a journey, but enough is enough. When it’s over, it’s over. It’s over,” said Lindsey Graham (R-SC), an important Trump ally in the Senate.

Trump later offered another tweet coming from the Twitter account of Dan Scavino, Trump’s Social Media Director, as Trump’s account has been suspended. “Even though I totally disagree with the outcome of the election, and the facts bear me out, nevertheless there will be an orderly transition on January 20.” Clearly that falls under the category of “way too little, way too late.”

My other major concern is the loss of the Senate and the freewheeling radical legislation and maneuvering to be attempted by the progressives, socialists, and liberals. The Green New Deal, court packing, abortion on demand through full term, the rolling back of the Trump tax cuts and new taxes to boot, granting statehood to the District of Columbia - which is unconstitutional, but that won’t stop the progressives, statehood for Puerto Rico, and increased censorship - see the new House rules - the 117th Congress has only been on the job about a week. (Should DC and PR actually become states, aside from the economic burden to be placed on the federal government and our pockets, there will be four Democrat senators in perpetuity, and the Republican Party won’t see the inside of the White House for generations to come, lest ye take the tour.) The time is now to prepare for the 2022 midterms - the GOP MUST come out swinging with strong, solid conservative candidates; not the limp-wristed, genuflecting RINOS occupying far too many Senate and House seats. Honor Trump and revitalize his legacy by winning back the House and Senate in 2022, and then the White House in 2024. Give the voters a clear choice of conservatives who believe in the rule of law, the Constitution, American ideals, the value of life, Capitalism instead of Socialism, Democracy instead of censorship and tyranny, freedom instead of perpetual lockdowns, as well as free speech and religious liberty.
 
I close with one of my favorite quotes from the Gipper himself, former President Ronald Reagan. “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.” May  G-d save the Union.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.