YES, MR. PRESIDENT

Yes, Mr. President. Many of us recognized years ago the oligarchy you now say is upon us. The warning signs were clear, the writing on the wall unmistakable, and the opportunities to act decisively slipped through your hands. You and your fellow Democrats could have done something about that. We implored you to take bold action and use the tools at your disposal to safeguard democracy against the encroaching power of a select few.

We suggested you invoke the 14th Amendment, Section 3, to disqualify one of the oligarchs from holding office. This constitutional provision, designed to protect the republic from those who would undermine it, was left unused, relegated to theoretical discussion rather than practical application. The amendment that could have been a bulwark against the rise of authoritarianism was dismissed as too risky or controversial.

Now, the consequences of inaction are upon us. That oligarch will ascend to the presidency, and his fellow billionaires will stand alongside him, consolidating power and reshaping the government to serve their interests. The world’s richest man will effectively take over the reins of governance, wielding influence unchecked and unbalanced. Yes, the end of democracy as we know it is upon us. But we do not have you to thank for preventing it.

History will record this era as a pivotal moment when democracy could have been saved but was instead allowed to falter. The annals of history will show that the most significant failure and the principal cause of the death of democracy and the rise of oligarchy were not the actions of those who sought to seize power but the inaction of those who held the power to resist.

The resistance lacked leadership and the strength of office when it mattered most. You, Mr. President, were entrusted with the full faith and credit of the United States. You held the moral and constitutional authority to act decisively against the threat, yet the opportunity was squandered. The tools of democracy, left unused, have become relics in the face of unchecked wealth and power.

Let this be a lesson, however bitter. Democracies do not die solely at the hands of tyrants; they die from the silence and inaction of those who could have stopped them. As we enter this new era, marked by the dominance of the few over the many, let us not forget that the demise of democracy was as much a failure of resistance as it was a triumph of oligarchy.

The new dominant political party in the United States is a coalition of the super-rich, the locally wealthy, the ignorant, and the evangelical Christians. Together, they will rule the United States for four years and perhaps beyond. And rule it will be. Free speech and assembly will be curtailed. Benefits owed to Americans, for which they have paid, will be denied. Justice will be perverted. Nothing will be done to address society's ills or protect the environment. Instead, all political action will be marked by an "I want mine, and I want yours" ethos. Those who have will enhance what they have and commandeer what they do not.

The disparity between the wealthy and the barely surviving will grow exponentially. The poor and homeless population will increase dramatically, all because nothing was done to prevent the coalition from taking shape. The super-rich could have been curbed through a system of progressive taxation. The locally wealthy could have been provided with the incentive for empathy. The ignorant could have been educated. Evangelical Christians could have had their churches taxed and their political ambitions challenged. Separation of church and state could have been maintained.

In some cases, this happened over a long time, and in others, very quickly. And there is not any organized and effective resistance. The coalition needs to see the pitchforks coming. Let this be a lesson, however bitter. Democracies do not die solely at the hands of tyrants; they die from the silence and inaction of those who could have stopped them. 

William James Spriggs