Joe Biden conducted the most anemic presidential campaign in history.  Using COVID-19 as an excuse, he stayed off the campaign trail for months, limited press access, and held strange rallies with no voters in attendance.  When he called a voter “fat”, and challenged Donald Trump to a fist-fight, we knew he was past his prime  and his prime was never very impressive.  Nobody has ever admired Joe for his intelligence, wisdom, statesmanship, or creativity.  No, it was obvious he was merely a transport mechanism to deliver the White House to the political left -- rather like a political trojan horse --  with a “coexist” bumper sticker.

While we expected that a Biden presidency would have nothing to do with Joe Biden, I certainly didn’t expect it to look like this.  Is it just me, or do his executive order signing ceremonies look like creepy hostage situation videos? 

• Prisoner sitting at a desk -- check
• Prisoner appears disoriented and confused -- check
• Prisoner reading a statement clearly written by someone else -- check
• Masked captors flanking the prisoner to keep him on script -- check

It’s important to note that in these situations the power doesn’t reside in the guy seated behind the desk -- regardless of his title or any trappings of importance.  The power is held by the masked captors lurking the background.  The power brokers in the Harris/Biden administration are San Fran Nan and Not-Mrs. Brown Harris.  The most liberal former senator, and the most unhinged current congresswoman are the real shot callers in the executive branch now.

This raises another question, why would two people from the legislative branch be so anxious to circumvent the legislature?  Joe has signed something like 50 executive orders in his first month in office.  This puts him on pace for the most executive orders of any president in history.  This is an affront to representative governance.

A quick read of these executive orders reveals why the Speaker and the VP are using executive orders in lieu of congressional legislation.  Most of the orders being signed could not possibly withstand public scrutiny.  The American electorate still has a substantial helping of divinely issued common sense -- even if Washington doesn’t.  If these measures were debated in congress, the citizenry would be screaming at their representatives to “knock it off.”  A reading of the executive orders reveals that ambitious radicalism is hiding behind some very innocuous titles.

• “Ensuring a Lawful and Accurate Enumeration and Apportionment Pursuant to the Decennial Census,” is an order to count illegal aliens when determining how many congressional districts each state will be allotted.
• “Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation,” is an order to ensure that transgendered people may use any restroom they choose.
• “Protecting Worker Health and Safety,” is an order expanding the authority of OSHA to include measures like mask wearing and social distancing in private businesses.
• “Protecting the Federal Workforce,” is an order to unionize federal employees and protect bad performers from termination.
• “Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad,” is an order to re-enter the Paris Climate Accords, restrict fuel exploration and designate climate change as a national security issue.  Does that mean that the Patriot Act may be brought to bear against “climate deniers”?  After the “Russia collusion” hoax and “FISAgate”, who can say?
• “Restoring Faith in Our Legal Immigration Systems and Strengthening Integration and Inclusion Efforts for New Americans,” is an order to ensure aliens (even those of the illegal variety) have access to government programs and benefits.  It also changes the “public charge” calculation so that visa applications are not denied merely because the applicant would depend on government assistance to live in this country.
• “Establishment of the White House Office of Faith- Based and Neighborhood Partnerships,” is an order to expand policy making with regards to community faith-based programs.  To an operator of a church outreach program, can there be anything scarier than a federal employee telling you they’re going to “partner” with you?

Rather than debate these matters in the House and Senate, the power brokers have decided to just have the old guy in the blue suit declare them to be so.  They achieve their goals, and Joe gets all the blame.

I still have one question -- Why the rush?  Joe is signing executive orders at a pace of almost one per day.  The administration is behaving as if they’re working to a deadline.  Could it be that they’re trying to get as much done as possible before Joe inevitably blows up his own presidency?  Joe being Joe, it is only a matter of time before he does or says something so socially unacceptable that he becomes unsuitable as a delivery mechanism.

What happens when the “useful idiot” is no longer useful?  That’s where section 4 of the 25^th amendment comes in.  It allows the vice president, working with the cabinet and the Senate, to remove a president who is no longer able to discharge the duties of office.  Given that Joe wasn’t able to discharge the duties while running for the office, making this declaration after he’s in office seems rather straightforward.

With Joe Biden out of the way, what will the new administration look like?  It will be the Harris/Pelosi administration -- with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez serving as the new Speaker of the House.  I only wish “buyer’s remorse” were a company I could buy shares in.  Republican prospects for the 2022 and 2024 elections are looking better all the time.

John Green is a political refugee from Minnesota, now residing in Star, Idaho. He is a retired engineer with over 40 years of experience in the areas of product development, quality assurance, organizational development, and corporate strategic planning. He can be reached at greenjeg@gmail.com.

Image: Adam Schultz