It was incredibly sad to see Donald Trump depart the White House.  As my wife watched his farewell address, there were tears in her eyes.  She saw him as a good, decent man who was maligned at every turn, all because he strove to put the interest of ordinary Americans first. 

The unending harassment Trump had to deal with as president will not abate.  There's the vindictive second impeachment coming, which now is apparently supported by senior Republican senator Mitch McConnell and other GOPers.  Heaven only knows what else private citizen Trump will be forced to endure in the future for himself, his businesses, and his family.  For as sure as God made little green apples, the ruling class will not be satisfied that he is out of office.  The elites have to ruin the man as payback for having the gall to challenge them, to deflate his base of support, and to discourage another Trump from rising in 2024.

Looking back at the hate, the lies, and even criminal actions directed at Trump, one might ask, what was his crime?  Strip away all the superficial charges of his coarseness and lack of knowledge of Washington, and what remains is what Angelo Codevilla wrote.  It was Trump's challenge to the prerogatives of the ruling class, who for years have been enriching themselves at the expense of the country. 

In the political sphere, Joe Biden is the poster boy of this enrichment process.  Biden is by all accounts a mediocre individual with no ethics.  Without being in politics, the low-watt Biden would be using his law degree to chase ambulances.  Yet Joe has grown exceedingly wealthy in "public service."  And sadly, rather than being the exception, Biden is the norm in Washington politics.  With that understanding, it's no wonder that the Uniparty wanted Trump gone.  He was blowing the whistle on them.  As Codevilla writes:

The principle consequence of the ruling class' opposition to candidate Trump was to convince itself and then its followers that defeating him was so important that it legitimized, indeed dictated, setting aside all laws, and truth itself.

Codevilla goes on to say "The Resistance" rallied every part of the ruling class in a mutually supporting effort to first resist and then to dispose of Trump.  High-level bureaucrats in the FBI, CIA, and Justice Department aligned with the media, liberal judges, the Democrat Party, Silicon Valley, corporate America, and last but not least the bought and paid for street thugs in this fatwa against a sitting president.  Also jumping in was the health profession, making sure the Wuhan virus was an opportunity that did not go to waste.  Again, all this was in the service of preserving the ruling class's privileged position in society.  And it was done on the backs of the American people.

Adding insult to injury on Inauguration Day is that this stolen election is being pushed down the memory hole right before our eyes.  In ten years' time or probably much less, you'll be considered a conspiracy nut if you even mention it, compared to those who think the moon landing was a hoax.  Such is the power of the progressives, who have an iron grip on the media and the schools from K–12 to the universities.  They can turn lies into a perception of "truth."  In the coming years, many a schoolchild will look askew at his father as Dad talks about the stolen election of 2020.

In this environment, there is a temptation on the part of many conservatives to say, "It's every man for himself" and tend to their own personal affairs.  Period.  This is what the left wants, for then it can mold society to its liking with little resistance.  This temptation must be resisted.  Hopefully, in a short time, the bloom will be off the rose of the Harris/Biden administration, and many of the ordinary people who voted for Biden will experience buyer's remorse.  They will come to miss Trump and his extraordinary accomplishments.  They will regret their vote in 2020 and aim to rectify it in 2022 and 2024.  That is my hope.

Image: Gage Skidmore via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0.