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Bending the Knee, Back, and Mind [1]

['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']

Date: 2025-04-30

There is a scene from one of my favorite movies, A Bronx Tale, where teenage Calogero “C” Anello, depicted by Lillo Brancato, asks neighborhood mob boss Sonny, portrayed by Chazz Palminteri, if he would rather be ‘loved or feared.’

x YouTube Video

I watched the movie again for the umpteenth time over the weekend, and the parallels between Sonny's iron rule over his sycophants and the Trump pall over the Republican party are frighteningly and eerily similar. Trump gives Republicans just enough to keep them flattened but not sufficient to inflate independent thought. You can see the discomfort Trump immediately feels when challenged because his patina of power lies in intimidation. The tears in his veneer were displayed last night in his interview with ABC correspondent Terry Moran. Moran pointed out the blatant deception of an altered photo of Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s hand signifying his alleged gang affiliation by an obviously superimposed set of letters and numbers, MS-13.

Trump seemed not so much surprised as offended by the temerity of a lowly reporter, whom he claimed to have hand-picked despite saying he did not know who Moran is—"They're giving you the big break of a lifetime,” Trump told Moran during the interview. “I picked you because, frankly, I never heard of you, but that's OK.” That is a well-worn tactic of Mr. Trump: to give just enough to engender control through fear. In this case, the fear of loss of access. Watching well-educated and politically savvy members of the GOP political and punditry class fall at Trump’s feet like obedient servants is disheartening for the prospects of America digging out of the Trump hole once he is off the grand stage.

Although it seems funny beyond absurdity, Mr. Trump, finally awake from his nap at the Pontiff’s funeral, baited his party with the ridiculous idea of submitting his name to the Catholic Conclave assembled to elect a new Pope. I have been around people like Mr. Trump in my lifetime, testing just how much humiliation one can take before you either fight back or yell Uncle. Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina took Trump’s bait and again yelled uncle. Graham was the first to respond to Trump's joke about becoming a President-Pope. The Hill and other publications reported Graham jokingly wrote on X, “I was excited to hear that President Trump is open to the idea of being the next Pope. This would truly be a dark horse candidate, but I would ask the papal conclave and Catholic faithful to keep an open mind about this possibility!” Graham wrote on Tuesday.

I have little doubt that Graham thought his post would be a funny troll to “own-the-libs.” The fear comes at the speed at which Republicans rush to feed the fevered imagination of Mr. Trump at every turn. The current head of the Department of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, once fed the tremendous Trump ego when he floated the equally absurd idea of adding his likeness to Mount Rushmore—presenting him with an eleven-hundred-dollar miniature replica with his face alongside America’s most legendary presidents. The then South Dakota Governor said she always tries to give gifts “that somebody wants to receive.” In that statement lies the essence of what is wrong with today’s Republican Party. In their eagerness to satisfy his zeal, he has taught them that cruelty is a substitute for loving thy neighbor, and the only real power is fear. Hopefully, the GOP will right itself, straighten its knees, stiffen its back, and stop its mind-bending gymnastics long enough to help save our union.

Your Vote is Still Your Voice

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