The Secret Reason that Trump Trampled on Lindsey Graham’s Memory

Guest article by Brian Tyler Cohen

I was on set at CNN’s State of the Union this morning when Donald Trump called into CNN for the first time in a decade for what was supposed to be a tribute to his late friend, Lindsey Graham. I should have known better.

Within moments, Trump explained that Graham called him last night and was “pushing very, very hard– you probably know that he wanted to do the Save America Act.” He attempted to offer words of sadness, but that’s not one of his settings. So instead, he immediately devolved back into this: “Where he was really becoming strong was the Save America Act,” Trump explained. “He was coming aboard I think for the filibuster, for terminating the filibuster, but before we did that, he was a strong advocate for Save America. And that’s what he was calling me about.”

With Graham’s body still warm, Trump went on a whole Sunday show circuit - NBC, CNN - to exploit the death of his friend in an effort to promote a voter suppression bill that would enable Trump to consolidate power for himself. I’ve heard of “never letting a good tragedy go to waste,” but perhaps Trump could have at least waited until Graham was in the ground before propping up his corpse for his own personal benefit.

But it raises the question: why is Trump so hellbent on passing this legislation that he would not only exploit Graham’s death, but even try to sacrifice his own housing bill? It’s because, as Trump himself says, passing the Save America Act would enable Republicans to “not lose an election for 100 years.” Trump will claim the Save America Act is about voter ID; it’s not. At its core, this bill is federal control over how all fifty states register and verify voters: there would be a nationwide proof-of-citizenship mandate, where the Trump administration would be the arbiter of who is or is not a citizen; states would be forced to hand their voter rolls over to the Department of Homeland Security, where they would decide who stays on those rolls; and there would be a functional end to mail-in voting outside a narrow list of exceptions, which disproportionately impacts the Democrats. It would amount to the federal government consolidating authority that has sat with the states for the entire history of this country, and putting it in the hands of an administration that has already shown exactly what it wants to do with that power. Again, Trump said it: Democrats wouldn’t win another election for 100 years. And for posterity, nobody who genuinely believes in free and fair elections tells you the payoff is a hundred years of uninterrupted control.

Trump is broadcasting that he will stop at nothing to exert his power. In my new book, The Day After: How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World, I argue that Democrats need to start wielding power like Republicans do. For too long, we have watched as the GOP has abused its power while Democrats write strongly worded letters. While Republicans barrel through our norms and traditions, we have become the de facto defenders of those norms and traditions. If Trump has shown us anything, it’s that our institutions are not as sacrosanct as we’ve been led to believe. But unlike Trump, we can overcome those barriers not for self-enrichment and vanity projects, but for virtuous reasons. We must deliver universal healthcare, we must combat climate change, we must expand voting rights, we must create a just economy, we must expand the Supreme Court, and we must reimplement the rule of law. But we need to have this debate now, so that when we take power back, we can hit the ground running by actually wielding power, not just talking about wielding power.

Please support this message by ordering my new book, The Day After, at any of the retailers at this link. For Meidas+ readers, I’m also offering signed bookplates. If you order the book before July 14, you can submit proof of purchase at this link and a bookplate will be mailed to you shortly after the book arrives. Finally, I will also be signing books in person during my book tour. Please grab tickets to join me on July 14 with Jim Acosta in DC, July 15 with Don Lemon in NY, or July 18 with Jon Lovett in LA.