In a New York Times interview on May 4, 2019, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi “discussed her concern that Mr. Trump would not give up power voluntarily if he lost re-election by a slim margin next year.”
That this could possibly happen is supported by the fact that, in October 2016, Trump would not promise to accept the results of the 2016 election against Hillary Clinton. Trump is known to deny realities he doesn’t like, and he typically tries to undermine any system that doesn’t provide the outcome he wants.
Trump believes he has the right to rule without being questioned. Speaking to the National Rifle Association in April of 2019, Trump referred to special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation as a “coup attempt.” In May, after the Mueller report came out, Trump approvingly re-tweeted Jerry Falwell’s tweet that, because of the Mueller investigation, “Trump should have 2 yrs added to his 1st term as pay back for time stolen…”
Now we have Trump stubbornly refusing to comply with any request from the House of Representatives for information from the Executive branch about Trump’s finances or his activities related to possible obstruction of justice. Trump is literally obstructing the Congressional investigations into possible obstruction.
Also, we are hearing increasing rumblings about sending troops to Iran. We must remember that it was Trump, not Iran, who withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (Iran Nuclear Deal). Despite this unilateral action by the United States, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) certified, in February 2019, that Iran was still living up to the terms of the deal.
The fear is that if Trump feels he might be removed from office, or if he is about to lose the 2020 election, he might start a war in an attempt to boost his approval rating.
Noting Trump’s narcissistic authoritarian behavior, historian Timothy Snyder, author of On Tyranny, said two years ago, “It’s pretty much inevitable” that Trump will attempt a coup to overthrow democracy. Things have been moving in that direction ever since with Trump’s attacks on the press, the intelligence community, the courts, and the legislative branch. Our democratic institutions and the rule of law have been increasingly undermined.
Are we doing enough to resist? Are our institutions and traditions strong enough to survive?
Now is the time of testing whether we can keep a republic or whether this republic is destined to change into a different, more tyrannical form of government. We must resist this.”
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (N.Y.)
Sources: Glenn Thrush, “Pelosi Warns Democrats: Stay in the Center or Trump May Contest Election Results,” The New York Times, May 4, 2019.
Zack Ford, “Pelosi said Trump might not leave office if he loses in 2020. He once said himself he might not,” Think Progress, May 5, 2019.
Patrick Healy and Jonathan Martin, “Donald Trump Won’t Say if He’ll Accept Result of Election,” The New York Times, October 19, 2016.
Lauren Egan, “Trump refers to Mueller probe as attempted ‘coup,’ says ‘I didn’t need a gun’ to fend it off,” NBC News, April 26, 2019.
Quint Forgey, “Trump: 2 years of my term were ‘stollen’,” Politico, May 5, 2019.
Jake Johnson, “Though It ‘May Seem Nuts,’ Experts Say Trump Endorsement of Two-Year Extension of His Term Should Not Be Ignored,” Common Dreams, May 7, 2019.
Chancey DeVega, “Historian Timothy Snyder: After Charlottesville, “we are hanging by our teeth to the rule of law”,” Salon, August 26, 2017.
Chancey DeVega, “Historian Timothy Snyder: “It’s pretty much inevitable” that Trump will try to stage a coup and overthrow democracy,” Salon, May 1, 2017.
Rachel Frazin, “Nadler: ‘We are now in a constitutional crisis’,” The Hill, May 8, 2019.
Brandon Conradis, “Trump lashes out at Dem talk of ‘constitutional crisis’,” The Hill, May 12, 2019.