In my post a few minutes ago I chickened out like a coward.  At almost 87 I should have known better.  Then I read a youngster’s post,  (https://annieasksyou.com), and got back on my feet.

In her post Annie said a lot of wise things, including quotes from retired Judge J. Michael Luttig’s appearance before the House select committee on June 16:

“The former president’s accountability under the law for the riot in the United States Capitol on January 6 is incidental to his responsibility and accountability for his attempt to steal the 2020 presidential election from the American People and thereby steal America’s democracy from America herself.

“That said, willful ignorance of law and fact is neither excuse nor defense in law. Willful ignorance, thus, is neither political nor legal excuse or defense available to the former President of the United States, his allies, and his supporters.

“The former president’s party cynically and embarrassingly rationalizes January 6 as having been something between hallowed, legitimate public discourse and a visitors tour of the Capitol that got out of hand. January 6, of course, was neither, and the former president and his party know that. It was not legitimate public discourse by any definition.

“Nor was it a civics tour of the Capitol building, though that day proved to be an eye-opening civics lesson for all Americans.”

He then distinguishes between the former president and many of his party—and “the rest of us Americans.” It’s “the rest of us Americans” who must be responsible for ensuring that our democracy prevails.

“We Americans begin to make this consequential decision this week, when Congress, rightly if painfully, takes us back to that day in January we want so much to forget but mustn’t, and reminds us of what was at stake that day and still, in what is this most unholy of wars.”

Luttig is decrying all partisanship and all attacks by politicians on our institutions. As he includes attacks on the judiciary, he obviously is being an equal opportunity scold.

He wants us, We the People, to talk to one another, listen to one another, and then encourage our political leaders to choose country over party.

“All it would take to turn America around is a consensus among some number of these political leaders who possess the combined necessary moral authority and who would agree to be bound together by patriotic covenant to stand up, step forward, and acknowledge to the American People that America is in peril.”

How will the consensus emerge?

“…the logic for reconciliation of these wars being waged in America today dictates that this number needs to include a critical mass of leaders from the former president’s political party and that those leaders need to go first.

“All of these leaders then need the patriotic will to extend their hands and ask of the others and of all Americans ‘Can we talk? America needs us.’”