Let's talk about Senators, strikes, and your questions.... - Belle of the Ranch

[TexasTowelie]

Well, howdy there Internet people. It's Belle again. So, today we're going to talk about senators, strikes, and your questions.

Senator Ruben Gallego was on a podcast and he mentioned what he believed the appropriate response from citizens should be if Trump tries to interfere with the elections. His statement definitely provoked a lot of commentary and questions from y'all. The questions were mainly asking if I think he meant it and some questions that could only be asked if you don't know his bio. So, we're going to go over what he said. Then, I'm going to give some information about him that people may not know.

Senator Gallego started by laying out that it was an extreme scenario and said, "We have to prepare for the outmost scenario, the worst scenario, which is they try to either capture the ballot box as ballots are being counted. They try to stop the count. They try to surround polling places, whatever it is."

Then he advocated for the use of a tactic that General MacArthur, a guy who wanted to use dozens of nukes in Korea, said was too deadly a social weapon. Gallego said, "We need to make sure that we have an ultimate response to that which I believe has to be a true national strike in the sense that if they do this, if they try to overthrow our democracy, if you are allied with democracy, do not go to work. If you're a pilot, do not show up. If you drive a train, do not show up. If you're a teacher, do not show up. we grind the country to a halt.”

Gallego then went on to explain the effect of a national strike. “If we have to destroy the stock market to save democracy, we need to accept that. And more importantly, the richest and most powerful people in the world and in this country need to understand that that is a real possibility. There is no economic stability without democratic stability. If you take away our democratic stability, we will take away the economic stability.”

Okay. So, what might have caused this view in Gallego? He joined the Marines when he was younger. In 2005, he was sent to Iraq. 2005 is when Iraq had their first post-invasion election. The insurgency flared. He was part of the 3rd Battalion, 25th Marines, and it was a rough year for them. They lost a lot of people.

I would imagine that seeing the cost firsthand probably made him appreciate a country with a long history of peaceful transition of power. I definitely think he means it. I don't think he's posturing as a radical. I think he 100% means it. He understands as well as anyone what happens when a government loses legitimacy.

Anyway, it's just a thought. Y'all have a good day.