The damage done

"However, he is greatly concerned by the aftermath. The day after. The damage which has been done to our institutions."

In the middle of all the chaos and hullabaloo with Halloween and the build up to the Vikings game yesterday, I did see some news coverage (not very much however). This morning as my eyes were opening up, I was able to watch a national news show. Tom Brokaw (who I have always liked, as he is not a lap dog) was a guest as one of the pundits. He (as usual) said something very profound. 

He said his major concern is not who is going to win the election. The election will (mercifully) play itself out in a week and it will be over. However, he is greatly concerned by the aftermath. The day after. The damage which has been done to our institutions.

He is most concerned about the public's perception of the FBI. Has it been corrupted like many think the Justice Department has been? Was Director Comey in a "lose-lose" position, or could he have handled the re-opening of the Clinton probe differently? Was there almost a mutiny within the department over perceived meddling by the Justice Department? Where the Attorney General was thought by some to have her thumb on the scale? All good questions.

I have thought about this issue quite a bit over the past few years. The damage which has been done to many parts of our government. Like the IRS. Never popular with the electorate, but now feared as a political instrument. Hello, Lois Lerner? How about the reputation of the VA? The Justice Department under both Loretta Lynch or Eric Holder? Our political parties like the DNC? After what Debbie Schultz did to corrupt the Democratic primaries? How about our news media? Where thanks to Wikileaks, we know there is no more true "Fourth Estate".

Here is my fear as time goes on. Should Hillary manage to eke out a win next week, the corruption issue is not going away. She will appoint her own cabinet, including the Attorney General. Should the FBI find a "smoking gun" in those 650,000 emails, that Attorney General will be asked to address the issue from a legal perspective. Will that Attorney General follow the law, or will he or she end up being a tool of the Clinton Administration, and protect the Queen. 

I have said this a lot as of late. Donald Trump has really nailed it in the election. Our system is "rigged". From having two systems of justice (depending how you are connected), to the perceived or actual voter fraud in elections, to the politicization of certain government organizations. Trump wants to come in with a huge can of Raid and fumigate Washington. Kick over the tables of the money changers in the temple. Fix our broken systems and trade deals. Can he do it? Even if he can only make a dent in it, his Presidency will be worth it.

One week to go. Will we do more of the same, or are we going to get a real change agent? Meanwhile, Wikileaks continues to cover the media with more hacked emails. Welcome to our new reality.