WE the People need a hero like Paul Mitchell because come January We the People will find out if our Legislature will be driven by bipartisanship politics or a stalemate that will surely spell virtually Death to our political process. I do know that the task for selecting a Speaker is going to be a difficult one because voters didn’t make a CLEAR choice as to which Party, they wanted to have control of the House of Representatives. It’s no secret the Governor is trying every trick in the book to get someone to cross-over and support Angel Demapan for Speaker but I just hope and pray that won’t happen because I really don’t want to have to sit in front of the Legislature protesting.
Ambrose M. Bennett
WE the People need a real Hero Republican like Paul Mitchell, who is leaving the Republican Party over the Party’s refusal to accept the election among the other ridiculous things perpetrated by Donald Trump. Sometimes enough is enough and I know it should be clear to all the Republicans with common sense that “the-gig-is-up” and its time to Do-the-Right-Thing and let the Democrats take the Speaker’s post. It’s common knowledge the Republicans have mess-up soooo bad in soooo many ways that Republican Party Loyalty is no longer a viable option especially when we know the Governor and other unknown Party Members are teetering on getting their orange jump suits. The People of the CNMI need some LOYALTY to the People over the Republican Party for a change which is why so many Democrats got elected. More importantly for the one, two or more who will stand-up for what is right and support a Democrat Speaker, they will not only have done the right thing, they will more than likely be the New Party Leader(s) in 2022 once the FBI finishes with the Party because “RICO” strongly implies the corruption and prosecution is more than just about the Governor.
I knew before the election there might be a challenge for the Speakership which is why I had been begging and pleading for voters to get rid of this ENTIRE group of Republicans and send a much STRONGER message or mandate for the Democrats to control the Lower House. I can’t reiterate it enough that I am not against all Republicans, just “THIS GROUP of Torresians” who don’t work for the People. We the People really need a NEW Group of Republicans which is why the Republican Party needs NEW Heroes/Sheroes because the present Party Leadership Gig is UP — for TRUE!
I do want to thank Senator Hocog for being the only Republican with the courage and fortitude to DO the RIGHT THING in speaking out against the DPS Commissioner investigating Rep. Ed. Propst, which was really a tiny step in the right direction towards bipartisanship. But I’m also very disappointed the Senate President allowed the Senate to be a “partisanship House instead of bipartisanship” given the most active Senator working FOR the People (Sen. Paul Manglona) can’t even get a seat in ANY of the Committees in the Senate -sad given the Senate’s size. I hear Vinnie Vinson Flores Sablan is trying to be the next Senate President and that he even has plans of running for Governor one day. But he needs to know that if he does get the President Seat that bipartisanship had better be his guiding-light if he truly wants to continue his career in the next election and his aspirations to one day be Governor. The Democrats and the People are NOT playing around anymore and the old Republican political games of putting THEIR people at the helm and in control in the past are going out-the-window just like the Republican Legislature did to the People showing disrespect with the NO Vote on the Casino more concern for IPI than the People and protecting a corrupt Governor.
Given the People didn’t make a clear decision by NOT voting in a majority Party it will require someone from the opposing Party to caucus with the other Party in order to determine who will be the Speaker. Under normal circumstances it would be a genuine up-hill political challenge for a Republican to support a Democrat Speaker but these are anything and everything but normal circumstances. The CNMI has technically arrived at the “Cross-roads for Political Leadership” in the mid-term elections making it difficult to move forward without real definitive commitment to a driver (a Speaker). In fact, our House of Representative can’t even function without a speaker which would literally spell DEATH to our Legislative Process in the House of Representatives so the last thing we need is “a Mexican Stand-off” with no speaker.
Bipartisanship will be the key to taking the CNMI forward in the next Legislature. Our newly elected Republicans need to take note of what WE are seeing Republicans on the mainland do in speaking up, out and against Trump and how foolish and even ridiculous he has been in the past and is still acting ridiculous with the election results. We have a Governor who has shown his disrespect for the Laws and we have the PROOF. We have a Governor who promised to tell us his explanation for “misusing our money” but LIED as he has yet to explain. We have a Governor and Legislature who sold-out the People to IPI and the Legislature out-right refuses to even hold the Governor accountable. Supporting the Democrats for the Speaker Post can’t be a bad thing for YOU but indeed a “star” by your name for doing the right thing in helping to put an end to the “in-Ur-face corruption” due to Republican control that must end.
Only in the last minute of the last hour did the Republicans finally give in to bi-partisanship and support the Democrats in getting ACCOUNTABLE added to the COVID Relief Bill to help to the People because accountability was the big hold-up. Trump wanted to give out over a Trillion with a lot of it going to businesses but there was “NO Accountability” in the Bill which is what the Democrats rejected, not the money. Heck, #45 has collected over 225 million to fight the election results, which we all know is futile but he will walk away from the White House over a quarter of a million dollars richer, his parting tip from those who don’t know the real truth and are ignorant, stupid or just foolish followers, prayers for them. But I mentioned this because our Governor seems to be planning for his own demise too which is why he is also fighting hard for IPI to survive for HIS personal intentions, not ours People!
The admissions of one’s failures is something we are all taught at a very early age but it seems that entirely too many of our adult Republican politicians have forgotten that all important lesson on CHARACTER. In fact, by supporting a Democrat Speaker it will actually take the pressure off the Republicans and put the earnest on the Democrats to deliver, which would really be doing the Republican Party a favor considering the challenges of actually “holding the Governor accountable and rebuilding our economy without IPI’s contributions that is ZERO anyway.” The Republicans also don’t have a real plan to even deal with “restarting our economy and dealing with IPI in the best interest of the People” making it even practical and prudent to hand the leadership over the Democrats. It is no secret the Governor is pushing for Angel to be Speaker to protect him and carry out his agenda — another in-Ur-face corruption example being executed. If readers truly know Angel’s record with Fitial it would be clear the Governor is just trying to set the Legislature up to make FOOLS of us (his People) for his personal intentions. I will NEVER stand for Angel being Speaker and I can’t wait for the FBI to put the Governor and possibly Angel away too just like the Southern District of NY is waiting to lock-up Trump and his attorney Rudolph Giuliani — for TRUE! We the People need a real Republican Hero to start cleaning up THEIR act by supporting a Democrat Speaker if you want any chance in 2022. To be continued: One People One Direction.
The writer is a retired teacher, former CNMI Board of Education Member, James Madison Fellow (U.S. Constitutional Scholar) and a Fulbright-Hays Foreign Scholar who resides in Kagman III.
