Three Points on the Resignation of Michael Flynn
February 16, 2017 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us
1) Pulling the Lens Back: The whole episode of Mike Flynn’s resignation is unfolding in a context of claims and counter-claims, and people are drawn into speculation around this. We need to proceed scientifically from the larger reality, and what we know to be true, based on real evidence.
What is known is that big things are at stake with Flynn’s resignation and the backdrop of alleged ties between the Trump campaign and Russia. These allegations are, in part, a reflection of sharp divisions within the U.S. ruling class over the approach to Russia. Trump sees a need and basis to develop some kind of alliance with Russia to further U.S. interests in the world. Others, like Republican Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham, along with leading sections of the Democratic Party, see Russia as a direct and immediate rival to U.S. interests...with whom there can be no alliance.
All of this is in the larger context of deep differences within the U.S. ruling class about challenges faced by U.S. imperialism globally, and how to respond to further its national security and economic interests and domination. These challenges span many issues and geographies, including: the rise of Islamic fundamentalism and instability in the Middle East; Iran as an increasingly dominant player in the region; the emergence of China as an economic/military power and potential global rival to the U.S.; the nuclear ambitions of North Korea; and the moves of contending imperialist powers such as Russia and the Western European powers, some strategically aligned with the U.S.
It is a complex situation that poses serious, even catastrophic, danger to the world—greatly raising the risk of war, including war that involves nuclear weapons. Revcom.us will be following events closely, reporting and analyzing.
Many people are being led by the mass media to focus and speculate on the question of ‘what did Trump know and when did he know it,’ and related details. This gets divorced from the larger context that Flynn’s resignation and the quarreling going on is, at a deeper level, a product and manifestation of bigger divides in the U.S. ruling class and Trump’s moves to consolidate his regime.
2) Proceeding from the Interests of Humanity: None of these divides within the U.S. imperialist ruling class have anything to do with the fundamental interests of humanity, and the vast majority living under imperialist domination headed by the U.S. The National Security Council and the CIA are key instruments through which the U.S. enforces its domination through drone killings, wars for empire, and clandestine operations that materially support U.S.-friendly oppressive regimes and groups across the globe.
The track record of the U.S. on this front is drenched in blood: U.S.-supported coups installing murderous regimes in Iran, Indonesia, Chile, and countries in Central America that resulted in massacres and disappearances; U.S.-supported “rebels” that committed war crimes against the people, such as the Contras in Nicaragua, UNITA in Angola, and the list goes on; not to mention devastating wars for empire in Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq. These policies continued under Obama with drone killings across the Middle East, Pakistan, and other countries, and the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
People need to proceed from the fundamental interests of the 7 billion people of the world. The mass media, on the other hand, are shaping people’s thinking and setting terms for discussion where progressives are drawn into taking sides against Trump but objectively in the camp of mainstream U.S. imperialists and their interests and viewpoints strengthening imperialist chauvinism.
3) Aware of the Potentially Great Stakes: This is not just a matter of palace intrigue. Within the larger context of the divides in the U.S. ruling class and the ascension of the Trump/Pence fascist regime, what is happening poses potentially grave dangers for humanity.
It is notable that Trump has trained his fire on the press and intelligence communities. This is no mere distraction, or his wounded ego at play. It is a fascistic move to muzzle the press and neutralize oppositional sections within the ruling class, including its intelligence agencies. Should he succeed in this, and if the kind of rant on display at his February 16 press conference gets normalized, even through the talking heads focusing people’s attention on his psyche—this will represent a leap in the consolidation of this fascist regime.
The controversy indicates that there are significant rumblings of discontent within the powers-that-be against this regime and its moves. We don’t know and cannot say where all this is headed, but we do know that the dynamics of fascist progression necessitate that intra-ruling class disagreement and discord be sufficiently quelled and sapped, resulting in further leaps in its consolidation.
It is a matter of great urgency and import that we act to oust this regime from power, to drive out the Trump/Pence regime as soon as possible, uniting with and drawing into political life the millions of people who hate what this regime represents and is acting to bring into being—a fascist America!
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