I wanted to share this powerful speech by French Senate Member Claude Malhuret, a doctor and lawyer, who delivers a chilling assessment of what is playing out before our eyes in the US:
"Never in history has a president of the United States capitulated to the enemy. No one has ever supported an aggressor against an ally. No one has ever trampled on the American Constitution, made so many illegal decrees, revoked the judges who could prevent it, dismissed the military staff at once, weakened all counter-powers and taken control of social networks.
It is not an illiberal drift; it is the beginning of the confiscation of democracy. Let us remember that it took only a month, three weeks and two days to bring down the Weimar Republic and its Constitution."
If you haven’t heard it yet, I urge you to listen. It is an example of clear political leadership at a time when the stakes could not be higher.
In his speech, Malhuret makes it clear that Europe needs not just to build up its defences but also to renew its commitment to morality.
"The real rearmament of Europe is its moral rearmament. Our parents defeated fascism and communism at the cost of all sacrifices. The task of our generation is to defeat the totalitarianisms of the 21st century."
Compassion in Politics came into being to advocate for an ethical and moral underpinning to politics. The bleaker the political climate, the greater the need for moral alignment. Never has the capacity for compassion felt more relevant and more vital.
With solidarity,
Jennifer