The 2024 Presidential Election: “A Republic, Madam, if You Can Keep It.”

Those words were spoken by Benjamin Franklin, who said it to a woman on the street on the final day of the Constitutional Convention in 1787, when she inquired as to what kind of government the convention had given her.

237 years later, Franklin’s response arises again as Donald Trump has apparently hit the trifecta, as yesterday’s election awards him control of the presidency, the congress and the Supreme Court. Mark Twain is credited with commenting that “history does not repeat itself, but it rhymes.” Poetry may not be to everyone’s taste, but it’s wise to remember one’s history.

Ninety-one years ago, Adolph Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany by German President Paul von Hindenburg

Although Hitler was not elected by the German people, he came to power legally after conservative parties pressured von Hindenburg to appoint him.

I am not comparing Trump to Hitler, only reminding Americans that dictators often arrive by perfectly legal circumstances, and our republic is a fragile …