Free At Last

When we allow freedom to ring—when we let it ring from every city and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, “Free at last, Free at last, Great God a-mighty, We are free at last.”

Martin Luther King, Jr./August 28, 1963

Once again, these iconic words are being heard in Washington, D.C. This time , however, the message of emancipation comes not from Americans who spent too much of the nation’s history as second-class citizens, deprived of the promise embodied in the founding documents–the Declaration of Independence and Constitution. Nor is the audience anywhere near the quarter million gathered in front of the Lincoln Memorial. In fact, they can be counted on one hand. Their names? Thom Tillis, Bill Cassidy, John Cornyn, and Mitch McConnell.

There is one other, even more important, difference. Their new-found freedom was handed to them. They never spent a night in jail for protesting injustices. The were not pepper-sprayed or bitten by gnarling dogs. They were not beaten by police for having the audacity to cross a bridge in support of voting rights. What led to their liberation of conscience? Not being loyal enough to a wannabe king who demanded full and outright allegiance.

What constitutes “not being loyal enough?” When it comes to alignment with Donald Trump’s legislative agenda, here are their voting records during the first session (2025) of the 118th Congress as compiled by VOTEHUB.COM. Cassidy–100 percent. Cornyn–100 percent. Tillis–98.6 percent. McConnell–95.4 percent. Tillis and McConnell, to some extent, contrast from the fellow senators. Tillis, who opposed the Medicaid cuts in the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” saw the writing on the wall, announcing on June 29, 2025 he would not seek reelection in 2026. He explained his decision as follows.

In Washington over the last few years, it’s become increasingly evident that leaders who are willing to embrace bipartisanship, compromise, and demonstrate independent thinking are becoming an endangered species.

In February 2024, McConnell, at age 83 and after 40 years as a U.S. senator, stepped down as Senate majority leader after the 2024 election and announced he would not seek reelection in 2026. Although historians will probably credit McConnell with Trump’s return to power by voting against conviction of articles of impeachment related to the January 6, 2021 insurrection, then candidate Trump ignored the news of his retirement. Trump’s long-standing animosity toward the veteran lawmaker deepened when McConnell affirmed Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election.

So I’ll focus on Cassidy and Cornyn. Facing a Trump-imposed political demise, their recent vocal opposition to the president’s most egregious actions and proposals seem to be nothing short of a deathbed conversion. Except they lack a critical element of such rites as described in the Gentile Reformation doctrine–repentance, acknowledging past wrongs. In Cornyn’s case, he did quite the opposite. According to NBC News, “When Trump threw his endorsement behind Attorney General Ken Paxton in Cornyn’s 2026 Republican Senate primary runoff, Cornyn pivoted to defend his loyalty.” Any sign of remorse by Cassidy was more ambiguous. In his concession speech, Cassidy said he had no regrets about his vote to convict Trump of high crimes and misdemeanors, but made no mention of his broad support for Trump’s second term policy agenda.

It is not as if they were not warned. During the hearings of the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack, vice-chair Liz Cheney addressed the legacy of those who remained loyal to the disgraced ex-president. “Tonight, I say this to my Republican colleagues who are defending the indefensible: There will come a day when Donald Trump is gone, but your dishonor will remain.”

Now that their dream of re-election to the Senate is shattered, is their most recent and very vocal opposition to Trump’s latest atrocities a last-minute attempt to erase their dishonorable place in the annals of American history? Cornyn has expressed uneasiness about taxpayer money being used for the White House ballroom, the “anti-weaponization” slush fund. Cassidy has gone one step further. On May 19, despite previous nay votes, he joined all Democrats to advance a war powers resolution requiring congressional approval for any continuation of military action in Iran. Like Cornyn, he now opposes both the ballroom and the slush fund.

I remember an adage from my days in Washington, D.C. “Never criticize someone for doing the right thing for the wrong reasons.” So we should welcome those who have crossed the aisle to finally exercise their constitutional responsibility as a check against executive excesses. But, make no mistake, it is easy to do the right thing when you have nothing at risk. Therefore, if I were writing the history of the 118th congress, I would liken Cassidy and Cornyn to the two protagonists in Herbert Ross’ 1991 film “True Colors.”

“True Colors” is a story about betrayal between two former law school roommates who pursue Washington, D.C. careers. Peter Burton (John Cusack) is running for U.S. representative. Tim Garrity (James Spader) is a a rising star in the Department of Justice. On election night Burton is arrested on charges of corruption based on Garrity’s investigation. When the two long-time friends try to justify their respective actions, Tim says he wishes he had not been the one to bring Peter down, but “you did this to yourself. Why?” Peter replies, “I want to be great.”

Much like the original, this 2026 remake of “True Colors” is about betrayal. But not betrayal between life-long friends. Betrayal of conscience. Cassidy and Cornyn always knew supporting Trump’s illegal plans and actions was wrong, but they did it anyway. Their immediate conversions when nothing was now at stake is all the evidence you need. Therefore, do not ever mistake them for victims of Trump’s retribution tour. They both need to look into a mirror and admit, “I did this to myself because I wanted to be great.”

For what it’s worth.
Dr. ESP