I voted for Trump – twice. Liz Cheney's book and DOJ Jan. 6 indictment changed my mind

I voted for Donald Trump — twice. I am a staunch, almost redneck conservative, registered Republican, Oklahoman and American. I believe in limited government, free enterprise and traditional Christian values. I believe that government should stay out of the personal lives of women and others who want to live alternative lifestyles, whatever that means. I believe in personal responsibility and that government should help those who can’t help themselves.

My heroes are Ronald Reagan, Warren Buffett, George Kaiser and Jamie Dimon. I love Oklahoma, my residence for my entire adult life, and Texas, where I was born and raised. I am proud to have been a banker to the oil and gas industry, the lifeblood of our state, but I am not a climate denier.

I believe that Joe Biden and his followers in Washington have been in the top five of the worst political leaders we have ever seen in this country’s history. Outrageous mismanagement of the southern border, historic levels of inflation, existentially dangerous, out-of-control spending and government debt are his legacy.

Oklahoma columnist on MSNBC: 'I had my mind made up about Trump' after reading Liz Cheney

Following the 2020 election, I admit to having stuck my head in the sand as a citizen. I didn’t want to pay much attention to all the ridiculous haranguing about stolen elections and other crazy political rhetoric. I have to admit that I was intrigued by some of the conspiracy theories about ballot stuffing and crooked voting machines. I watched in awe and disgust the TV coverage of the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol. I just shook my head, not totally surprised.

Didn’t really give much thought to how it developed and who was behind it. I suppose I just chalked it up to the seemingly never-ending, incredibly irresponsible behavior that has become all too common in our country. Then came the Jan. 6 Select Committee investigation and more political haranguing, finger-pointing and fighting. It made me nauseous. I didn’t want to hear it, didn’t want to see it.

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Liz Cheney's memoir changed my mind

However, recently, for some reason, I purchased and downloaded a book by Liz Cheney titled "Oath and Honor, a Memoir and a Warning." This book was published in late 2023, and it details Mrs. Cheney’s involvement as a senior leader behind the investigation of the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol. It is extremely detailed and very well organized. Liz goes to great pains to be objective, factual and fair in her description of how the committee was formed and how it operated for about 18 months from June 2021 to December 2022.

The committee was incredibly diligent and meticulous in its approach to developing and corroborating evidence that shows the role President Donald Trump played from the day after the 2020 election until the fateful Jan. 6 debacle as he attempted to hold on to his job. It is an impressive literary work.

I came away from the book thinking that Liz Cheney is an intelligent, highly organized, honest and patriotic American citizen. Her most impressive attribute is that she is a politician for whom honoring the Constitution and the rule of law comes above all else, including her own political career. She readily sacrificed her career as a member of Congress in order to communicate the truth.

I was very surprised and proud of myself having read the entire book! More surprising is what an impact it has had on my thinking about Trump’s role in the whole process of attempting to overturn the results of the election and the incitement of the Jan. 6 mob attack on the Capitol. I even went further after finishing Liz’s book. I was inspired to read the entire Executive Summary of the official finding of the Jan. 6 Select Committee, which is about 100 pages of a pdf document not including about 800 footnotes! Finally, I have read the actual indictment filed by the Justice Department against Mr. Trump. All three documents, the book, the findings and the indictment are very clear, well documented and all tell a very consistent story.

How is Trump not in jail right now?

This book is a very frightening story! It is scary because it shows how incredibly obsessed Trump was about being cheated out of the election. He was totally irrational and willing to believe anything he was told that would lead to a verification of fraudulent voting activities. No matter how hard his advisers and supporters tried to tell him there was simply no substantial evidence that the election was stolen, he continued to connive, coerce and threaten people to overturn the results. He filed some 60 lawsuits in various states attempting to show fraudulent voting activity, all of which he lost.

The ultimate “Big Lie” was that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him. He continues to spread this propaganda to this day.

Practically all of the witnesses who testified at the committee hearings were members of Trump’s own party. They were his advisers, his supporters, his employees. And the most scary element of all is that he clearly incited the ugly incident at the Capitol, and once it was underway, he actively avoided taking steps to stop it even while hundreds of people were injured and some were killed. Further, and equally dangerously enlightening is the number of Republican politicians who supported Trump’s irrationality and disturbing behavior and continue to do so to this day.

The House of Representatives impeached Donald Trump in 2021. Then the Senate narrowly failed to convict him only because some Republicans decided since he was no longer president it wasn’t worth the trouble. They thought he would just go away. They were wrong!

This frightful story has not ended. Donald Trump is the apparent leading contender to be the Republican nominee for president in 2024. He has somehow convinced millions of Americans that he is a victim of political persecution by his opponents.

After reading Liz Cheney’s book, the committee findings and the DOJ indictment, I do not understand how Donald Trump can possibly be considered as a legitimate candidate for the most important job in the world. Frankly, I don’t understand how he is not in jail right now.

Having subjected you to my own opinion I will go no further than to implore you, before you cast a vote or support Donald Trump, please take the time to read Liz Cheney’s book, or the committee findings or the DOJ indictment. The future of our society depends on it.

Jim Young is retired from a 42-year career as a senior banking executive and community leader in Tulsa and Oklahoma City.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: I no longer support Trump. Cheney's book, DOJ charges changed my mind