Hillary comes out guns-a-blazing. I think it is time to step up and battle this leader and weâre seeing all the heavies coming outâŚObama, GWB, Biden, and now Hillary.
Sheâs kept pretty tight lippedâŚand sheâs seeing in real time all the damage that was done to her campaign. No more standing by for Hillary.
OkâŚbattle lines have been drawn a bit clearer. WOW
Trump and his cronies do so many despicable things that it can be hard to keep track. I think that may be the pointâto confound us, so itâs harder to keep our eye on the ball. The ball, of course, is protecting American democracy. As citizens, thatâs our most important charge. And right now, our democracy is in crisis.
I donât use the word crisis lightly. There are no tanks in the streets. The administrationâs malevolence may be constrained on some frontsâfor nowâby its incompetence. But our democratic institutions and traditions are under siege. We need to do everything we can to fight back. Thereâs not a moment to lose.
As I see it, there are five main fronts of this assault on our democracy.
First, there is Donald Trumpâs assault on the rule of law.
Second, the legitimacy of our elections is in doubt.
Third, the president is waging war on truth and reason.
Fourth, thereâs Trumpâs breathtaking corruption.
Fifth, Trump undermines the national unity that makes democracy possible.
Hate speech isnât âtelling it like it is.â Itâs just hate.
How did we get here?
Trump may be uniquely hostile to the rule of law, ethics in public service, and a free press. But the assault on our democracy didnât start with his election. He is as much a symptom as a cause of what ails us. Think of our body politic like a human body, with our constitutional checks and balances, democratic norms and institutions, and well-informed citizenry all acting as an immune system protecting us from the disease of authoritarianism. Over many years, our defenses were worn down by a small group of right-wing billionairesâpeople like the Mercer family and Charles and David Kochâwho spent a lot of time and money building an alternative reality where science is denied, lies masquerade as truth, and paranoia flourishes. By undermining the common factual framework that allows a free people to deliberate together and make the important decisions of self-governance, they opened the way for the infection of Russian propaganda and Trumpian lies to take hold. Theyâve used their money and influence to capture our political system, impose a right-wing agenda, and disenfranchise millions of Americans.
Meanwhile, hyperpolarization now extends beyond politics into nearly every part of our culture.
The increasing radicalism and irresponsibility of the Republican Party, including decades of demeaning government, demonizing Democrats, and debasing norms, is what gave us Donald Trump.**
First, weâve got to mobilize massive turnout in the 2018 midterms.
And we could finally see some congressional oversight of the White House.
When the dust settles, we have to do some serious housecleaning.
They also should not be exempt from ethics requirements and conflict-of-interest rules.
But even the best rules and regulations wonât protect us if we donât find a way to restitch our fraying social fabric and rekindle our civic spirit.
When we think about politics and judge our leaders, we canât just ask, âAm I better off than I was four years ago?â We have to ask, âAre we better off? Are we as a country better, stronger, and fairer?â Democracy works only when we accept that weâre all in this together.
In 1787, after the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Benjamin Franklin was asked by a woman on the street outside Independence Hall, âWell, Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?â Franklin answered, âA republic, if you can keep it.â That response has been on my mind a lot lately. The contingency of it. How fragile our experiment in self-government is. And, when viewed against the sweep of human history, how fleeting. Democracy may be our birthright as Americans, but itâs not something we can ever take for granted. Every generation has to fight for it, has to push us closer to that more perfect union. That time has come again.