The American people live in the same country, but they increasingly do not share the same reality. The last few weeks — in which we have witnessed mass deportation raids in Los Angeles and other cities, the federalization of the California National Guard and the deployment of the military to put down protesters, a military parade on Donald Trump’s birthday that was an authoritarian spectacle, 5 million Americans participating in “No Kings” protests in 2,000 locations across the country, the targeting and assassination of Democratic politicians in Minnesota and the bombing of Iran — have offered a stark depiction of a split-screen America and its dueling realities.
Far from being a thing of beauty, the legislation will take trillions of dollars away from the American people and give it to the very richest individuals and corporations.
Meanwhile, in Washington, Trump’s abominable “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” is stumbling in the Senate, where Republicans have added more draconian measures and are hoping for passage this weekend. Far from being a thing of beauty, the legislation will take trillions of dollars away from the American people and give it to the very richest individuals and corporations. Some public health experts warn it could lead to the deaths of more than 51,000 Americans each year. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) has reportedly told his conference to “Keep your schedule flexible” in advance of a vote before July 4, and warned that the bill may have to go to conference if it includes provisions he won’t be able to pass in the House.
In more “normal” times, any one, or perhaps two, of these events would dominate the news cycle and political agenda for weeks. But the malignant Age of Trump depends on overwhelming and diverting the attention of our institutions and fellow citizens. With so much at stake, this moment depends on the American people understanding how these myriad events are connected, how they reflect a much larger unifying danger: That democracy and liberty are imperiled. And, with each passing day, matters are getting worse.
To better understand this unprecedented time in American history, I recently spoke to four experts about the country’s rapidly spiraling democracy crisis and what could happen next.
This is the third part of a three-part series.
Steven Beschloss is a journalist and author of several books, including “The Gunman and His Mother.” His website is America, America.
Donald Trump is a weak and desperate man who is determined to portray himself as strong and powerful. In all these months of degradations and desecrations of the rule of law, the Constitution and basic human decency, [these events have] felt like an inflection point for our country.
But I was encouraged by the split screen…between Trump’s sparsely attended and listless military parade and the spirited, joyful and defiant outpouring of millions of Americans around the country [for the “No Kings” protests] expressing their First Amendment rights and rejecting Trump’s hostile regime. The hopeful energy in large cities and small towns was palpable and contagious — and I suspect this was “muscle-building” for many Americans who’ve never participated in such an event or haven’t in a long time.
That said, my sober expectation is that it will take more than double the 5 million Americans estimated by organizers attending “No Kings” protests to begin to create an impact that can drive change. And it must be sustained with a clear message and goal, not just an occasional event. We know that Trump is narcissistically incapable of grasping how despised he is in America, especially since he’s surrounded by sycophants who refuse to tell him the truth like Kristi Noem and Stephen Miller, who are determined to prove that the harsher the cruelty and criminality, the greater the success. But mass protest can succeed at proving the fallaciousness of this proposition — that Americans will not bow down, be silenced or broken by this malignant regime that despises democracy.
The authoritarian playbook only succeeds if the people fail to recognize that the government’s survival depends on the consent of the governed. Yes, it remains to be seen what it will take to produce a larger, more sustained effort that reaches the White House and strikes fear — at least among cabinet members and other officials who are capable of recognizing the country is rejecting them. Perhaps it’s the increasing prospects of a worsening economy, intensifying efforts to flout the law to round up and deport people who are not criminals and growing violent attacks on American citizens and elected officials. But it will require people to exit their comfort zones.
I often return to the wisdom of Frederick Douglass, a formerly enslaved person and one of this country’s greatest thinkers and orators. As Douglass told us back in 1857, “Power concedes nothing without a demand.” It never did, and it never will. Find out just what any people will quietly submit to and you have found out the exact measure of injustice and wrong which will be imposed upon them.”
Rev. Adam Russell Taylor is president of Sojourners and author of “A More Perfect Union: A New Vision for Building the Beloved Community.” Taylor previously led the Faith Initiative at the World Bank Group and served as the vice president in charge of advocacy at World Vision U.S.A.
I’m growing increasingly alarmed by the Trump administration’s escalating attacks on democracy, particularly the unnecessary and inflammatory deployment of the National Guard in Los Angeles to bolster immoral and aggressive mass raids by ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement]. I’m also deeply concerned about the administration’s escalated attack on Harvard University and constant peddling in lies, propaganda and disinformation, such as in the shameful meeting between President Trump and President Ramaphosa of South Africa, in which President Trump falsely alleged that white Afrikaners were victims of land grabbing and even of genocide.
I’m concerned that the Trump administration will seek to conduct mass ICE raids in other major U.S. cities in order to spark further protests and confrontation. These efforts may also be used as the pretext to invoke the Insurrection Act, which would be an egregious and dangerous misuse of the [law] and of executive authority. I’m heartbroken by the murder of Minnesota Rep. Melissa Hortman and her spouse, which was a horrific act of political violence that must be denounced. I predict that this will be a hot summer filled with increasing resistance and protest to abuse and overreach of power by the Trump administration.
Cheri Jacobus, a former Republican, is a political strategist, writer and host of the podcast “Politics with Cheri Jacobus.”
Like most thinking Americans, I have been in a state of shock and rage over [Trump’s] inciting violence, abuse of power, blatant apparent criminality and betrayal of the country. It’s not unexpected, but [it] still elicits a visceral response, as this has never happened in America. I am furious with the media and power players who allowed this to happen, especially former Attorney General Merrick Garland and his cheerleaders who bullied us into submission.
But something is happening out there across this country — finally! “Regular” everyday Americans who’ve never been activists or even let others know their politics are literally taking to the streets! The masses have figured out that there is no cavalry coming to save us. We are the cavalry! The “No Kings” protests all across the United States were historic, and they do matter. [Million of attendees], compared to the paltry few thousand who showed up for Trump’s Kim Jong Un-style military parade, was a first step in putting Donald Trump in his place. Even Russian state TV mocked his pathetic attempt at emulating murderous dictator Vladimir Putin.
I can’t predict if we will win this battle or not. It’s not a fight we chose. But it’s the fight we are in. Watching [it] dawn on the good people of this country and how they are stepping up fills me with hope.
Eric Schnurer is a widely recognized expert on public policy and government effectiveness, efficiency and reinvention. His newsletter can be read at The Greater Good.
Donald Trump can’t succeed at building a strong, lasting authoritarian state because he’s more focused on tearing down the institutions of government, enriching himself and his allies, and punishing his enemies. These policies are so destructive that his regime will eventually collapse under the weight of its own dysfunction.
You don’t have to be psychic, because these folks published an entire book telling us what they planned to do in advance. It included deploying the National Guard to major cities around the country, and then placing them under martial law, as well as invoking the Insurrection Act to ban all protests against the regime and then militarizing the response. It’s not like this was or is a secret: It’s a promise. A reasonable expectation from here would be some sort of Kent State-type episode, but on a larger scale, as both a warning against future dissent and an excuse for further militarized rule.
What do we do about this?
In the immediate term, of course, all of those who are not fine with the destruction Trump is wreaking need to prepare to contest the midterm elections. Unfortunately, this is likely to prove unavailable for any number of reasons; even in the best-case scenario, there [are] only a handful of House seats up for grabs and an almost-nil chance of Democrats retaking the Senate.
No matter the political outcomes of the next 18 months, we need to be prepared over the medium-term to use a variety of means to contest Trump’s realization of his promise in the last campaign that his supporters (and, presumably, the rest of us, as well) “will never have to vote again.”
Not only is Trump doing everything he can, in a surprisingly short period of time, to destroy America’s economy, global dominance and national security — all of which will lead to irreparable decay in relatively short order — he also is, and always has been, bent on destroying the institutions of the state. This is the great irony of Trump’s place in history: He is viewed as a wanna-be dictator, but he is more bent on vengeance and destruction than interested in consolidating and building. Virtually every state asset that isn’t nailed down already is being sold or carried off by Trump or his henchmen and henchwomen.
Even [Max] Weber’s one essential element of the state — the monopoly of legitimate force — has always been on the auction block for Trump; expect the devolution of state power to the ready-made private militia Trump has already vested with implicit state immunity – as [happened] in places like Iran or Pinochet’s Chile – to expand dramatically in coming months.
I have always thought that the ultimate result of Trump’s ascendance — as is the case with everything he’s ever touched – will be state collapse not state consolidation, anarchy not autocracy.
If that’s how we get rid of Trump, how do we hasten it? It’s hard to do better in that regard than Trump’s own policies. But it’s not enough just to wait.
We need similarly to be building resilient inner walls to survive and reframe the alternatives being offered to the coming onslaught while Trumpism spends down its strength.
A related area is to attack hypocrisy — both humorously and seriously. A $60 million military parade to puff up Trump’s ego at the same time that he and his supporters are cutting the military budget and support for veterans — let along everything else — is an easy enough target. So is virtually everything else about this man and his minions.
And that starts getting dangerously close to the regime’s real Achilles’ heel. The popular forces behind this storm are driven by hatred (and a not-wholly unjustified anger) at the intellectual elite, but, as I argued a year ago, that’s a fire that eventually will burn itself out, leaving MAGA supporters to wonder why Trump and his acolytes have not only failed to deliver on their promises but, actually, literally stolen their livelihoods and their country. The reaction to the realization of that betrayal won’t be pretty. The collapse will come and, given this regime’s actions, it will be total and swift. Just not swift enough.
We’ll never leave the present dystopia behind without a clear and more appealing vision of where we could be headed instead. This means using the time spent against the ropes to formulate an alternative. Democrats have demonstrated no such ability so far to think ahead and adapt.
