COUNTING DOWN THE DAYS
Watching the Collapse of Project 2025
Elon Musk is gone from Washington, a month ahead of schedule. The destruction he wrought is immeasurable—possibly irreparable. His fortune took a serious hit, but he now has our federal government’s entire data base of information on every person and corporation in the country, and his companies still have tens of billions of dollars in government contracts. Musk may soon be ousted from Tesla also, although its brand may be too far damaged to survive. MAGA Republicans do not buy electric vehicles, and progressive thinkers have better options now.
It’s only a matter of time before Trump and his band of deplorables follow. That will take longer but could happen by the end of this year. They certainly exposed the weaknesses in our system of government and, if they were only a little smarter, might have succeeded in destroying our democracy. Fortunately, intelligence and rational thinking seem to be rare qualities among current Republican officials. They are standing on a foundation of incompetence and deceit that cannot support their grandiose ambitions. When the heads of government agencies are chosen for their appearance and fealty, without regard to experience or ability, they are bound to fail.
Every day brings new revelations. This week we learned from Trump’s own words that he never read the Declaration of Independence and has not the faintest clue what it means. In 100 short days, he and his wrecking crew did more damage to our economy, our international agreements, our public safety, and our national security than anyone could have imagined might be possible. Their search for fraud, abuse, and savings in the national bureaucracy found nothing, but cost the taxpayers more than $150 billion — so far. The final cost is likely to be measured in trillions.
The resistance continues to grow, even in places we least expected to see it. The Senate and the Supreme Court are showing signs of hope. The Wall Street Journal editorial board continues to blast Trump almost daily, and public demonstrations are popping up across the country every weekend and sometimes in between. And the boycotts are working. Trump’s tariffs have barely kicked in, but Amazon, Walmart, and other major retailers have already seen dramatic drops in sales volumes. The sudden drop has forced UPS to lay off thousands of employees. Jeff Besos’ Washington Post has lost more than 250,000 subscribers since he sided with Trump, and its best columnists and reporters have resigned or retired.
The effect of Trump’s tariffs and Musk’s destruction of government agencies and programs has not yet hit the voters who will be most affected by them. These are mostly residents of rural areas that are heavily dependent on federal aid. They are also heavily Republican. When hospitals and health clinics close they are not likely to soon reopen. When disasters strike, the governments of poorer states will not have the resources to fund recovery. When local businesses close, rates of unemployed will rise. When farms go bankrupt, food will become more expensive and harder to find. The MAGA Republicans will be hurt the worst and may begin to turn against Trump and the Project 2025 agenda.
The battle has not yet been won, but the momentum has shifted. And while we see positive signs in the news every day, it is not time to relax the resistance. Ramp it up, get out and demonstrate, talk to your friends and family, write letters to editors, post your views online, and keep the pressure on senators and representatives to support the resistance and oppose the administration at every turn. Trump denied knowledge of Project 2025 while running for office, but it was created by more than 35 members of his previous administration, many of whom are back in office now. They represent a small minority of Americans and must be ousted soon before they do any more damage. We can do this. We are winning. But it isn’t over yet.
(Nick Anderson cartoon borrowed from The Washington Post)