THE RESISTANCE IS BUILDING
Trump and Musk are Not Doing Well
Medical doctor and spiritual philosopher Deepak Chopra liked to tell the tale of a man in rural India who often sat in the middle of the road, risking being trampled by a herd of elephants that came through every day. When asked why he didn’t move, he replied that he couldn’t believe what was happening. This story could be a metaphor for what is occurring today in our country. As Trump and Musk blatantly destroy our government institutions, switch the country’s alliances from democratic allies to vicious dictatorships, defy the constitution and rule of law, and drive the world’s strongest economy into the ground, it seems like nobody with authority has been acting or speaking out in opposition. That is beginning to change.
Congressional Democrats have been widely criticized for seemingly not doing anything to stop the Trump/Musk juggernaut, but they have little authority or opportunity to act without looking like the bad guys or making the situation worse. Democratic commentators, however, have been actively expressing their concerns in print, on the air, and on social media sites. The new website Bluesky hosts many highly knowledgeable and experienced academics and former government officials who are openly expressing their concerns. And progressive voters are gathering at rallies across the country to raise awareness of the threat Trump and Musk pose to our health, our wealth, and our basic freedoms of speech, travel, and religion.
Investors at first championed Trump’s calls to reduce government oversight and regulation of their business interests but are now starting to express concern as their markets and stock values begin to plummet. The ultra-conservative Wall Street Journal is now coming around to full-bore criticism of Trump’s economic actions. Even Fox News commentators are beginning to suggest that the Trump administration may want to rethink their economic policies. When Jamie Dimon speaks out against Republican policies, you know they are in trouble. And, best of all, members of Tesla’s board of directors have been dumping huge blocks of their company shares as their value disintegrates from severely depressed sales.
Entire blocs of voters are now expressing regret at having helped elect Trump. Palestinians who mistakenly believed Joe Biden was not defending residents of the Gaza Strip, Latin-Americans who are now fearful of deportation despite their legal status, and blacks who have now lost what little status and recognition they had only a few months ago, are all shocked at what they see happening. The threat of losing Social Security benefits, Medicare, and veteran’s health services has been keeping nearly 70 million elderly beneficiaries awake nights, worrying about how they will be able to keep their homes or even survive without those benefits.
And residents of the 28 Republican dominated rural states are ever so slowly waking up to the fact that the federal programs that are being cut by the Trump/Musk team are the only things keeping themselves and their states from bankruptcy. If these cuts are actually enacted, rural area hospitals, clinics, and schools will be the first to close, taking with them the only well-paid jobs available in their regions. Congress members who have been open enough to hold town meetings with their constituents are getting barraged with complaints from voters of all parties.
Perhaps most importantly, the hundreds of lawsuits against the Trump/Musk actions by the 22 states not controlled by Republicans, as well as the ACLU, Southern Poverty Law Center, and others, are slowly being heard, and preliminary judgements have gone solidly against the Trump administration. As these suits move up through the system, and many more are added to them, we could see the destructive actions of the last 60 days reversed. Even the supreme court has ruled against the administration, with the votes of Amy Conant Bryant surprising many of us by following established law instead of marching in lockstep with her conservative colleagues.
I urge my readers to watch for other positive actions when following the daily news and chaos in Washington. I realize it’s hard to believe what is happening, but please do not lend energy to your fears of what might happen. Remember that we create our reality by our collective thoughts and expectations, so keep those thoughts and expectations positive. This political nightmare that we are currently experiencing will end and we will eventually wake up to a more rational world. Whether that happens in two months, two years, or two generations will depend on how quickly the majority of voters in this country is able to convince Republican senators and representatives to turn away from the MAGA mob and back our constitution and rule of law.