The RMRR takes over
Today's Trump inauguration marks the final step in creating the Republican Minority-Rule Regime. I call it this to emphasize that, aside from Trump "winning" with almost three million fewer votes than Hillary Clinton, the 52 Republican Senators combined won eleven million fewer votes that the 46 Democratic ones did. In contrast with the massive Democratic victory of 2008 (achieved, also, without benefit of foreign meddling or vote-suppression laws), Trump and his party cannot claim any kind of mandate. If it were true that "America voted for" bigotry, xenophobia, vulgarity, incompetence, and kleptocracy, then a government based on those things could claim that it at least represented what the country actually wanted. But America did nothing of the kind.
Always remember, there's more of us than there is of them. We, not the Trumpanzees, are the real America.
Of course, humility is not in most Republicans' lexicon (and certainly not in Trump's), and the lack of legitimacy has no practical effect except insofar as it helps motivate resistance on our own side. The RMRR has just as much legal power as a popularly-elected government would have, and will use it. The practical issue is what we can actually do now.
The debacle over the Office of Congressional Ethics points the way. When Congressional Republicans tried to gut it, a wave of calls from an infuriated public quickly made them back down. And this protest happened on very short notice, with no time to really organize anything, over an issue that has no practical impact on most people's lives. Imagine what we'll be able to do to defend Obamacare, Social Security, Medicare, and other programs whose loss would devastate millions.
I'm convinced that most Republican politicians are fundamentally cowards. That's a big part of why Trump made it to where he is today. He bullied and insulted his way to the nomination, backed by a wave of outright threats from his troglodytic followers. Many Republicans clearly hated what they were seeing, and spoke out against it; but their efforts to stop him were timid and feckless, and they fell into line quickly as he kept winning. On the OCE, they could probably have gone ahead, ignoring the protests, with little consequence -- it's not as if that issue would have loomed large in many voters' minds in November 2018. But they didn't. Trump himself isn't that kind of critter, but the enemy in Congress has shown they will yield to pressure. We must supply that pressure, as is already happening on Obamacare repeal. Remember, the Democratic minorities in both houses are substantial. Only three Republican Senators, or a few dozen Republican Congressmen, need be swayed to stop any given action.
And Trump will lose a lot of those besotted followers. It's already happening. He won't bring industrial jobs back. He won't prosecute Hillary. He won't get Mexico to pay for the wall (and probably won't even build it). He won't "drain the swamp". A lot of Trumpanzees benefit from Obamacare and Social Security.
Never listen to those who tell us everything is already lost (and yes, I admit that for a brief time I was among them). Don't read that link, read this one, my response to a bout of despair on our side in early 2010 when the original passage of Obamacare seemed doomed. As I pointed out at the time, progressives of generations past -- Dr. King, Frederick Douglass, César Chávez, Harvey Milk, the suffragettes and union organizers of a century ago -- faced daunting circumstances, but they kept fighting and ultimately won. If we keep fighting, we still might lose. If we don't, we will definitely lose.
To help you get in the right mood, here's Keith Olbermann (found via Crazy Eddie a few weeks ago):
And a few worthwhile links:
A look at the RMRR's possible budget plans, from Republic of Gilead -- yes, he's back online!
The enemy has no right to demand that we respect Trump.
US intelligence and law-enforcement agencies are investigating contacts and financial dealings between Trump and Russia.
Trump plans to hold Soviet-style military parades in American cities, and even wanted to include one in today's inauguration.
Trump takes office with formidable handicaps, and will immediately be in violation of the Constitution. I find this look ahead at his term to be pretty plausible.
With turnout for the inauguration looking meager, Trump even resorted to ads trying to draw an audience.
Always remember, there's more of us than there is of them. We, not the Trumpanzees, are the real America.
Of course, humility is not in most Republicans' lexicon (and certainly not in Trump's), and the lack of legitimacy has no practical effect except insofar as it helps motivate resistance on our own side. The RMRR has just as much legal power as a popularly-elected government would have, and will use it. The practical issue is what we can actually do now.
The debacle over the Office of Congressional Ethics points the way. When Congressional Republicans tried to gut it, a wave of calls from an infuriated public quickly made them back down. And this protest happened on very short notice, with no time to really organize anything, over an issue that has no practical impact on most people's lives. Imagine what we'll be able to do to defend Obamacare, Social Security, Medicare, and other programs whose loss would devastate millions.
I'm convinced that most Republican politicians are fundamentally cowards. That's a big part of why Trump made it to where he is today. He bullied and insulted his way to the nomination, backed by a wave of outright threats from his troglodytic followers. Many Republicans clearly hated what they were seeing, and spoke out against it; but their efforts to stop him were timid and feckless, and they fell into line quickly as he kept winning. On the OCE, they could probably have gone ahead, ignoring the protests, with little consequence -- it's not as if that issue would have loomed large in many voters' minds in November 2018. But they didn't. Trump himself isn't that kind of critter, but the enemy in Congress has shown they will yield to pressure. We must supply that pressure, as is already happening on Obamacare repeal. Remember, the Democratic minorities in both houses are substantial. Only three Republican Senators, or a few dozen Republican Congressmen, need be swayed to stop any given action.
And Trump will lose a lot of those besotted followers. It's already happening. He won't bring industrial jobs back. He won't prosecute Hillary. He won't get Mexico to pay for the wall (and probably won't even build it). He won't "drain the swamp". A lot of Trumpanzees benefit from Obamacare and Social Security.
Never listen to those who tell us everything is already lost (and yes, I admit that for a brief time I was among them). Don't read that link, read this one, my response to a bout of despair on our side in early 2010 when the original passage of Obamacare seemed doomed. As I pointed out at the time, progressives of generations past -- Dr. King, Frederick Douglass, César Chávez, Harvey Milk, the suffragettes and union organizers of a century ago -- faced daunting circumstances, but they kept fighting and ultimately won. If we keep fighting, we still might lose. If we don't, we will definitely lose.
To help you get in the right mood, here's Keith Olbermann (found via Crazy Eddie a few weeks ago):
And a few worthwhile links:
A look at the RMRR's possible budget plans, from Republic of Gilead -- yes, he's back online!
The enemy has no right to demand that we respect Trump.
US intelligence and law-enforcement agencies are investigating contacts and financial dealings between Trump and Russia.
Trump plans to hold Soviet-style military parades in American cities, and even wanted to include one in today's inauguration.
Trump takes office with formidable handicaps, and will immediately be in violation of the Constitution. I find this look ahead at his term to be pretty plausible.
With turnout for the inauguration looking meager, Trump even resorted to ads trying to draw an audience.
posted by Infidel753 at 4:20 AM
7 Comments:
Love that Trump is taking credit for the goopers backing down on killing OCE. I'm sure he believes it. That may make things more interesting still, if he thinks he can bend them to his will at any time. They have more to lose than he does. They actually have much hoped for long careers in Congress.
In Trump's distopian view of America inaugural address he bragged about being the champion of "the forgotten Americans."
In one of the first moves after Trump's swearing in, this happened:
Trump's First Move as President: Screwing Over Homeowners
"Earlier this month, then-President Barack Obama issued an executive action requiring the Federal Housing Administration to decrease insurance premiums on FHA mortgages, a change that could have potentially saved low-income homeowners as much as $900 per year. In his first administrative order as president, President Donald Trump suspended this Obama order, which was slated to go into effect on January 27. In practice, this means that low-income homeowners will be stuck paying higher insurance premiums on their FHA-insured mortgages."
What group is "more forgotten" than low-income homeowners?
We need to keep reminding people that most of what Trump says are lies, and the rest is bullsh*t.
The "forgotten Americans" who voted for him are just beginning to understand this.
Glad to have found that video and thank you for reusing it. Resist! Peace.
Thanks for that, Shaw. I saw that he took that action, but thank you for linking it to the "forgotten Americans" line.
Excellent, Infidel--thanks for penning this.
And you are right--there are more of us than there are of them. This Administration is a Jenga tower that is unwieldy and fragile, and cannot stand. And more importantly, as you said, many of his supporters are having second thoughts, realizing that, yes, they voted to cut their own noses off to spite their faces.
Kevin: He's already taken credit for a lot of things he has nothing to do with. It will be funny if he gets overconfident dealing with Congress, though.
Shaw: I wonder if he even thinks in terms of lies or truth at all. He seems to say whatever he thinks will benefit him at a given moment, and whether it's true or not isn't even on his radar.
Pinku: I have a feeling we'll be using Olbermann a lot.
Marc: It seems to be the fastest-growing case of buyer's remorse in history. Too bad elections don't have a do-over option.
Thanks for recommending V for Vendetta, by the way. I found some clips on YouTube and they were stunning. I'll be getting the DVD soon.
@Infidel: Most welcome, sir! I would also recommend the original graphic novel by Moore and Lloyd to read after watching the film. Granted, changes were made to the story in order to make the film (as is the case in any adaptation), but I felt the film captured the spirit and the story very well.
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