Donald Trump’s loaded campaign catchphrase, “Make America Great Again” was a not-so-subtle ploy to tell white blue collar voters that what America really needs to do is return to a mythical 1950’s when there were fewer minorities, white people were superior to all races, made high wages and couldn’t fail at living out the American Dream. However, the haywire TARDIS Trump has tried to fit America into may be landing a decade or two later than planned. The civil unrest and resistance of the 1960’s and 1970’s may very well be where we land on January 20, 2017 when Trump becomes President.
Protests have spread across the nation in response to Trump’s win…and he hasn’t even been inaugurated yet. Once he begins turning his racist and misogynist rants into policy, once the Justice Department is transformed into The Injustice Department, once the ACA, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid are wired for demolition…the shock, fear and dread that most Americans are feeling right now may give way to outrage and protest that pours into streets and Washington DC.
And surprisingly, it won’t just be civilians defying and challenging Trump and the GOP Congress. The LAPD has already stated that they will not cooperate with Trump’s plan to deport up to 3 million undocumented immigrants. A variety of unnamed sources in the military state that not only are they dismayed and concerned about Trump being their Commander in Chief but have vowed not to follow orders that are against the law including Trump’s wanting to bring back waterboarding and other torture. Cities and states will also stand up to Trump on a variety of his unAmerican policies, there could be a genuine constitutional crisis confronting Trump and his Republican cohorts.
As any reasonable person is justifiably alarmed at what terrible things a mentally unstable person like Trump may do as President without any checks and balances from a Republican Congress, the power of the people to protest and resist a leader unfit to lead them should not be underestimated.
If voting rights are suppressed with the cooperation of Trump’s Justice Department, minorities are targeted and racism is further emboldened, women lose control over their own bodies to male bureaucrats, the social safety net is torn apart and the economy is severely tipped to pour more into the laps of the wealthy while the 99% are buried deeper in debt and trapped in lower paying jobs…more and more Americans will be driven to openly fight back. Even some Trump voters.
Trump won the presidency with a campaign of bigotry, misogyny, lies and hatred towards all those who weren’t part of his base. His presidency is predicated on a viciously divided America. He takes office with negatives between 60% and 70% and having lost the majority of voters in the election to Hillary Clinton. There is no mandate for the extremist agenda he appears ready to unleash. There is no “honeymoon” for overt racists who rise to power in America. Trump may not have Democrats in a strong position to disrupt his plans but unrest and protest across the country may do just that.
Under President Obama, we did see the rise of racists around the country, the growth of militias and anti-government (that is, anti-government when it’s run by someone who’s not a white bigot) types in government and among citizens. We did see protests sponsored and manufactured by the Kochs against the ACA , Obama and Dems that did develop into genuine citizen movements…from which Trump and his Presidency have oozed. But they didn’t and still don’t represent a majority of Americans. The majority of Americans is represented by those Trump has whipped up hatred towards. And to be clear, Obama and Dems didn’t actually represent a threat to Republicans’ personal safety or existence.
In 2017, Americans and immigrants will have justified concerns about threats to their safety and lives generated by the President of their country. Trump’s Thugs are already “celebrating” his victory by committing a growing number of hate crimes against women and minorities across the country and online. The policies noted above and many more are intended to inject greater fear and instability in society, which only helps strongmen stay in power. This is the formula for generating mass civil protests and civil disobedience.
Trump may very well have far more at the top of his priority list than what he wants to do, if a majority of the American people are standing against him and protesting widely during his 4 years.
We haven’t quite been in such an unimaginably horrible situation before but Americans did rise up against their President in the 1960’s/1970’s of Nixon and the 2000’s when Bush and Cheney were so thoroughly destroying America. Both detestable Presidents did do plenty of profound damage to the country during their reigns but the people stood up to them and rejected them. There is historical precedent that the same will happen in the Trump years, he will be facing battles with the American people in every direction and a man of his temperament wouldn’t be expected to cope with that very well. It may lead to some terrible situations but it should demonstrate to an even bigger majority of voters that this man is incapable of being President and must be replaced in 2020.
President Obama endured unthinkable abuse, disrespect and hatred from Republicans as the first black President. However Americans stand up to legitimate threats posed to their safety and lives by Trump will pale in comparison but will be vital in limiting the damage he intends for most Americans. It will also help to elect a Progressive Democrat in 2020 who can work to repair the destruction Trump does to America.
I almost (but not quite) feel sorry for the Trump voters who truly do believe that they’re about to get into an orange-painted time-travel machine and find themselves back in 1951.
The thing about having one’s consciousness raised is that it’s a once and forever occurrence. After your consciousness has been elevated, it’s pretty much impossible to dumb yourself back down again. Not without a lobotomy. This applies to women, minority folks, immigrants, LGBTQ people — everyone.
So it’s never going to be 1951 again. People won’t stuff themselves back into the closet. They won’t opt for back-alley abortions without protest. They won’t quit their jobs and stay home to change diapers (as if they could in the GOP world of obligatory two-income families anyhow). They won’t rush to the back of the bus in mute compliance to the glares of racists. Those days are over. Forever.
There may be chaos. There may be turbulence. But Mr. and Mrs. Cleaver’s sons, Wally and Beaver, are all grown up now. 1951 is gone forever.
And most of us say “good riddance.”
Kes, I guarantee you though that many Trump voters will apply that same tunnel vision from the primaries to his presidency. No matter how many of his fraudulent promises evaporate, they will wave it off and claim it’s unimportant then repeat how wonderful he is.
So many Trump voters are self-deluded rubes, they want to believe in time machines and miracles and they are on enthusiastically aboard the Trump train even as it falls off a cliff to certain doom.
But as you say, there will be some who do become a bit enlightened (though fighting against the humiliation of admitting that they were conned like fools won’t be easy for them).
While Trump used phony blame and promises to whip up rural white anger, vindictiveness and bigotry, it indeed is not the blueprint for building a time machine to go back to a 1950’s that didn’t exist in reality anyway.
There is no going back to the 1950’s glorious and fictional days of white utopia. It is such a basic and obvious lie to manipulate that most voters saw through immediately.
I know there are decent rural white people out there who voted for Trump, I know it’s a form of prejudice to tag them all as idiots but I will tag a lot of them as being as ignorant as a 4 year old child.
The first lesson anyone should be taught by the time they are old enough to vote is, if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Yet here are these folks who are much older than that who are anxious to play Three Card Trumpy and think that they will instantly win time travel for the whole country.
They are the past and this may be the last election where they could use their ignorance to halt and damage the progress of the nation; They are on the wrong side of history and the GOP will pay a huge price for getting in bed with the most disastrous, hate mongering and incompetent President in our history (can’t believe anyone could beat out Bush!).
The GOP will be stained for a long time to Trumpism and all current Repubs like Ryan who are working with him will have their political futures derailed.
Wonderful article, AdLib. Sad and bad days to come.
I think that when an unqualified criminal is due to take over the running of your country with unqualified thugs who will dismantle everything that is just, something good already working well for its people while improving their lives, there is no other alternative left than to protest against someone trying to steal it away again. If the protests are non-violent and happen throughout his term, the cowardly gop might even try to impeach him as he so obviously has no self-control about anything.
Quite honestly, after Obama spent years mending fences with other countries, trump will find out sooner or later that these countries will not take any crap from an insane fraudster. Still, I worry as a citizen of the world about what kind of legitimacy the far right element in trump’s administration will send to the nutters in Eutope with “Nasty Little Nigel”Farage standing by his side on the 12th of November gloating for a picture op. The Office of the President of the United States will always be respected, but the man who takes over in January will never be. There are those of us who remember every single insult that came from his rancid mouth, and nothing is forgivable. He is now trying to delay his court cases. He’s not the president yet so those cases should go forward as soon as possible, especially the alleged rape of a 13 year old supplied by his disgusting friend, the underage girl trafficker.
I heard the results briefly in our hotel room before going out, and told hubby that there would be nationwide protests and riots.
And so it begins
Trump faces growing tension with key Republicans over national security issues
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-putin-talk-of-strong-and-enduring-relationship-president-elect-prepares-to-meet-today-with-vice-president-to-discuss-cabinet/
Kalima, it won’t be just because the things he wants to do damage the country, they represent personal threats to a majority of Americans.
Part of the reason Trump won was due to the apathetic Dem voters who wouldn’t go out and vote. Sometimes people have to suffer before they act in their own interests.
Only around half of voters voted, the other half may be a bit more motivated to fulfill their civil responsibilities when they lose their health care, their air and water is polluted and their SS and Medicare is cut and undermined.
I wish all Americans had the abilities of critical thinking and seeing the big picture, only around half of those who voted seem to. So we have to go through hell with an ignorant, bigoted narcissist at the helm of the country, steering it into an iceberg, before they get off their asses to avoid drowning.
I think like Bush, world leaders have already tagged Trump as a dangerous manboy who can’t be trusted to e mindful or responsible about his impact on the world. They may have to be diplomatic since he is the president and is vindictive but they will rely on the US as little as necessary.
The woman who was 13 when Trump abused her dropped her suit. She claimed that she feared that she and her family would be harassed.
Otherwise, as far as I know, the Trump University suit and the NY AG’s investigation into Trump’s foundation are moving forward.
I was going to say that this is America’s wake up call but didn’t want it to sound too harsh. Then again this would not have happened if some had gotten off their arses in 2010 to vote instead of letting the insane and extreme tea party take over. You would have thought that Dems would have learned their lesson, but obviously those who opted out on voting, weren’t suffering enough to care. Now their disinterest and complacency about a Clinton landslide, has handed them trump and bannon on a rusty platter. That these lunatics will now have access to secrets is truly frightening for all of us around the world. That the far right now claims power in an important partner like America is even more frightening.
Have a feeling that trump and bannon will clash eventually considering trump’s burning desire to be admired, and the shit storm to follow after he tries to destroy democracy and the nation piece by piece. Paul Manafort didn’t last long after trying to boss trump around.
Sometimes you need to hit rock bottom to climb up again, but this was self-inflicted by those too dumb, too stubborn and too selfish to think about those who will be affected the most. Shame on them all.
The 13 year old rape victim withdrew because she had received death threats when she was due to give a press conference. Nice!
Kalima, there is no wakeup call that works with the politically ignorant…that’s why they’re ignorant and capable of voting for a mentally unstable man to have the nuclear codes.
We will never be rid of these mindless emotional voters and they will continue to periodically sabotage the country because it’s easy to manipulate idiots who have emotional kneejerk responses to issues that require thought.
Trump’s presidency will be the most divisive and socially destructive in US history. The damage will be vast and the morons who voted for him may bury their heads in denial to avoid having to admit they blew up their own lives. But some will, more than enough to keep Trump from a second term.
They were indeed too selfish to think about how so many people are now fearful and under threat by their “outsider” and too stupid to realize that they too are just annoyances to a Trump who has already got what he wanted. They will now suffer from trying to throw a Molotov cocktail at America because, despite their ignorance about it, they live in America too.
When the house next to theirs catches fire, it spreads to theirs too. They’re so ignorant, they think the fire will just stop at their neighbor’s house and all they care about is burning them down because they’re not white or Christian.
Everything burns…