Yesterday my daughter and I proudly joined thousands of people in Boston for the “Hands Off!” rally/protest. It was heartening to see so many people of all ages, genders, races, religions and backgrounds all united in the belief that American democracy is under attack and this drive towards authoritarianism must stop.
Given the massive protests across the country, I hope some of these spineless Republicans who are complicit in allowing this to get to this point by refusing to stand up and do their jobs and uphold their pledged allegiance to the Constitution as opposed to Trump, will get the message. They were worried if they stood up to Trump, they would get ‘primaried’ by a Trump-backed candidate and the whole thing would be bankrolled by Elon Musk. They were more worried about keeping their jobs than standing up for their principles. Now, it seems many of those same people might be fighting for their political lives anyway.
Elon Musk couldn’t buy a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court despite spending over $20 million of his own money. A number of local elections in Illinois flipped from red to blue. The two Republican candidates for seats in the House of Representatives in Florida managed to get elected but by a much smaller margin than would normally happen in ruby red election districts that voted for Trump by thirty points. (And that was before the stock market meltdown caused by Trump’s ridiculous tariff policy announcement that wiped trillions of dollars from the map and cratered everyone’s 401K and retirement plans!)
The Republicans and many others including law firms, universities, and businesses are cowering before Trump. They are afraid of Elon Musk and his money. They are afraid to hold town hall meetings because they can’t look their constituents in the eye without lying to them. They are afraid of having fair elections because they know their policies are unpopular, which is why they have passed so many laws to make it harder for people to vote. It brings to mind the saying from Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, “A coward dies a thousand times before his death, but the valiant taste of death but once.”
The protests that are happening across the country will increase as Trump enacts even more draconian policies and guts Federal agencies that are providing needed benefits to millions of Americans. Middle America will be hit hard by the retaliatory tariffs imposed by other countries. Current estimates show these tariff policies will cost the average American family an additional $4,000/year. And while that is not even a rounding error to billionaires like Trump and Musk, it will mean choosing to eat or not for some families.
The real heroes in this country will be the normal, average American who will collectively stand up and fight for the democracy this country was founded on and which it which it deserves. The Republicans have chosen cowardice and complicity. History will judge them accordingly.
One more thing. If there are still those who think the country is better off given what is going on with Musk’s slash and burn tactics and the draconian immigration policies being exercised under the assumption that none of that really impacts you personally, I would just like to offer the following. We have all heard the stories of people being deported or held in ICE detention centers who were here on legal visas but when ICE searched their phones, they found comments critical of Trump or supporting some cause Trump objects to and used that as an excuse to deport or detain them. Even a few US citizens have been detained for periods of time.
When I worked in the defense industry and we travelled out of the country, we always had sterile company phones and sterile company laptops. They contained no sensitive data and had just the minimum capabilities we needed to communicate and do our jobs. Then, we were concerned about foreign governments looking through our phones and laptops. Never in a million years did I think that I would have to be worried about entering my own country and what some immigration officer might find on my phone or laptop. And, yes, I am a citizen of the United States having been born in Spokane, Washington. And, yes, I am a white guy. I have also been very critical of Trump and his policies dating back to his first term in office.
I am leaving for a trip overseas next month. I will once again be taking a sterile phone with me and no tablet or laptop. The difference now is that I’m not worried about any of the countries I am visiting, I am worried about returning to the United States. Theoretically, anything I say or write is protected under the First Amendment and I shouldn’t have to worry at all. I suspect there is a very small chance I would be stopped or searched or have customs even go through my phone. The point is, it is a sad day when I even have to worry about it. The simple fact is, no one is safe from political persecution in this country now. Just ask the big law firms in Washington DC. Just ask Columbia and Harvard University. That is not the country I want to live in and why I went to the rally in Boston. Enough is enough!
