Resistance To Trump Coup - We Need Political Resistance Councils

It is astonishing that the Democratic party is even weaker than we thought it was. We’ve known that it’s sclerotic and geriatric, we’ve known that the leadership can’t talk its way out of a paper bag, we’ve known that it is riven by interests with singular, narrow foci. We’ve known that its kennel of consultants is mediocre in everything but continuing to get contracts for their mediocre services. We know that its leadership has been mostly focused on keeping officials in their jobs. We’ve known that the official leadership has few leaders. We’ve known that the senior leadership has occupied itself with keeping talented junior leaders out of leadership, and comfortably stifled so that little need change within the Democratic party apparatus. We’ve known that, even to the end, when the institutions supplied all the tools necessary to cage the tiger, they couldn’t get traction on the Mueller Report, and even when they were in power, all they could offer was the infuriatingly incompetent and much-more-than-cautious Merrick Garland, may his name live in perpetual infamy. No one even raised a rumpus about his two years of delay, and his appointment of sworn Biden enemies to investigate him and his family. No, silence is their specialty.

Yes, the evidence was there. The congressional leaders couldn’t even give a coherent speech — Schumer reads his speech into the lectern, and for all her virtues, Pelosi’s ability to explain and inspire is in the bottom 20th percentile. Those who could speak had to do it on their own, in what TV time they could cadge. The evidence was there.

But still. One has to still be astounded at the confused passivity of the Democratic party in the face of a coup — or an autogolpe — that was telegraphed explicitly by Trump. He said what he was going to do! Project 2025 laid out the roadmap! Trump said his appointments would be different this time! He said he would have a tariff war! He said he would side with Russia! He said Urban has it right! He even said that in his view elections were unnecessary.

So don’t act surprised, you dolts. Yes, you are deer in the headlights. You just aren’t the right person for the job that has to be done now. Schumer, where is he? Any leaders think of bringing the senate to a standstill, filibustering appointments that are in themselves a punch in the face? Chris Murphy and others urge leaders to shut the Senate down, but they don’t. Are Republicans the only ones who own the filibuster? Anyone think of stopping calling the paid-off and intimidated Republicans anything except “our esteemed friends on the other side of the aisle?” They are the enemy! Ever hear the term “going to the mattresses?” If not now, when?

Listen to the rally cry of our friends Chuck and Hakeem — “We have no power!” Wow, that will get the millions cheering. Passivity is widespread. Jackie Rosen, fresh off a difficult race for senator from Nevada, when she should be ebullient and energized that she won, instead echoes — “We’re the minority.” Hakeem goes off on a book tour to Chicago — I guess there’s nothing to do in Washington because, after all, you’re in the minority.

OK, people tell me: don’t get angry at the Democrats, get angry at the Republicans, they’re the one doing the damage. I say, look at sports. If an opposing team gets stronger and your home team doesn’t meet the challenge, do you get angry at the opposition, or do you assail you home ownership — what are you doing? Are you just cheap? Are you thinking of moving away and you want to lose? What’s your GM doing? You get angry at the malfeasance of your team, not the strength of the opposition. I admit the analogy breaks down when it comes to cheating — the Astros will never be forgiven, and there was Inflategate. We can indict Trump for his lying and cheating — but after all, did the Dems make good on it when they had control of the DOJ? Answer — no, they whiffed. Which they are very good at doing. I’m really pissed.

So OK, I’m pissed off. But what is to be done? Most of them recognize the danger, they see the ongoing destruction, but they were somehow built for another situation, for quiet discussions and compromise, for mutual respect of differences. They weren’t built for war. But war has come for them. It was coming, but most people wish things away and then are caught unawares. Look at the US congress and the Republican party in the late 1930’s, even when Hitler invaded Poland for God’s sake, it took Pearl Harbor for them to acknowledge the obvious. So we can’t expect more today. That’s the way comfortable politicians are. So what is to be done?

The geriatric and constitutionally cautious bumps on the log have to move to the rear seats and make room for the active, alert, dynamic crowd. The leadership won’t move, let them stay where they are. We need to form a Resistance Council.

A Resistance Council will be self-creating. The vibrant leaders need to form it themselves, and not wait for anyone’s permission, just declare themselves the Resistance Council, devoted to active resistance. They will try to educate the public in an organized, persuasive way. They will hold regular teach-in sessions, in a venue more elevated than the steps of the Capitol — hire a hall, if needs be. Hire professional media people, and get top people to volunteer, to do it right, the way the J6 Committee did, but not taking the time J6 could — we need to fly into action right away. And they will put private and public pressure on our congressional leaders to resist — to gum up the works in an organized fashion, to embarrass our Republican opponents and even our Democratic static friends into moving the congress into true opposition.

The leaders of the Resistance Council to actually lead. They will mobilize and organize all those who want to be part of the Resistance, while keeping the council leadership small enough to handle.

Who are the obvious candidates for membership in the leadership of the Resistance Council? Here are some starting names: AOC, Chris Murphy, Pete Buttigieg, Jamie Raskin, Adam Kinzinger, Bernie Sanders, Reuben Gallego, Jasmine Crockett. This council would plan the PR campaign and plan the congressional actions. They would raise money for legal support against actions the Trump administration will bring, and solicit lawyers to set up pro bono legal defense councils for all the charges Trump will bring.

The states will also need to organize themselves to resist — just today the Governor of Maine challenged Trump to his face, and he tried to bully her down — that’s who he is, would-be mobster. J.B. Pritzker has put himself forward. The Governors and state AG’s should start their own council and coordinate with the congressional Resistance Council. We need a whole bunch of Resistance Councils.

If it’s The War To Save The Republic, we have to act like it. Bring it on. Recognize it. Don’t run away from it. Organize and win. And keep it focused. It’s not just the liberals, although they are the ones I mentioned by name. There will be many others.

This is one fight that has to be won. And to win, it has to be organized. And to be organized, the let’s-wait crowd and the we-don’t-have-any-power crowd have to leave the stage and let the active ones come to the fore.

Budd Shenkin