Only 19 days of democracy left

[Cyrano]

Last edited Wed Jan 1, 2025, 06:05 PM - Edit history (1)

At noon on January 20th, Donald Trump will be sworn in as president. And IMO, American democracy will die at that moment.

He thinks he's being sworn in as King Donald the First. He's sure he's attained absolute power. He believes he will be able to do whatever he wants to do. And who's to disagree? After all, who's to stop him? The congress? Both houses of congress will be owned by Republicans. The courts? How can they enforce their decisions? Take it to the Supreme Court which is currently a wholly owned subsidiary of the Republican Party?

And, oh yeah. there's that thing called "public opinion." Seems to me that "public opinion" has become a meaningless fantasy, the power of which is believed in by fools and liberals like me. After all, how many armies does "public opinion" command?

Many wish "King Donald" would choke on a Big Mac. The problem is, it wouldn't make any difference. The extremist element of the Republican Party holds all the levers of power. And if/when J.D. Vance, or anyone else in their neo-Nazi club replaces Trump, it won't matter. They've got their plans in place. They call it Project 2025. Decent human beings call it fascism.

This is going to be an ugly year for America, and perhaps the rest of the world. And it may not be the last one.

But, at some point, the oncoming "Fourth Reich" will fall, and some semblance of democracy will again come into being. But will it matter? Can fascism be buried forever as a primitive relic of humanity? Perhaps.

Then again, Mother Nature seems to have a bigger say than ever in the future of our environment. And she may just destroy us before we get around to destroying ourselves.

[EarthAbides]

1. Totally agree

As I Have said before... we are in a fast moving car heading towards a cliff and NO ONE is trying to stop the car!

[yellow dahlia]

19. Indeed - your imagery is an apt analogy.

I described us as being in the path of destruction, in a discussion the other day. I copied it in my reply to the OP.

I too don't get why no one is doing anything to stop it.

[onenote]

2. I'm in Virginia and plan on voting this coming November to elect a Democratic Governor

and to ensure the legislature remains in Democratic hands.
I can't stop you from admitting defeat, but I can and will think less of you for it.

[Cyrano]

4. Recognizing reality isn't admitting defeat

It's just a strong motive for learning how to defeat the world's barbarians who never seem to be overtaken by evolution.

[onenote]

9. So what is the "reality"? That because, according to you, democracy will be dead 1/20/25.

Does that mean there won't be an election in Virginia in November? That if there is, I shouldn't bother to vote?

Should Democrats in Congress give up and not try to block anything? Accept all of Trump's appointments without a peep of dissent?

No, the only reality is that you are admitting defeat without firing a shot.

[Irish_Dem]

14. You cannot fight back if you do not face reality first.

Facing reality and telling yourself the truth are basic requirements in winning any fight.
If you do not size up the enemy and environment accurately, you will most like lose.

We do not know if there will be free and fair elections in the US.

It is quite probable that Trump and other GOP so called winners did not win fair and square.

Trump himself has told us we will not need to vote again.

OP never said to give up.
OP never said we should not fight.

I love hope and optimism.
But I also admire and respect people who can face hard realities and tell the truth.
Facing reality is a requirement in any fight. You cannot fight if you are not facing reality.

And we should always fight evil when and where we can.
That is the iconic human condition.
Even if evil wins, we know we fought the good fight.

[onenote]

15. But democracy being dead isn't reality unless we allow it to be.

I'm voting. Democrats in Congress will continue to employ the tools of our Democracy to fight. It's up to you to decide, as the OP apparently has, that all of this will be either impossible or pointless.

[Wuddles440]

16. Well stated!

[yellow dahlia]

20. Agreed.

And you and I agree that this may not have been a free and fair election.

[EdmondDantes_]

23. You talk about accepting reality and about the election being probably stolen

The irony is painful. There is zero evidence that the elections weren't fair. None. The audits done showed nothing wrong. Marc Elias and the Harris campaign aren't claiming it.

The OP is advocating for surrender by saying it's inevitable that democracy is dead on the 20th. Trump didn't kill democracy the first time. People claimed if Bush won reelection, or Obama, or Biden won, that we wouldn't have elections again. They were all wrong. And for all the cries Trump said people wouldn't have to vote again, he also pondered the choice of dying from electric boats compared to being eaten by sharks a choice in death that I believe has been faced by exactly 0 people. He says lots of things that have zero basis in reality.

A far more likely explanation is that Trump knows he can't run in 2028 and so he has exactly zero concern about it since it doesn't impact him at all. He's not exactly a man that's subtle that he only cares about himself.

[Irish_Dem]

12. Optimism/Hope are good. But facing reality is a necessity too.

[onenote]

13. Is the reality that I won' t be able to elect a Democratic governor?

That I won't get to vote? That there won't be a legislature to pass legislation?
That the Democrats in the US Congress and in states where they control the state house or one or more legislative bodies will have no ability to do anything?

Because that ain't reality. That's abject, crawl in a hole and give up defeatism. Not my style.

[Fiendish Thingy]

3. Don't surrender in advance. Nt

[BannonsLiver]

5. So much woe.

[bdamomma]

6. I choose

to believe that generations before us were faced with horrific challengers, but they came through. This is our test, and we all face uncertain circumstances, but we will get through this. Never to do this

[Elessar Zappa]

7. Maybe, maybe not.

Trump’s minions are already fighting amongst themselves. Who’s to say they’ll actually accomplish much of their agenda? And I predict Elon Musk will be out on his ass in the next six months as he continued to draw attention away from Trump. Trump can’t stand people that get more attention than him.

[bdamomma]

8. I think

they will eat their own. it's happening now.

[2naSalit]

10. I get the feeling...

That it's already a death match.

[BBbats]

11. I Almost Agree!

But.......
There's hope in their ineptitude!
And maybe....just maybe.....if people don't fall for the right wing industrial strength propaganda machine's bullshit we can take back the House in 2026 we might be able to hold some of it at bay.
But there's gonna be damage!

[jalan48]

17. According to Jimmy Carter we've been an oligarchy for awhile. Trump Inc. is just making it official.

Somewhere along the line we fell asleep and let it happen, pehaps seduced by the happy talk of our politicians.

[yellow dahlia]

18. I have been singing the same tune.

What you're seeing is real. The imminent destruction is real.

I wrote about the "mad" king, as well. Here is my discussion from the other day.
https://www.democraticunderground.com/100219856975

[Initech]

21. The Heritage Foundation is pure fucking evil.

They are the enemy from within. If Syria can topple Assad, we can topple Fuckface and his billionaire Nazi cabal.

[Kid Berwyn]

22. Turning it over to the Confederacy.

Hoo-ray for Dixie. And fuck them traitors and all their NAZI brethren scum!

[Blue_Tires]

24. Very true, sadly

Trump could die tomorrow and we'd still be stuck with the disease of Trumpism, which continues to spread unchecked like a wildfire...

We need to get used to living in a post-truth society...
Just like how Republicans are never *really* going to get their 1950s or 1890s or 1770s or whatever back, we're probably not ever going to get our pre-2016 America back. 🫤

[Meowmee]

25. I wrote on my calendar Democracy Died Today for Nov 5th 2024

What will happen now remains to be seen.

[Groundhawg]

26. America is more resilient than that.

[Blue_Tires]

27. I used to believe that

But it really isn't when we can't convict him on any one of his thousands of federal crimes, the media helps him, the billionaire class helps him, the Supreme Court AND Congress are on his side instead of being a check on his power...

[Unladen Swallow]

28. Fight.

[Beringia]

29. "Mother Nature may just destroy us", nature has its own rules that humankind stomps on

Then again, Mother Nature seems to have a bigger say than ever in the future of our environment. And she may just destroy us before we get around to destroying ourselves.