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1/ When Trump ran for office and then won, many of us who knew how dangerous he would be were told to stop worrying over nothing. We were told about the mythical checks and balances, how Congress, SCOTUS, and military leaders would keep him in line.
2/ Then, as those fragile guardrails were failing us, we were told to wait for midterms, wait for Mueller, wait for impeachment. None of that worked, of course, because expectations were not aligned with the reality of our political system, both Republican and Democratic.
3/ Now, we're being told to wait again, as if November will be any different from the shredding of norms and laws over the last three years. We're STILL being told to stop being alarmists, that a landslide will ensure victory, that Trump can't cancel voting or refuse to leave.
4/ Why are Democrats so mired in the belief that the old rules and gentleman's agreements will still apply? For some, it's because the thought of those institutions not holding is so uncomfortable that they'd rather not consider it.
5/ Or they think negative thoughts attract bad things. Others are waiting for a white knight. I wouldn't mind that either, but we can't count on it. Would you use wishing and hoping as a plan to pay your mortgage? And still others really don't want things to change.
6/ Why wouldn't people on the left want a shift from this nightmare? For some politicians, the horribleness of the Trump regime hasn't affected them. They are more invested in the big political machine status quo than in the upheaval we need now to precipitate transformation.
7/ Democrats need to apply critical thinking, ask tough questions, and demand more. Why is the Lincoln Project running more damning ads than the Biden campaign? Why are Democrats not hosting their own pressers to fight the disinformation coming from the White House?
8/ Why are they not calling this "incompetence" what it really is: genocide? The economy is the worst it's been since the Great Depression, and where is the House? These are our public servants, and they are failing us. Of course the GOP are a cult of death, but that's no excuse.
9/ Nor is allowing Trump's gun-toting base to hold the US hostage. And do not tell me they are letting Trump hoist himself by his own petard. That's like self-impeachment, which is to say it's abdicating responsibility. And it's shameful. We are in freefall, and we need more.
10/ Do not let anyone tell you to sit down, that everything will magically work itself out. When you hear those words from the President about the virus, do you believe them? No, and you shouldn't believe them from your leaders or your fellow voters about the upcoming election.
11/ We need to get in front of this, and buying stamps isn't going to cut it. We need a bipartisan coalition of past presidents to look past protocols and create an all-hands-on-deck plan for change. We need more from Democratic MOC who have ceded the narrative to the GOP.
12/ And please, we need our fellow voters to stop selling us Hollywood movie scenarios of Trump being dragged from the White House by Secret Service or ignoring the fact that even Congress doesn't know Trump's secret emergency powers. Opacity and complacency are our enemies.
13/ I've seen at least three articles just this morning from a range of pundits saying this is the last train out of Dodge. By November, it will be too late. Do we want to become another version of North Korea? We know that's what Trump and his inner circle want.
14/ Preventing that starts when we stop pretending everything is normal and nothing has changed. It starts with demanding more from our elected officials, right up to people who still use the title "President." It starts with enforcing the laws we still have, like subpoenas.
15/ It starts with building true resistance, not Chamberlain-style acquiescence, with giving people financial support, so they can do more than survive. I don't have all the answers, but I know we can't continue on this path and expect anything radically different in the future.
16/ You can start here when you see people spreading false assurances. Counter their smugness with knowledge and questioning. Call and tag your reps. Keep asking: can he do that? What's the plan? What happens if? Where is the money we need to stave off hunger and stay galvanized?
17/ I'm a former EMT and SAR unit member. I managed hospital crash carts.Tabletop worst-case scenarios are how you plan for disaster, and this is a disaster unlike any the country has ever faced before. Only by acknowledging and preparing for the worst, can you hope for the best.
18/ I don't write Twitter manifestos and usually just comment on other threads, but I'm too exhausted, angry, and worried to stay silent. I hope some of my Twitter peeps will give this a read and share it if it rings true. I'm tagging pols too because I walk my talk. Thank you.
