Our Democracy, our Freedoms, and the soul of our Country are all on the line in November!
President Biden’s State of the Union address was very inspiring to me, and I hope, very inspiring to most of my fellow Americans. Joe Biden has been the President for all Americans not just the Americans who agree with him! He brought with him the true grit of a leader who truly cares about the people, the country and the world. And, his greatest characteristic, he is Humble and Kind. Something his predecessor NEVER HAD & NEVER WILL HAVE!
His predecessor is a dictator wannabe who, like an AR-15 with a bump stock, shoots down our country, our institutions, and his “best people” who finally wake up and turn against him, every chance he gets! He praises dictators who he admires and is envious of. He just entertained Victor Orbán @ Mar a Lago!
Does anyone really believe he wants to close the borders after telling his Republican party, do not vote for that bipartisan border bill because I want to run on it for my campaign! Did anyone believe it when Trump said he and his party will repeal Obamacare and replace it with my healthcare bill that will be much better!
Michael Cohen, who worked for Trump for over 10 years said that before Trump became president, he didn’t really want the job. It was only going to be an infomercial for adding more populism and of course more money! Michael also said if he loses to Biden in 2020 he will never concede! Very few people believed Trump would be that bold and ruthless.
Personally I am baffled that there are so many Americans who look at this insurrectionist and think, yep he’s my guy!
Good stuff, Mr. Reich -- comprehensive, thorough, punching. Thanks. I'm not able to think seriously of TFG in the WH again. What I really hope for is that during my lifetime (I'm older than you) I will no longer have to see his name in print daily or mute the news because some editor thinks he said something I should hear. I want him gone from the nat'l stage and gone from my consciousness. I'll celebrate the day he's no longer considered good copy by MSM.
I was finishing a degree in psychology in 1987 and doing an internship at a crisis intervention center and our main concern as we evaluated people that the police brought in, or folks who walked in because they were suicidal or being physically abused was ARE THEY A DANGER TO THEMSELVES OR OTHERS? If we thought that someone was going to kill themselves or harm another person they were admitted to the Mental Health ward by the on call Psychologist. That was back when local hospitals had Psych wards and states had Mental Hospitals. It kept a lot of dangerous people off of the streets. Now that there is no funding for mental health care all of those people are on their own, and many of them invaded the Capitol on Jan 6th. If a country can't control and care for it's mentally ill then it will collapse. If people are too cheap to pay taxes to keep the mental hospitals open then you will have people fall for the ploys of Trump and his ilk. I don't make a living as a psychologist, I never did and I paid off my student loans as a bartender, which is a sad statement about how serious our country takes public safety. A lot of those people that you are talking about, the really crazy MAGA's ARE a danger to society or to themselves. They need to be evaluated, medicated and some of them put into mental hospitals. Capitalism will eat itself when it ignores it's own public safety because rich or poor... a mentally ill person with a gun can shoot you wherever you are. They can also vote in one of their own, and God help us.
I am cautiously (with some slight nausea if I'm honest...😆) optimistic. Much more so than I was last week at this time. I think we have many more reasons to hope than we did. Here's my two cents for what it's worth:
1.) Biden shattered the age narrative with his SOTU speech. Now he just has to keep it up. Pound it over and over. Trump is getting tired. You can tell.
2.) Trump never expanded his Base and is losing Voters. Plus Nikki took 1/3 of them so far. We can peel those off. Many said they wouldn't vote for Trump. Especially if he were convicted of a felony. Since his first criminal trial starts 2 weeks from today that is great news!!
3.) Endorsements aren't promised. My Indiana Senator Todd Young refused to endorse Trump this year he said on Friday. I called and thanked him. I'm sure he appreciated it since I imagine he's getting lots of hate. If you think about it this week maybe give his Office a call and thank him too. Took a lot of guts to do that.
4.) Trump and the RNC are broke right now. That's a big plus. We are way ahead in Fundraising. I was noticing too on Facebook earlier how many women support Biden and are monthly donors. All good news.
So right now we are on offense. We cannot let up. Russia and Saudi Arabia could possibly collude to manipulate oil prices in the Fall to hurt Biden so we must stay vigilant!!
Thank you Dr. Reich as always for your great writing, your words of wisdom and your cool drawings too. I'm so honored to be working with you. Hope you have a great week!! ❤️🇺🇸💙
for all of us in the progressive movement, and -- dare i say -- for all of us who simply care about human rights, justice and equality domestically and all across the world, the quintessential key is to have HOPE ...
right now, there is so much sheer helplessness -- whether it be over the wars in ukraine and gaza, with the climate crisis, or even (just writing this feels dystopian) over the rights for women in america to have over their own bodies ... there are so many more issues (specifically here in america) that have the majority of support amongst our population, yet have no forseeable way forward beyond the gridlock of an imperfect and, frankly, anti-democratic system (i'm looking at you, the electoral college; i'm also looking at you, the senatorial filibuster), that our helplessness can easily morph into hopelessness ...
my message to all progressives and to anyone who cares about humanity is that we cannot allow our helplessness to fester into hopelessness ... we must continue the fight ... we are marching on the shoulders of the bravest giants (gandhi, martin luther king jr, rosa parks, nelson mandela, harvey milk, alexei navalny ... just to name a very few) ... we have to remain active because it is up to us to save democracy across the world ...
it is not an easy fight ... it drains us, depletes us, sometimes incarcerates or even assassinates us ... and yet, the alternative is not acceptable ... so we need to have the HOPE to keep our fight going for the future of our planet and for the future of humanity ...
i felt that hope with president biden's state of the union address, and i feel that hope from your latest brilliance mr. reich ... thank you ...
if we lose our hope, then we have lost everything ... keep the faith, my friends !!!
I am a professional historian who specializes in the rise of the extreme right in France in the 1930s and during the war. I taught in California for 31 years. These two facts about me are salient here because they illustrate both my concerns about MAGA, and my cautious optimism. It is exactly correct that the rise of MAGA is a backlash against the demographic changes in the United States, as it comes to look more and more like, well, California. People from more conservative, white, and rural regions, along with the wealthy elite of this country, tend to support Trump precisely because they fear changes that will transfer wealth and power to younger, more ethnically diverse, and urban populations. Many of the grievances of the poorer rural MAGA supporters, whites and non-whites alike, are well-founded. When the Clintons came to power and began touting globalization, I agreed with their analysis that is was inevitable, but I disagreed with their insouciance regarding it's likely impact on Middle Class Americans. Much more should have been done to aid those who were the losers in globalizing the economy. Unions are a big help (I joined the union soon after I began my job in California), and so is retraining, but neither is enough.
And like the extreme right of 1930s France, MAGA appeals to those who feel that urban elites have supported automatisation and exportation of jobs and encouraged immigration that in their view drives down wages. Moreover, the regime of Maréchal Pétain substituted for "Liberty, Equality, and Brotherhood," the slogan of the French Revolution, a new slogan, "Work, Family, and Nation." This was well-suited to the conservative politics of those supporting Pétain's authoritarian regime, which was based on a sort of Christian nationalism similar to that of Franco's regime in Spain. These values appeal to traditionalists, especially rural folks who tend to view themselves as the founders and moral bedrock of the nation, including in the Unites States. These folks feel not only that they have been "downgraded" economically, but that their values should triumph because they are the "original" values of the country. That is why MAGA supporters, Trump's base, tend to be so utterly and unshakably devoted to him, no matter what he does or says. He is their champion in what they view as a moral crusade to "save" America, even if it means disenfranchising everyone who disagrees with them. And that is the real danger of the MAGA movement, and all its opportunistic fellow travelers. Like the Puritans, they believe in democracy only for the morally "pure." Trump appeals to them because he gives them the illusion of democracy while encouraging their sense of grievance and conviction that their opponents are not "real" Americans.
Returning to the theme of cautious optimism, and the looming danger at the same time, it is important to remember that people often flock to an autocrat precisely because they know they cannot win power in a free and fair vote. Pétain came to power in France only because of the German invasion. France in the 1930s was on the brink of a civil war, a reaction to the election in 1936 of the left-leaning Popular Front government. Franco won the civil war in Spain with the help of the Nazis. It was they, not Franco, who bombed Guernica. And the war broke out, again, as a reaction to the election in Spain of another Popular Front government, similar to that in France. In other words, MAGA Republicans (and even not so MAGA ones like Mitch McConnell) resort to authoritarian "lite" tactics such as disenfranchising voters or making it harder for the supporters of their opponents to register to vote or get to the polls, gerrymandering districts, and using threats of violence to intimidate their opponents precisely because they know they are in the minority and will lose in a free and fair election.
Trump did not win the popular vote in 2016. He won because of the anti-democratic electoral college. He will not will in the popular vote in 2024 either. If he becomes president, it will be because of anti-democratic tactics and the electoral college. But, most of all, it will because of apathy from too many who oppose him but are lukewarm to Biden. This is one reason why in encouraging my friends and acquaintances to vote, I point out constantly that the election is not just about the president. It is also about Congress. A Trump presidency with a Democratic Congress would still be a problem, but the damage he could do would be greatly reduced. The electoral college, even though it skews the vote in favor of the MAGA-majority states, can be won if enough people turn out everywhere. And meanwhile, if you use your vote to ensure that Trump cannot control Congress, you are also protecting the social programs, including Social Security, that you treasure. (Social Security, btw, cannot be protected just by ensuring that Trump doesn't cut it. The contributions cap must be raised to $250,000 of income per year, now, and that won't happen unless Democrats control Congress. But that's a discussion for another day.)
The nausea comes from our inability to apply Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. We should not have to worry about whether he will win back the Oval Office. He should not be eligible for the position. We've all but coronated him.
Hi Robert, as often I think you are right on and common sense will prevail it the end but it will be a tough and hot road for Biden and the Dems as Trump a his autocrat gang , supported by a super hypocrite GOP, big money and big Business . THey will throw everhyting at their opponent, legally and illegally, because he obviously is fighting for his personal survival eg stay out of jail, not for America. I have given up on US media few years ago and since they seem to have become even more supportive of Trump, at least giving him the benefit of the doubt. Any positive comment on Biden is often followed by a "but" and while accusing him of behaviours normal for Trump they completely ignore Trump's usual bad behaviours. I guess there is too much money in it for them and that what this all seems to about. Money in the end seems to make the difference in American politics......Not being an American and not living in US, I still am very concerned about the outcome in November because if it goes Trump's way, it will have a huge negative impact on the rest of the world in so many aspects.....
Professor, While I largely subscribe to your reasons for feeling hopeful, I am particularly enamored with you suggesting that we all be part of building a nationwide pro-democracy movement, which, in my view, would be rooted in its fidelity to the rule of law and the Constitution and in a fundamental truth: that whatever one’s first issue of concern, however pressing, rising up for freedom and democracy had better be a close second; for without preserving our constitutional republic, progress of any kind is doomed.
The foregoing notwithstanding, I, further, would submit, that while a great deal of prosecutorial attention has been focused on the attempt to overthrow the 2020 election, perhaps we would be well-served were we focused at least as much on what is happening, as we speak, to lay the groundwork for Trump and his allies to hold power whether or not they win enough votes.
The breathtaking idiocy of these people would be reassuring (who needs clever, reality-oriented adversaries? Sounds exhausting 🙄) if they weren't so well 'represented' by corporate fascists of the Charles Koch mentality...
I completely agree with your message, Professor, but I wish you had honored the distinction between "nauseated" and "nauseous." We progressives are nauseated because Trump and the GOP are nauseous.
AMERICA, LOVE IT OR LEAVE!
Our Democracy, our Freedoms, and the soul of our Country are all on the line in November!
President Biden’s State of the Union address was very inspiring to me, and I hope, very inspiring to most of my fellow Americans. Joe Biden has been the President for all Americans not just the Americans who agree with him! He brought with him the true grit of a leader who truly cares about the people, the country and the world. And, his greatest characteristic, he is Humble and Kind. Something his predecessor NEVER HAD & NEVER WILL HAVE!
His predecessor is a dictator wannabe who, like an AR-15 with a bump stock, shoots down our country, our institutions, and his “best people” who finally wake up and turn against him, every chance he gets! He praises dictators who he admires and is envious of. He just entertained Victor Orbán @ Mar a Lago!
Does anyone really believe he wants to close the borders after telling his Republican party, do not vote for that bipartisan border bill because I want to run on it for my campaign! Did anyone believe it when Trump said he and his party will repeal Obamacare and replace it with my healthcare bill that will be much better!
Michael Cohen, who worked for Trump for over 10 years said that before Trump became president, he didn’t really want the job. It was only going to be an infomercial for adding more populism and of course more money! Michael also said if he loses to Biden in 2020 he will never concede! Very few people believed Trump would be that bold and ruthless.
Personally I am baffled that there are so many Americans who look at this insurrectionist and think, yep he’s my guy!
Good stuff, Mr. Reich -- comprehensive, thorough, punching. Thanks. I'm not able to think seriously of TFG in the WH again. What I really hope for is that during my lifetime (I'm older than you) I will no longer have to see his name in print daily or mute the news because some editor thinks he said something I should hear. I want him gone from the nat'l stage and gone from my consciousness. I'll celebrate the day he's no longer considered good copy by MSM.
My "Case for Optimism" lies with 1. Women 2. Men who support women 3. Young people.
I was finishing a degree in psychology in 1987 and doing an internship at a crisis intervention center and our main concern as we evaluated people that the police brought in, or folks who walked in because they were suicidal or being physically abused was ARE THEY A DANGER TO THEMSELVES OR OTHERS? If we thought that someone was going to kill themselves or harm another person they were admitted to the Mental Health ward by the on call Psychologist. That was back when local hospitals had Psych wards and states had Mental Hospitals. It kept a lot of dangerous people off of the streets. Now that there is no funding for mental health care all of those people are on their own, and many of them invaded the Capitol on Jan 6th. If a country can't control and care for it's mentally ill then it will collapse. If people are too cheap to pay taxes to keep the mental hospitals open then you will have people fall for the ploys of Trump and his ilk. I don't make a living as a psychologist, I never did and I paid off my student loans as a bartender, which is a sad statement about how serious our country takes public safety. A lot of those people that you are talking about, the really crazy MAGA's ARE a danger to society or to themselves. They need to be evaluated, medicated and some of them put into mental hospitals. Capitalism will eat itself when it ignores it's own public safety because rich or poor... a mentally ill person with a gun can shoot you wherever you are. They can also vote in one of their own, and God help us.
I'm sure Jesus would have totally approved wearing a diamond-encrusted crucifix while supporting a known rapist, cheat, and idiot. /s
I am cautiously (with some slight nausea if I'm honest...😆) optimistic. Much more so than I was last week at this time. I think we have many more reasons to hope than we did. Here's my two cents for what it's worth:
1.) Biden shattered the age narrative with his SOTU speech. Now he just has to keep it up. Pound it over and over. Trump is getting tired. You can tell.
2.) Trump never expanded his Base and is losing Voters. Plus Nikki took 1/3 of them so far. We can peel those off. Many said they wouldn't vote for Trump. Especially if he were convicted of a felony. Since his first criminal trial starts 2 weeks from today that is great news!!
3.) Endorsements aren't promised. My Indiana Senator Todd Young refused to endorse Trump this year he said on Friday. I called and thanked him. I'm sure he appreciated it since I imagine he's getting lots of hate. If you think about it this week maybe give his Office a call and thank him too. Took a lot of guts to do that.
4.) Trump and the RNC are broke right now. That's a big plus. We are way ahead in Fundraising. I was noticing too on Facebook earlier how many women support Biden and are monthly donors. All good news.
So right now we are on offense. We cannot let up. Russia and Saudi Arabia could possibly collude to manipulate oil prices in the Fall to hurt Biden so we must stay vigilant!!
Thank you Dr. Reich as always for your great writing, your words of wisdom and your cool drawings too. I'm so honored to be working with you. Hope you have a great week!! ❤️🇺🇸💙
for all of us in the progressive movement, and -- dare i say -- for all of us who simply care about human rights, justice and equality domestically and all across the world, the quintessential key is to have HOPE ...
right now, there is so much sheer helplessness -- whether it be over the wars in ukraine and gaza, with the climate crisis, or even (just writing this feels dystopian) over the rights for women in america to have over their own bodies ... there are so many more issues (specifically here in america) that have the majority of support amongst our population, yet have no forseeable way forward beyond the gridlock of an imperfect and, frankly, anti-democratic system (i'm looking at you, the electoral college; i'm also looking at you, the senatorial filibuster), that our helplessness can easily morph into hopelessness ...
my message to all progressives and to anyone who cares about humanity is that we cannot allow our helplessness to fester into hopelessness ... we must continue the fight ... we are marching on the shoulders of the bravest giants (gandhi, martin luther king jr, rosa parks, nelson mandela, harvey milk, alexei navalny ... just to name a very few) ... we have to remain active because it is up to us to save democracy across the world ...
it is not an easy fight ... it drains us, depletes us, sometimes incarcerates or even assassinates us ... and yet, the alternative is not acceptable ... so we need to have the HOPE to keep our fight going for the future of our planet and for the future of humanity ...
i felt that hope with president biden's state of the union address, and i feel that hope from your latest brilliance mr. reich ... thank you ...
if we lose our hope, then we have lost everything ... keep the faith, my friends !!!
The cartoon by Randy Molton was a perfect illustration of today’s GOP
I am a professional historian who specializes in the rise of the extreme right in France in the 1930s and during the war. I taught in California for 31 years. These two facts about me are salient here because they illustrate both my concerns about MAGA, and my cautious optimism. It is exactly correct that the rise of MAGA is a backlash against the demographic changes in the United States, as it comes to look more and more like, well, California. People from more conservative, white, and rural regions, along with the wealthy elite of this country, tend to support Trump precisely because they fear changes that will transfer wealth and power to younger, more ethnically diverse, and urban populations. Many of the grievances of the poorer rural MAGA supporters, whites and non-whites alike, are well-founded. When the Clintons came to power and began touting globalization, I agreed with their analysis that is was inevitable, but I disagreed with their insouciance regarding it's likely impact on Middle Class Americans. Much more should have been done to aid those who were the losers in globalizing the economy. Unions are a big help (I joined the union soon after I began my job in California), and so is retraining, but neither is enough.
And like the extreme right of 1930s France, MAGA appeals to those who feel that urban elites have supported automatisation and exportation of jobs and encouraged immigration that in their view drives down wages. Moreover, the regime of Maréchal Pétain substituted for "Liberty, Equality, and Brotherhood," the slogan of the French Revolution, a new slogan, "Work, Family, and Nation." This was well-suited to the conservative politics of those supporting Pétain's authoritarian regime, which was based on a sort of Christian nationalism similar to that of Franco's regime in Spain. These values appeal to traditionalists, especially rural folks who tend to view themselves as the founders and moral bedrock of the nation, including in the Unites States. These folks feel not only that they have been "downgraded" economically, but that their values should triumph because they are the "original" values of the country. That is why MAGA supporters, Trump's base, tend to be so utterly and unshakably devoted to him, no matter what he does or says. He is their champion in what they view as a moral crusade to "save" America, even if it means disenfranchising everyone who disagrees with them. And that is the real danger of the MAGA movement, and all its opportunistic fellow travelers. Like the Puritans, they believe in democracy only for the morally "pure." Trump appeals to them because he gives them the illusion of democracy while encouraging their sense of grievance and conviction that their opponents are not "real" Americans.
Returning to the theme of cautious optimism, and the looming danger at the same time, it is important to remember that people often flock to an autocrat precisely because they know they cannot win power in a free and fair vote. Pétain came to power in France only because of the German invasion. France in the 1930s was on the brink of a civil war, a reaction to the election in 1936 of the left-leaning Popular Front government. Franco won the civil war in Spain with the help of the Nazis. It was they, not Franco, who bombed Guernica. And the war broke out, again, as a reaction to the election in Spain of another Popular Front government, similar to that in France. In other words, MAGA Republicans (and even not so MAGA ones like Mitch McConnell) resort to authoritarian "lite" tactics such as disenfranchising voters or making it harder for the supporters of their opponents to register to vote or get to the polls, gerrymandering districts, and using threats of violence to intimidate their opponents precisely because they know they are in the minority and will lose in a free and fair election.
Trump did not win the popular vote in 2016. He won because of the anti-democratic electoral college. He will not will in the popular vote in 2024 either. If he becomes president, it will be because of anti-democratic tactics and the electoral college. But, most of all, it will because of apathy from too many who oppose him but are lukewarm to Biden. This is one reason why in encouraging my friends and acquaintances to vote, I point out constantly that the election is not just about the president. It is also about Congress. A Trump presidency with a Democratic Congress would still be a problem, but the damage he could do would be greatly reduced. The electoral college, even though it skews the vote in favor of the MAGA-majority states, can be won if enough people turn out everywhere. And meanwhile, if you use your vote to ensure that Trump cannot control Congress, you are also protecting the social programs, including Social Security, that you treasure. (Social Security, btw, cannot be protected just by ensuring that Trump doesn't cut it. The contributions cap must be raised to $250,000 of income per year, now, and that won't happen unless Democrats control Congress. But that's a discussion for another day.)
The nausea comes from our inability to apply Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. We should not have to worry about whether he will win back the Oval Office. He should not be eligible for the position. We've all but coronated him.
Hi Robert, as often I think you are right on and common sense will prevail it the end but it will be a tough and hot road for Biden and the Dems as Trump a his autocrat gang , supported by a super hypocrite GOP, big money and big Business . THey will throw everhyting at their opponent, legally and illegally, because he obviously is fighting for his personal survival eg stay out of jail, not for America. I have given up on US media few years ago and since they seem to have become even more supportive of Trump, at least giving him the benefit of the doubt. Any positive comment on Biden is often followed by a "but" and while accusing him of behaviours normal for Trump they completely ignore Trump's usual bad behaviours. I guess there is too much money in it for them and that what this all seems to about. Money in the end seems to make the difference in American politics......Not being an American and not living in US, I still am very concerned about the outcome in November because if it goes Trump's way, it will have a huge negative impact on the rest of the world in so many aspects.....
Hello and happy salutations dear Professor Reich and all!
What a wonderful gift this morning to read of your optimism about our beloved Nation.
It is our belief that good defeats evil.
The goodness of President Biden is self evident to those with eyes that can see, ears that can hear the truth, and a heart that loves righteousness!
We believe in America.
We believe that there is no compulsion in religion.
We believe in E Pluribus Unum.
We believe in God. In God We Trust.
Thank you once again for your true patriotism through your optimistic attitude!
🇺🇸
Professor, While I largely subscribe to your reasons for feeling hopeful, I am particularly enamored with you suggesting that we all be part of building a nationwide pro-democracy movement, which, in my view, would be rooted in its fidelity to the rule of law and the Constitution and in a fundamental truth: that whatever one’s first issue of concern, however pressing, rising up for freedom and democracy had better be a close second; for without preserving our constitutional republic, progress of any kind is doomed.
The foregoing notwithstanding, I, further, would submit, that while a great deal of prosecutorial attention has been focused on the attempt to overthrow the 2020 election, perhaps we would be well-served were we focused at least as much on what is happening, as we speak, to lay the groundwork for Trump and his allies to hold power whether or not they win enough votes.
A terrific post. You should write campaign speeches. Bravo.
The breathtaking idiocy of these people would be reassuring (who needs clever, reality-oriented adversaries? Sounds exhausting 🙄) if they weren't so well 'represented' by corporate fascists of the Charles Koch mentality...
I completely agree with your message, Professor, but I wish you had honored the distinction between "nauseated" and "nauseous." We progressives are nauseated because Trump and the GOP are nauseous.