MAGA and DSA have a common bond: Destructive government

Of the Declaration of Independence’s 1,320 words, the most trenchant are: “That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government.”

For all the praise due to unalienable rights of  “life, liberty and pursuit of happiness,” this sentence formed the heart and soul for the American Revolution and as a future foundation for ensuring good governance.    

The Civil War was fought because the Confederacy believed that the federal government was destroying states’ rights and along with them slavery, the South’s economic engine. 

A century and a half later, President Trump mobilized “populism,” weaponizing it into the Make America Great Again movement that twice swept him into the presidency. The government had become destructive in this view, leading to endless wars that sapped the nation of blood and treasure.

“America First” became the rallying cry. That meant controlling borders, cutting foreign aid and assistance, making allies more responsible for their own security, imposing tariffs to level economic marketplaces and not repeating the trap of fighting never ending wars. Socio-ideological beliefs played strongly. Transgender players in women’s and girls’ sports became a political issue.  

The result was a Trump revolution organized about fixing the destructive nature of government. And to Trump, the only means to repair a system of checks and balances that was in deadlock and not working was logical: Make the president more than primus inter pares, or first among equals. The president was the leader. Congress, and........

© The Hill