Mass resistance: We need a society-wide pushback against Trump
President Trump is engaged in a whole-of-government assault on American society. So we need a whole-of-society response.
The 5 million Americans who took to the streets on June 14 mark an excellent start. And the demonstrations must continue, but they are not enough.
The ultimate weapon against tyranny in a democracy is the popular vote, but the next opportunity to use it is nearly 500 days away, when voters will elect 468 senators and House members. Our highest priority should be to elect people with the integrity and backbone to remove Trump, repair the damage he is doing, and restore checks and balances.
Otherwise, Trump will remain president another 1,300 days. And we have seen the damage he has already done in just 150.
Rather than a thousand unconnected stovepipes of decency, we need a massive national movement against Trumpism's assault on fundamental American freedoms and stability.
For example, Trump and red states are warring against private-sector diversity and environmental-social-governance or ESG policies. Businesses and institutions should be free to adopt those policies if they find them valuable. The government has no business forcing private entities to drop responsible policies that reflect their values.
Trump's most pervasive damage is his purge of government efforts to protect the public from climate change. He ignores the longstanding warnings from intelligence and military officials that global warming is undermining national security. He has decimated the science programs that allow us to understand global warming better and predict its impacts.
He declared a phony energy emergency to expedite production of climate-altering fossil fuels. He has frozen incentives Congress created in 2022 to encourage the nation's transition to free clean energy. He has curtailed free speech among the government's 3 million civilian employees by banning “woke” words from government websites such as climate change, air pollution, women, science-based, diversity, community, and social justice.
Society has the power to push back. There are nearly © The Hill
