The Best Way to Slow Trump’s Stampede
The moral and ethical crater that the Trump-administration bulldozer has dug through the heart of our democracy isn’t likely to concern his voters. They long ago bought into the propaganda that the "Deep State" stole the 2020 election. Many, and possibly most U.S. voters, also have swallowed the lie that immigrants = criminals.
Yet the resistance to Trump – Democrats, Independents and Never Trumpers -- must find a way to erode his less fervent support nationwide quickly if they hope to so much as slow this country’s march into autocracy and possibly worse. I believe there’s a path, but time is short.
And it’s a path requiring planning not righteousness, and it must be targeted to Republicans and Independents not just those already convinced of his malevolence.
Trump’s foes won’t succeed by rallying in front of Washington, D.C., buildings. They won’t succeed by claiming the moral high ground. They won’t succeed by standing up for health, science or human rights. This is sad, but it is true.
However, those trying to stop the real steal – of our democracy – might succeed if they focus on what likely will be the growing economic pain of Republican voters in Red States. And they can do this by partnering with Indivisible and other grass roots groups to create Rapid Response teams in every state to track and publicize economic hurt that results from Trump’s policies.
Looking at the big picture, this hurt already is coming into focus:
Inflation climbed in January to 3.0 percent
The cost of eggs has skyrocketed and some major retailers are rationing them.
Republican Sen. Jerry Moran warned last week that some $400 million of international food aid was rotting in warehouses because of the freeze on foreign aid. My strong hunch is that his real concern wasn’t for recipients but for Kansas farmers who fear losing massive markets for their produce. Most are Republicans.
The chief executive of Ford Motor Co. warned of layoffs last week if the Trump Administration ends subsides and other support for electric car manufacturing as it has threatened to do. Jim Farley noted that Ford has invested heavily in factories that produce batteries and electric vehicles in Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee. All are dep red states.
Promised deep cuts in community health and Medicaid will hurt Trump voters in towns and rural areas throughout the country.
Finding and filming interviews with Trump voters in Red States hurt by his emerging policies and actions will make a difference, particularly if this information is disseminated on social media, billboards and local media in Red States. It will make a difference if it is juxtaposed against the billions Trump, Elon Musk and other billionaires are siphoning away from the government, and thus the country. But these stories must be specific, personal and human. That will take a small Army of engaged citizens longing to lend a hand. There’s no time to waste.
In the meantime, Musk’s supposed money-saving assault in the federal government appears to be a mirage (except to the thousands who’ve lost their jobs). The Economist yesterday reports that since Trump took office, the outlay of federal funds has averaged $30 billion a day. During the same period last year under Joe Biden’s presidency, the outlay was $26 billion. Perhaps the answer lies in the dismantling of programs and offices that help keep the government accountable.
Jerry Lanson is a part-time writing coach at the Harvard Kennedy School. He is a professor emeritus from Emerson College.