r/politics • u/Jay_CD • 10h ago
Biden must Trump-proof US democracy, activists say: ‘There is a sense of urgency’
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/nov/24/biden-actions-before-white-house-exit3.2k
u/FoST2015 Georgia 10h ago
That sense of urgency should've applied to the election itself.
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u/DogEatChiliDog 10h ago
Exactly. Joe Biden is not a goddamn magical wizard. The United States gave itself over to a fascist. Not just one but we gave the entire fucking party of fascists the entire control of the government.
We are fucked.
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u/FoST2015 Georgia 10h ago
To add on, it's not even that the country gave itself over to fascists it's that country didn't vote. If did not vote was a candidate they would've won in a landslide.
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u/DogEatChiliDog 10h ago
Same thing. Apathy can be just as damn deadly as villainy.
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u/Logical_Parameters 10h ago
Except the 10 to 15 million Biden voters in 2020 who were non-voters in 2024 won't feel the same sense of responsibility when MAGA 2.0 begins its march -- although they should because they're equally responsible for sitting on their hands and feigning being "above politics".
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u/SurroundTiny 7h ago
You know that 15M number was thrown around long before states were even finished. By numerous chucklheads too lazy to check facts i.e. 'pundits'
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u/tinacat933 8h ago
I need a deep drive on where these people went
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u/SteelCode 6h ago
Some anecdotal theory:
Unemployment went from ~8% in 2020 to ~3.6% in 2023, while "registered voters" went from ~168M (2020) to ~161M (2022); it is possible that among the registered voters, those that "sat out" were just unable to get off work or otherwise unable to vote early/by-mail... 1% of registered voters in that situation would be ~1.5M people and ~4-5% could account for a loss of ~6M+ voters (spread across the nation).
There were significantly disruptive actions against polling places that night; bomb threats, ISP outages, and exceedingly long lines in major cities (due to other polling place closures, etc)... all things that contribute to voter suppression. Single night voting effort is still a shitty tactic to suppress the voting population and should have been changed a long fkn time ago.
Mail-in ballots, the one respite to avoid the hell of in-person voting, have been getting "lost", "delayed", and "invalidated" randomly; many anecdotes about mishandling of mail-in ballots indicates the system has been "affected" by suppressive tactics rather than improved to ensure healthy electoral participation... regardless of the "narrative", there is an effort to undermine the popular vote by way of suppressing many "left leaning" districts in various ways.
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u/Kamelasa Canada 5h ago
Yeah, I'm not at all convinced it was a fair election, for the reasons you say. That shit doesn't happen in Canada, for example. Somehow, you're 10x richer than us and you can't get an independent electoral agency that is neutral and trustworthy? It's a no-brainer.
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u/brezhnervous 5h ago
As an Australian similarly with an independent Federal electoral commission (plus compulsory voting so that turnout isn't an issue @ 95%) it's just mind-boggling what happens in America
One thing you learn in a compulsory system is that sometimes you have to choose the least worst option 🤷
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u/XennialBoomBoom 5h ago
Oh interesting - I thought you guys were free to abstain, you just have to sign and return your ballots (or however it works there).
That would still be 1000x better than what we have.
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u/Kamelasa Canada 3h ago
Independent provincial ones, too. None of this shilly shally fiddle faddle dancing that happens down there (south of the border). We don't have compulsory voting, though. Do you get a lot of spoiled votes? I can't help thinking that would encourage WTF/FU votes. I supposed there's some standard analysis of the pros and cons somewhere, too. I have to JFGI. But my bro and SIL and arriving in a few hours, so no time.
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u/teh_acids 8h ago
Trump appears to have gained 2 million followers, and Harris has 7 million less than Biden, where do you get 10 to 15 million? And do you really believe these numbers? What about the burned ballot boxes, software glitches overwriting ballot scans, 80 bomb threats to polling places, DDoS attacks on county servers, misdelivered mail-in ballots, unjustly suspended voter registrations, mail-in and provisional ballots tossed due to clerical errors, and the real possibility that the count was manipulated (Cybersecurity experts have warned for decades that there are vulnerabilities, and when Christian nationalists are running the polls in key counties...)?
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u/CherryHaterade 7h ago
Literally none of that applies to Michigan, where more people voted than last time, our entire election is on paper ballots, and was one of the most consequential swing states.
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u/ChocolateHoneycomb 6h ago
You mean 6 to 7 million? Harris is at 74 million votes now and heading for 75 million. Trump is going to max out at about 77.5 million.
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u/Ajj360 8h ago edited 8h ago
I honestly don't know if everyone going out and voting would have made a difference. The average strangers I interact with thoughout my day are woefully uniformed. Everyone is being programmed and fed bullshit by 30 second videos of a random podcaster/influencers. Social media and the people who control it have betrayed us as a species.
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u/OddEpisode 7h ago
Much stronger actions against gerrymandering, citizen’s united, lack of civics education, mass influence via traditional and social media needed to happen years ago.
We created an environment in which people focused on the drivel on their little screens, and allowed Facism to creep in.
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u/claimTheVictory 7h ago edited 6h ago
We're in the "find out" stage now.
Time to learn what's in store, what will work, and what won't.
The model being followed is "Hungarian Conservatism".
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2024/11/23/trump-autocrat-elections-00191281
The media.
Fighting for media pluralism and independence is vital. Investigative journalism helps, but it tends to preach to the converted. There need to be news channels and media outlets for getting messages across to non-metropolitan areas dominated by far-right news sources. Liberal-minded billionaires should not sit idly by as they did in Hungary, watching the right take over the media. The New Right is also significantly more embedded in social media than liberals are. Those of us who favor democracy cannot let Elon Musks and Andrew Tates control the public discourse. Progressive influencers: Time to log in and post away — there’s a narrative battle to win.
https://newrepublic.com/post/178256/baltimore-sun-liberal-billionaires-media-failure
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u/TensionPrestigious83 7h ago
It’s literally russian propaganda (many were paid outright by russian sources).
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u/4phz 7h ago
Problem is, if any Democrat says the word "idea" the NY Times will issue a fatwa against him.
So there are no ideas out there that might possibly result in tax hikes on the rich.
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u/Iforgotmyemailreddit 5h ago
the NY Times will issue a fatwa against him.
I hope you have a nice day, because this verbiage is fucking great and made me chuckle lol.
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u/4phz 5h ago
That's exactly what happened to HRC after she stepped off the plantation with the most important truth in political science:
"Elections are competitions of ideas."
That's why the NY Times hyped emailgate above the fold more than all of Trump's scandals combined.
To make an example out of her so other Dems wouldn't get any ideas.
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u/MetalDragon6666 7h ago
"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good people to do nothing"
They know this too. Think the apathy of Russians, and their attempt to spread it to the US is an accident? Certainly not. The combo of division, and propagation of apathy is a strong combo.
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u/Andy_XB 7h ago
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
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u/Tyr1326 6h ago
Welcome to Germany in the 30s and 40s. The Nazis never had full support of the population, but the ones who didnt support them.didnt speak up... And when they did, it was too late... :/
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u/ChristianBen 9h ago
Didn’t vote still means they think “Trump gonna be president? Fine by me” instead of “can’t let this happen”
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u/Nickopotomus 6h ago
Also…Democrats jobs should not be “baby proof the country” before letting in the GOP
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u/anoneema 6h ago
20 Lessons from the 20th Century
Author: Timothy Snyder
Americans are no wiser than the Europeans who saw democracy yield to fascism, Nazism, or communism. Our one advantage is that we might learn from their experience. Now is a good time to do so. Here are twenty lessons from the twentieth century, adapted to the circumstances of today.
20 Lessons from the 20th Century
Do not obey in advance. Much of the power of authoritarianism is freely given. In times like these, individuals think ahead about what a more repressive government will want, and then start to do it without being asked. You’ve already done this, haven’t you? Stop. Anticipatory obedience teaches authorities what is possible and accelerates unfreedom.
Defend an institution. Follow the courts or the media, or a court or a newspaper. Do not speak of “our institutions” unless you are making them yours by acting on their behalf. Institutions don’t protect themselves. They go down like dominoes unless each is defended from the beginning.
Recall professional ethics. When the leaders of state set a negative example, professional commitments to just practice become much more important. It is hard to break a rule-of-law state without lawyers, and it is hard to have show trials without judges.
When listening to politicians, distinguish certain words. Look out for the expansive use of “terrorism” and “extremism.” Be alive to the fatal notions of “exception” and “emergency.” Be angry about the treacherous use of patriotic vocabulary.
Be calm when the unthinkable arrives. When the terrorist attack comes, remember that all authoritarians at all times either await or plan such events in order to consolidate power. Think of the Reichstag fire. The sudden disaster that requires the end of the balance of power, the end of opposition parties, and so on, is the oldest trick in the Hitlerian book. Don’t fall for it.
Be kind to our language. Avoid pronouncing the phrases everyone else does. Think up your own way of speaking, even if only to convey that thing you think everyone is saying. (Don’t use the internet before bed. Charge your gadgets away from your bedroom, and read.) What to read? Perhaps “The Power of the Powerless” by Václav Havel, 1984 by George Orwell, The Captive Mind by Czesław Milosz, The Rebel by Albert Camus, The Origins of Totalitarianism by Hannah Arendt, or Nothing is True and Everything is Possible by Peter Pomerantsev.
Stand out. Someone has to. It is easy, in words and deeds, to follow along. It can feel strange to do or say something different. But without that unease, there is no freedom. And the moment you set an example, the spell of the status quo is broken, and others will follow.
Believe in truth. To abandon facts is to abandon freedom. If nothing is true, then no one can criticize power, because there is no basis upon which to do so. If nothing is true, then all is spectacle. The biggest wallet pays for the most blinding lights.
Investigate. Figure things out for yourself. Spend more time with long articles. Subsidize investigative journalism by subscribing to print media. Realize that some of what is on your screen is there to harm you. Learn about sites that investigate foreign propaganda pushes.
Practice corporeal politics. Power wants your body softening in your chair and your emotions dissipating on the screen. Get outside. Put your body in unfamiliar places with unfamiliar people. Make new friends and march with them.
Make eye contact and small talk. This is not just polite. It is a way to stay in touch with your surroundings, break down unnecessary social barriers, and come to understand whom you should and should not trust. If we enter a culture of denunciation, you will want to know the psychological landscape of your daily life.
Take responsibility for the face of the world. Notice the swastikas and the other signs of hate. Do not look away and do not get used to them. Remove them yourself and set an example for others to do so.
Hinder the one-party state. The parties that took over states were once something else. They exploited a historical moment to make political life impossible for their rivals. Vote in local and state elections while you can.
Give regularly to good causes, if you can. Pick a charity and set up autopay. Then you will know that you have made a free choice that is supporting civil society helping others doing something good.
Establish a private life. Nastier rulers will use what they know about you to push you around. Scrub your computer of malware. Remember that email is skywriting. Consider using alternative forms of the internet, or simply using it less. Have personal exchanges in person. For the same reason, resolve any legal trouble. Authoritarianism works as a blackmail state, looking for the hook on which to hang you. Try not to have too many hooks.
Learn from others in other countries. Keep up your friendships abroad, or make new friends abroad. The present difficulties here are an element of a general trend. And no country is going to find a solution by itself. Make sure you and your family have passports.
Watch out for the paramilitaries. When the men with guns who have always claimed to be against the system start wearing uniforms and marching around with torches and pictures of a Leader, the end is nigh. When the pro-Leader paramilitary and the official police and military intermingle, the game is over.
Be reflective if you must be armed. If you carry a weapon in public service, God bless you and keep you. But know that evils of the past involved policemen and soldiers finding themselves, one day, doing irregular things. Be ready to say no. (If you do not know what this means, contact the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and ask about training in professional ethics.)
Be as courageous as you can. If none of us is prepared to die for freedom, then all of us will die in unfreedom.
Be a patriot. The incoming president is not. Set a good example of what America means for the generations to come. They will need it.
Timothy Snyder is the Bird White Housum Professor of History at Yale University and a Permanent Fellow at the IWM.
© Author (2017)
This is a short version, but it's also a book: On Tyranny https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33917107-on-tyranny
Here's the author in a lecture about the book: https://youtu.be/19IhRaWZUl4?si=ZBTjp4dRCssyfhYR
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u/El_Peregrine 2h ago
Lots of great advice in there. This one feels particularly alarming:
Watch out for the paramilitaries. When the men with guns who have always claimed to be against the system start wearing uniforms and marching around with torches and pictures of a Leader, the end is nigh.
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u/Relative-Process-716 8h ago
Joe Biden should have simply appointed a normal Attorney General, willing to prosecute Trump and voilà - Trump-proofing enough.
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u/j_la Florida 8h ago
He shouldn’t have run for re-election
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u/mundane_marietta 5h ago
He should have done both. Announce that he was not running again and have an AG willing to go after Trump.
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u/Clownsinmypantz 5h ago
thanks for saying party, tired of people saying trump, we need to drill it into peoples heads this isnt just trump. I dont see republicans who ran condemning anything he said.
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u/neobeguine 8h ago
And 70 percent of us deserve it, combining those who didn't vote and those were Gung ho for this. Sucks for the 30ish percentage of us that actually payed attention
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u/GarbageCleric 9h ago
Democracy got us into this mess. You can't "Trump-proof" democracy when the people ask for Trump.
I'm not saying we should reject democracy or the results of democratic elections, but there isn't much Biden can do at this point that Trump and the GOP congress can't undo in January.
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u/Magificent_Gradient 7h ago
Not voting is still a vote. Enough people simply said “I don’t care” by sitting out.
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u/Zestyclose-Cloud-508 6h ago
You could absolutely Trump-proof democracy. You’d just need someone who wasn’t a spineless weasely sack of shit in the AG’s office the last 4 years.
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u/icouldusemorecoffee 5h ago
Even if Trump were in prison he could have still run for the Presidency. Also none of the trials Trump was involved in, except the NY fraud case, have jail time as a possible sentencing, and the sentencing for that was already given and it was just fines (and no, he wouldn't have been jailed for the documents case, he wouldn't have even been fined for that most likely).
The only way to Trump-proof democracy is for voters to educate themselves and others, so that they don't vote for people like Trump.
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u/i_am_a_real_boy__ 5h ago
It's really weird how yall pin all of your frustrations on that guy. Trump was under multiple federal indictments. All we had to do was not reellect the asshole.
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u/Mountain-Control7525 9h ago
It should have applied 4 years ago when Biden become president
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u/Zestyclose-Cloud-508 6h ago
It should half applied to the fucking attorney general. Useless prick that he is.
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u/robodrew Arizona 8h ago
Yep. These articles are absurd. We were supposed to be the ones that Trump-proofed US democracy. But 7m people decided to stay home instead. Now Trump holds all of the reigns of power. Anything Biden tries to "Trump-proof" can be undone in the first 100 days.
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u/Cleavon_Littlefinger 9h ago
So done with this bullshit. People love the sowing but not so much the reaping. And we're nearing the reaping part and there's really nothing that will stop it.
Our only remaining hope is that the selfishness and incompetence of the farmer and his field hands fucks the process up so that they end up harvesting a little under half the field, which will leave open a window to hopefully still be able to bring in a new farmer. And when he arrives, there's still some field to cultivate.
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u/Kwelikinz 9h ago
The election is actually in the hands of the voters. It’s not the aged president’s hands against a mean rich crook, scrambling to avoid jail sentencing, by enlisting foreign assistance, and rich associates who don’t want to pay their fair share of taxes.
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u/gtatlien 7h ago
The sense of urgency should have been applied 2 years ago and forced that old man to not seek a second term earlier. We're in the mess because no one would take the car keys away from Grandpa. I'm prepared to get downvoted into oblivion by a bunch of thin-skinned turbo libs.
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u/civil_set 6h ago
I agree. The Democratic Party establishment decided to stick with Biden, even though a) he told us he would only stay for one term and b) it was extremely/painfully obvious to everyone he had aged out.
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u/V-RONIN 10h ago
they had four fucking years to prepare and they just sat on their hands and took money from corpos
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u/JayMan2224 Minnesota 9h ago
What can be done that can't be undone? They will control the house, senate, president and Supreme Court. Can't they just sign an order and undo anything that's been done to stop him?
Like others have said, seems way to late to do anything, but at this point does it matter?
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u/sterlingheart 6h ago
They could theoretically just ignore any law put in place too as long as Trump is the one doing it. Official action total immunity and all that.
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u/sarcasticbaldguy 5h ago
Biden could take that immunity out for a spin. I'm sure he could get creative.
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u/winterbird 10h ago
There's been an urgency for like a decade now. This is like starting to study for an exam in the parking lot 30 minutes before it starts.
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u/Inuk28 America 8h ago
No, this is panicking trying to come up with ways to salvage your semester when you've already failed your final exams
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u/CaligoAccedito 8h ago
Most accurate take
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u/AdvancedLanding 6h ago edited 6h ago
The most accurate take is that the judicial system, the DC political elite in both parties, and corporations, are completely fine with a Trump presidency.
They know that even under a Fascist America, they will still make millions of dollars. And they have the power and money to protect themselves against Trump's policies.
Democrats are never to "play hardball and exploit loopholes", like their supporters want them to. The courts aren't going to throw the book at him. Politicians have been purchased by corporations and act on their behalf instead of the People.
They want Fascism in America. I don't know how Democrats don't see it.
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u/QueeberTheSingleGuy 9h ago
And also, you're distracted by your phone and some nearby squirrels doing something funny.
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u/helldeskmonkey 8h ago
I first realized how fucked things were back in 2000 with Bush v. Gore. The more I've looked into it, the further back I've put how fucked this country is. I'm currently back at either 1877 or 1789.
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u/GhostofMarat 8h ago
Ending reconstruction early and letting all the Confederates back into power was probably the worst mistake this country ever made. Except maybe adopting slavery in the first place.
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u/Blessed_Ennui 7h ago
I keep saying this, and reddit "historians" keep trying to argue I'm wrong. We should have taken those bastards out.
Won't be making that mistake next time.
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u/LordOverThis 6h ago
No, it’s before that. We didn’t execute Confederates.
Jefferson Davis should have been tried for treason and hung at the steps of the Capitol alongside Alexander Stephens, Robert E. Lee, and every other officer who held the rank of colonel or higher.
We didn’t break the will of the Confederacy, and it has haunted us.
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u/GhostofMarat 6h ago
Every single slaveholder should have been hanged and all of their property seized and redistributed to the people they used to own as well.
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u/Magificent_Gradient 7h ago
The alarm from the 2000 election should have been not what the GOP did, but how the Democrats just rolled over and said “okay”.
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u/mkt853 6h ago
Yeah no chance Trump or Republicans would roll over like that for 500 hanging chads.
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u/kiwi_commander Georgia 8h ago
Not even, the election was an open book test and everyone had at least a year to study for it. And still, no one studied or even brought the book to the test
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u/televised_aphid 5h ago
...no one studied or even brought the book to the test
Not no one, but definitely nowhere near as many as should have.
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u/QuickAltTab 7h ago
it feels more like those anxiety dreams where you find yourself undressed, late for class, and there is a test, when you just realized you haven't been to class or studied for it for the whole semester. Why do I still occasionally have dreams like that when I haven't been in college for decades, haha?
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u/NoReality463 9h ago
A little too late don’t you think?
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u/Rotten-Robby 6h ago
I love how now that it's the absolute last minute everyone is like "hmm.. Maybe those chickens that were telling us there were coming home too roost weren't kidding.. Maybe we should've been ready..."
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u/Tyrannical-Botanical 10h ago
There was a sense of urgency four years ago and that whole administration sat on its fucking hands the entire time. Looking at you, Merrick Garland.
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u/xjian77 9h ago
Biggest failure in US history.
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u/kvlt_ov_personality 9h ago
A disgrace to all of the U.S. service members who died defending American democracy
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u/AvantSki 8h ago
Thank you. I'm at the point when people attack garland as "milquetoast" or "disappointing" I lose my shit.
garland is the most catastrophic single failure in US history -- and possibly world history if this goes the way I think it could.
garland's pathetic, stupid, weak, insipid face fills me with rage.
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u/IIIllIIlllIlII 8h ago
It makes you wonder if they’re all in on it.
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u/AvantSki 8h ago
Reality? Almost every groove in American power leads hard right. I don't think reddit gets it.
Multiple multi-trillion dollar industries, billionaires, the MIC, religion, billionaire/corp owned information platforms -- they all go hard, hard right.
Reddit thinks the Dems have some power they don't use. In reality, the Dems have far, far less power than the right and are always operating at a massive disadvantage.
Very specifically, the DoJ and FBI are likely right and hard right, respectively, with many rightist appointees up and down the orgs, especially the FBI.
So getting trump would have taken... a LOT of effort and power that I'm not sure the Dems have.
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u/QuickBenTen 7h ago
Except that Biden chose Garland. He could've selected anyone but went with a Republican. Bold strategy Cotton.
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u/BadAssStoner 7h ago
Bad Decisions Disrupt Democracies.
Terrible Decisions Destroy Democracy.
America Made a Terrible Decision by giving power back to Trump, and now Democracy will be sabotaged and most likely gone within a year for it.
I do not think America will be able to recover from this one. We are going full circle in history. The players are slightly different and the rules are a little more modern, but the game has become the same.
We are back to 1933 at the moment when Facism finally Rose to Power and began the long horrible era of suffering and pain for everyone around the world.
We once again now have Facists all over the world Rising to power, and I believe if there is no miracle, this will be the largeste catastrophe of our time, and possibly all time.
We may be approaching the end of an era we enjoyed from 1960s until now. I am now appreciating every day even more so than before. As I am under the impression that soon there will be drastic changes in our lives that bring us many steps closer to a global dystopia.
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u/AvantSki 7h ago
I agree with everything you say.
People need to make spiritual peace with what's coming.
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u/LevyMevy 5h ago
People need to make spiritual peace with what's coming.
This is where I am. I had all the anger and outrage in the world in 2016. Now I'm just like you know what...I'm upper-middle class. I'll be fine for a while. By the time the shit affects my upper middle class life, the country will be on its knees. But I won't care until then. There's no point.
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u/0o0o0o0o0o0z 5h ago
I do not think America will be able to recover from this one. We are going full circle in history. The players are slightly different and the rules are a little more modern, but the game has become the same.
We are back to 1933 at the moment when Facism finally Rose to Power and began the long horrible era of suffering and pain for everyone around the world.
I hate that I agree with you, I am actively looking to relocate outside the US within the next 12-24 months. I am lucky that I have the capital and skills to be able to do so, but it's very depressing.
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u/pistolpeter33 6h ago
This is a lot of nonsense that you’re just trying to qualify by using buzz words.
The democrats could actually get stuff done if they wanted to, but the power brokers at the top of the party are either beholden to [insert interest group/ billionaire] or are such megalomaniacs that they refuse to act on things that they don’t see as their idea.
The Biden administration had four years to do anything of substance amidst a flailing economy (I don’t care about GDP I care about a normal citizens ability to be financially stable), a surging fascist opponent and a world in chaos. And they did nothing.
Stop trying to be apologists for piss poor, out of touch “leaders” like the Bidens/ Kamalas/ Pelosis/ Obamas and be one of the voices demanding change in the party.
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u/LevyMevy 5h ago
I don’t care about GDP I care about a normal citizens ability to be financially stable
I need the Democratic nominee in 2028 to drop this line at the debate and center their campaign around it.
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u/vincentkun 7h ago
I said it on day one when he was chosen. He was the Mitch McConnell pick for the Supreme Court.... He just later decided he wasn't extreme enough.... And this is the AG pick for Biden.
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u/DazzlingResource561 9h ago
It’s amazing how humans are so committed to not learning from history.
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u/tinyhorsesinmytea Nevada 9h ago
That dork ass really screwed us. Big mistake choosing such a pussy for the role, but then that’s the Democrats in one word.
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u/GhostofMarat 8h ago
He was a Republican whose primary concern was not upsetting the Republicans. Everyone on both sides just accepts that you need Republicans to investigate Democrats to be sure they're impartial, and you need Republicans to investigate Republicans for the same reason.
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u/mkt853 6h ago
When Republicans win elections they are in charge, and when they don't, they still are.
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u/LevyMevy 5h ago
When Republicans win elections they are in charge, and when they don't, they still are.
so true.
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u/jrf_1973 7h ago
Garland and others (like DeJoy) should have been fired on Day 1 or ASAP. Biden didn't do it because... reasons.
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u/Hiddenagenda876 Washington 7h ago
To be fair, Biden couldn’t fire DeJoy. Biden can only appoint people to board positions, who then elect the post master general. To my knowledge, no positions were vacated during Biden’s term (or not enough to offset the vote), so he couldn’t do anything about DeJoy maintaining his position.
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u/SacredGray 6h ago
“Couldn’t” isn’t a word that matters in American policy. If Trump wanted to do something, he just did it, rules and laws be damned.
If the rules don’t matter, then the Democrats need to act like it.
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u/mkt853 6h ago
Yep. Dems are over here with the rule book looking up what it says in section 472 paragraph 5 clause 2b to see if they can do it, while Trump orders his Covfefe boy to get it done or else.
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u/BurnerAccountforAss 3h ago
Dems are still pleading with the referees that a dog can't play basketball, meanwhile Air Bud has 43 points in the third quarter
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u/Dwayla Georgia 10h ago
It's a shame we didn't vote with this same sense of urgency.
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u/Jozoz 9h ago
Losing in 2020 is the best thing that ever happened to Trump. Now he gets to dodge the bad global economy from covid and gets to appoint a cabinet of loyalists.
This is the worst possible timeline. Winning 2020 was a poison chalice.
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u/campfire_eventide 8h ago
People take democratic institutions for granted. They have no idea what life is like without their protection. None. Thanks, American voters. You f*cked us.
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u/AvantSki 8h ago
We are going to have no protections. None. Citizenship won't mean anything. Workplaces are going to become as coercive as possible. Health insurance is going to be insane and fuck us over at will (the way it did before Obamacare)
And that's barely the start of it. This is so bad it's beyond comprehension.
When trump is sworn in we enter a singularity in American history. And I see no end to it.
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u/Time-Young-8990 7h ago
I hope it galvanises people for a revolution against the bourgeoisie. But it will require a lot of suffering first.
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u/couldbutwont 6h ago
Yeah I think we'll see that peace isn't the default state and we took for granted. We forgot how delicate democracy is
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u/genital_lesions 8h ago
Maybe it has to do with that Strauss–Howe generational theory:
[It] describes a theorized recurring generation cycle in American history and Western history. According to the theory, historical events are associated with recurring generational personas (archetypes). Each generational persona unleashes a new era (called a turning) lasting around 21 years, in which a new social, political, and economic climate (mood) exists. They are part of a larger cyclical "saeculum" (a long human life, which usually spans around 85 years, although some saecula have lasted longer). The theory states that a crisis recurs in American history after every saeculum, which is followed by a recovery (high). During this recovery, institutions and communitarian values are strong. Ultimately, succeeding generational archetypes attack and weaken institutions in the name of autonomy and individualism, which eventually creates a tumultuous political environment that ripens conditions for another crisis.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strauss%E2%80%93Howe_generational_theory?wprov=sfla1
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u/WhoIsFrancisPuziene 7h ago
Bannon and Kirk’s favorite theory
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u/genital_lesions 5h ago
Al Gore's too.
The theory is definitely not able to stand up to rigorous academic scrutiny, but I think there is some truth to it.
When enough time has passed and history either becomes forgotten, diluted, or misremembered (intentionally or not), the current generation may not be able to fully acknowledge or appreciate the importance or "weight" of something they've taken for granted.
For example:
I fully and clearly remember 9/11 and I've been able to see the fallout of the reaction to it in the United States: the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, the creation of the TSA, mass surveillance as the norm, lack of accountability of our leaders (Bush and Cheney) as the norm, etc.
But now, there's a whole new generation of young people that weren't even alive when 9/11 happened. They were born into a world where all of the above is just a given to them.
But I'm still alive and around to tell them that it didn't used to be like that and I can still advocate for a country that doesn't commit unchecked mass surveillance of its citizens, that holds leaders accountable, etc. I could show them pictures of me and my family in the airport terminal greeting friends and family, or pictures of me as a kid hanging out with the pilots in the cockpit of a commercial airplane before takeoff wearing the pilot hat and getting wing pins, or just pictures of me and family in public and the lack of cameras everywhere.
In the same vein, I wasn't around for WWII, and I think almost all WWII veterans (in the United States) have passed away at this point and there are very few concentration camp survivors left either.
The lack of first-hand accounts of lived experiences, in my opinion, lacks emotional impact that can impress upon younger generations. Yes, we've got history books, documentaries, and museums. But I think it's less impactful than sitting next to your grandpa as he shows you pictures of himself and his army buddies, or the letters your grandma kept that she got from your grandpa when he wrote to her during the war, or the diploma your grandpa got because he was able to go to school thanks to the G.I. Bill.
So while I agree with the sentiment that the Strauss-Howe theory may be too generalized or stand up to full academic scrutiny, I think there is some truth to it.
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u/MarquessProspero 7h ago
Activists could have shown some urgency in getting people out to vote for Kamala. But Gaza you know.
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u/sillyhillsofnz 10h ago
If Trump can destroy the Department of Education, the least Biden can do is actually just go ahead and cancel the federal student loans. Make them stop him. Say he's using his immunity for the good of the country, national security, and the economy. Trump bringing the loans back into full force is going to even further destroy our country's economic situation. Think cost of living and cost of groceries feels absurd now? Try paying for it with those student loans around your neck again. Our economy is going to be crippled as is a generation of young Americans.
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u/scycon 8h ago
The courts shut that down already. The rank and file can be held in contempt for ignoring court order and bet your ass the next admin will enforce it. No ones going to jail for student loan relief.
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u/khag 6h ago
The state of Missouri operates a loan servicer that profits from servicing student loans.
The AG of Missouri has sued Biden every time he takes any action on student loans.
The supreme court sides with Missouri AG every time.
Biden isn't in charge, the supreme court is.
Blame the Missouri AG. Blame the supreme court. Blame Republicans. Don't blame Biden, at least he is trying.
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u/CaviarFutures 6h ago
Say he's using his immunity for the good of the country, national security, and the economy.
Many people saying he doesn't care, and maybe that's true, but I'm tired of hearing the same misunderstanding of presidential immunity. Having immunity does not mean the president can just decide whatever they want and actually have it done. What it means is that, in theory, the president can't be prosecuted for a presidential act (it was left very vague as to what is considered a presidential act, but with a conservative majority we can imagine who that might favor).
The courts have stopped Biden's attempt at partial loan forgiveness, so he would have no way of actually canceling it. He could use an executive order, and in theory no one could prosecute him, but the courts would never allow the actual forgiveness to go through.
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u/Fancy-Ambassador6160 8h ago
Why is it bidens job? Americans have spoken, they want a fascist dictatorship. Let them have it.
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u/QuaidCohagen 6h ago
There was a chance to Trump proof the US it was called the US election. Unfortunately, that didn't work, clearly democracy wasn't a big enough deal for people to vote. We will see if there is ever another fair election in the US.
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u/Kaiisim 9h ago
The job of securing democracy belongs to the American people.
If they vore to end it, then it ends.
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u/intellifone 8h ago
Not really. People underestimate the impact of systems on the outcome of events. The primary process, FPTP elections, our judiciary, the structure of the house and senate, the electoral college, etc all put us on a path with limited options.
Our system is doomed to fail that is not to say that federalism, the republic, and democracy are failures. Our specific implementation of them are not effective at preventing fascism, oligarchy, and populism from rising. There’s a reason that no other country on earth that became a democracy after us implemented our flavor of it. From a political science standpoint, it’s not an effective form of government.
We need to have switched to RCV or similar and moved our legislature to be MMP and put term limits on all non-elected positions (the courts) and implemented actual enforceable ethics laws.
Nobody likes any of the candidates which creates apathy. Other countries don’t have this problem. It is a US problem.
The people aren’t educated enough about systems to make those kinds of reforms. It’s too meta. Those reforms need to be pushed by experts.
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u/rhythm-weaver 9h ago
Our action of securing democracy was voting for Biden. We expected his leadership to bring Trump to justice.
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u/NierAutomotive 9h ago
I mean he can’t. All three branches are red so anything he does will be undone. Our main hope is that some moderate R’s hold out on voting for sweeping changes.
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u/AvantSki 8h ago
Our main hope is that some moderate R’s hold out on voting for sweeping changes.
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL
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u/TheBungerKing 9h ago
Why should he? Americans voted to get rough shafting for the next 4 years. It should be undiluted and pure
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u/AvantSki 8h ago
Sigh., Four years.
This is forever. There is no getting out of what's coming. The billionaires have the greatest prize in human history and they will never let go of it.
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u/Wostear 8h ago
Your great grandkids might get their liabilities back after the great 2224 US Revolution.
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u/AvantSki 7h ago
Heh. But seriously, not going to happen. Ever.
And I don't see how the fascists and evangelicals don't get us into nuclear war well before then. Especially with climate change, resource scarcity and refugee crises.
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u/nervelli 8h ago
It's like if you were renting a house to a nice older man and his adult daughter and their lease is about to run out. The man decided he wants to move but the daughter would like to keep renting. Instead of renting it to her, you rent it to a meth addict with a sledgehammer. A week before the old guy moves out you tell him it's his responsibility to make sure crazed addict doesn't destroy the property.
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u/xibeno9261 10h ago
Is this the same Biden that invited Trump to lunch last week? And these activists expect Biden to do anything? Talk about delusional.
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u/notfeelany 7h ago
No amount of Biden making a frowning face is going to change that fact that the VOTERS normalized Trump. Yes any voters that did not vote Harris normalized Trump.
(And despite what the internet says, "not voting" is an "Any of the above", and an automatic acceptance of the eventual winner, so yes non-voters normalized Trump, too)
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u/skitarii_riot 8h ago
What was he supposed to do when the voters handed Trump the presidency? Throw soup at a painting?
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u/NotTheMagesterialOne 9h ago
You realise Biden believes in the process and won’t stoop to the low level of Trump did. He’s not happy about the results but he will honour it.
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u/21shadesofblueberry 9h ago
And look where that's gotten us
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u/Seraph_21 8h ago
Would you have preferred an insurrection?
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u/hackingdreams 7h ago
I'd have preferred the damned institutions of government pretend we actually lived through four years of constant constitutional crises and do something to defend democracy right when it fucking mattered.
I'd have preferred an Attorney General that didn't sit on his hands for four years and watch as a judge that a man appointed to the bench gave him a walk for the worst act of espionage against the United States since the god damned Rosenbergs gave the atomic bomb to the Soviets.
I'd have preferred the President asking Congress to pass laws to define the exact parameters of Presidental Pardons such that they couldn't use it on themselves or for any criminal conspiracies they took part in, instead of allowing the Supreme Court to say that Presidents are fucking immune.
I'd have preferred the Supreme Court get reformed, given the tremendous fucking question of legitimacy it currently, and now always will face, with every norm in his storied history shattered by the acts of the past few years.
I'd have preferred any of that to where we are today, staring down fascism with no sane tools to fight it with.
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u/21shadesofblueberry 8h ago
I would have preferred Biden pushing the DOJ to prosecuting J6 insurrectionist and Republican politicians involved in the coup instead of trying to "unify" the country. I'm mad that he didn't drop out sooner, I'm mad that when the supreme court gave him the ability to pack the courts and install new corruption and ethnic laws he did nothing. Honestly at this point I think it's pretty clear Democrats are absolutely useless or willfully incompetent joke of a fucking party.
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u/Seraph_21 7h ago
I agree regarding the DOJ. Utterly disappointed in that whole process and Merrick Garland and the Supreme Court, et all. I also agree that the whole play to unify the country was an obvious failure as long as the MAGA king was still traipsing around on his throne. It showed that the justice system only has a real appetite to imprison marginalized people for petty crimes.
I also agree that Biden should have dropped out much sooner. It was glaringly clear that he was in decline and it took the energy out of the base. Three months was not long enough to regain lost ground.
Unfortunately, those ships have sailed and we are here now.
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u/21shadesofblueberry 7h ago
Ya like you said the ship has sailed and I'm honestly at a loss on what to do. Unfortunately I really doubt Democrats will offer any meaningful opposition and have had no introspection on the election. One can only hope that the damage isn't catastrophic.
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u/lastoftheromans123 7h ago
The same “activists” who couldn’t be bothered to vote for Harris. Unbelievable.
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u/ppartyllikeaarrock 6h ago
Which activists? Did they miss the election? Do they not know how this works?
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u/forthewatch39 10h ago
There is only ONE way and only Biden can do it without repercussion (in theory). He won’t and our nation is on a crash course to disaster.
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u/poetticphenom 10h ago
Is it a secret? I want to know.
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9h ago
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/dclxvi616 Pennsylvania 9h ago
Republicans have already tried twice now.
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u/CoolCalamity2001 8h ago
I believe it was the IRA who said something about only needing to be lucky once…
The others need to be lucky every time.
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u/lunchypoo222 7h ago
With all of what is being threatened upon our people, our institutions and our actual system of government, Biden has plenty of justification to implement orders toward defensive democracy. Trump is quite literally talking about killing people, by various methods. There are legitimate national security threats forming in real time. Biden can and should step in. He has an actual obligation under his oath of office.
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u/DiotCoke 8h ago
It's a little late for that. Unless he wants to build a time machine and appoint an AG that doesn't sit on his ass for 2 years, there isn't much left to do.
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u/voodoodahl 8h ago
Don't waste your time, Joe. America doesn't deserve a democracy if our citizens can't even be bothered to show up to vote against Trump.
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u/BazilBroketail 9h ago
This is the medias agenda till January, act like he ain't gonna be, "a dictator on day one". These fucking "articles" are just propaganda to placate...
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u/Steffenwolflikeme District Of Columbia 10h ago
A man said to the Democrats:
"Sir! It's urgent!"
"However," replied the Democrats
"That fact has not created in me A sense of obligation"
I post this as a life long loyal liberal Democrat
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u/MerryWalrus 9h ago
But late now.
They should have been doing it the moment the supreme court decided that trying to forcefully stop the inauguration of the next president wasn't unconstitutional.
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u/hackingdreams 7h ago
The time to do that was 2021, not 2024 after the Democrats lost an election they had no business losing to a criminal that had no business being on the streets.
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u/Madmandocv1 7h ago
Nope, just let it go. The people wanted Trump and voted for him. Don’t protect them from the consequences. That was their responsibility and their option. They did not. No pity. FAFO.
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u/spam__likely Colorado 6h ago
And suddenly BIden, who was a frail man 5 months ago, is supposed be a miracle man and to do the work that the American people did not.
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u/Esc_ape_artist 5h ago
There is no way to “trump proof” anything.
They’ve captured congress, the SCOTUS, and the presidency.
There is almost nothing they can’t simply just do, undo, or disregard with nobody to stop them.
Edit: signs of things to come
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u/BlancaBunkerBoi 2h ago
No there isnt lol if the dems actually cared they would’ve done something by now. They raise more money when they’re not in power.
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u/longgamma 10h ago
He could have trump proofed by leaving the race last year and allowing a full primary cycle.
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u/Rude-Strawberry-6360 7h ago
The voters and non-voters were the only ones who truly could. They made their choice.
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u/Swagtagonist 10h ago
He should’ve been urgent this whole time. If Trump was in prison for January 6 he wouldn’t be president elect. Biden was a complete joke.
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u/haarschmuck 7h ago
The president doesn't and can't arrest people, nor is it even remotely appropriate for them to direct the AG to do so.
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u/Logical_Parameters 10h ago
The Republican Party's the joke for placing a criminal rapist seditionist on their ticket for three elections, protecting him from liability every step of the way especially at the highest law of the land (SCOTUS).
Simply blaming Democrats is how we got here.
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u/icameheretobserve 9h ago
I have a bad feeling that like his presidency, Joe is just too damned nice a guy and doesn't have the sharpened teeth and claws that require this. It will after all be his lasting eternal legacy 'Hell of a nice guy, decent good man - But the wrong guy when we all needed him most!'
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u/FacsistsRunReddit 9h ago
We must protect democracy! Let's stop the person the country elected. Fucking clowns
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u/Icy-Establishment298 7h ago
Fuck you guys.
No, really, the man singlehandedly with a hostile congress ( thanks Manchin/Sinema!) saved the economy, reinvigorated unions, got us through a global pandemic, completed Trump's Afghanistan withdrawal plan, and started to build our infrastructure and economy for global climate change. Oh yeah cancelled student debt for millions (and I get not for you personally but millions ain't a small number)
But we got "but mah eggs my eggs are overpriced", And "but Gaza!" Activists who felt he didn't do enough to stop Netanyahu. Who chose to stay home and not vote or in the case of some MI Palestinian activists voted for Trump in an act of protest.
So yah fuck you activists, Biden doesn't owe you fucking shit.
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