The great political issue now facing our country is not Democrat vs. Republican or progressive vs. conservative. It's much deeper than that. It's about democracy vs. authoritarianism.
Today we have a president who is undermining the First Amendment by consistently referring to media criticism as "fake news." He has questioned the authority of our independent judiciary. He has tried to make it harder for people to vote by wildly exaggerating the extent of voter fraud. He has viciously attacked those in law enforcement who have investigated him. And yesterday he suggested that members of Congress who don't mindlessly stand and applaud his every word are guilty of "treason."
Our job now is to remind Trump and his allies what democracy is all about. By our grassroots activism we will defend President Lincoln's words at Gettysburg, when he stated, "that government of the people by the people for the people shall not perish from the earth."
Our job: Stand up. Fight back. Get involved.
Related Off-site Links:
Bernie Sanders: Trump “Is a Fraud” Sending Nation in “Authoritarian Direction” – Jon Queally (Common Dreams, February 5, 2017).
Gangster Capitalism and Nostalgic Authoritarianism in Trump’s America – Henry A. Giroux (Slate, December 3, 2017).
New Report Classifies US as a “Flawed Democracy” – Nicole Karlis (Salon, January 31, 2018).
The True State of Donald Trump’s Union? Unlimited Corruption – Amanda Marcotte (Salon, January 31, 2018).
Media’s State of the Union: Normalizing Lies and Hoping for Compromise – Justin Anderson (FAIR, February 6, 2018).
Trump’s Xenophobic Vision of America Is Inciting Racist Violence – Suman Raghunathan (The Nation, January 27, 2018).
In the Age of Trump: New Report Shows Acceptance of LGBT People Drops – David Badash (The New Civil Rights Movement, January 25, 2018).
Constitutional Crisis in Slow Motion – Charles M. Blow (The New York Times, February 4, 2018).
Trump Wants a Military Parade Because Fascism Isn’t Coming to America Fast Enough – Monique Judge (The Root, February 6, 2018).
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries to Trump: “How Dare You Lecture Us About Treason” – Melissa Quinn (The Washington Examiner, February 6, 2018).
UPDATES: Republican Ruthlessness and Democratic Ineptitude Got Us Here – Charles P. Pierce (Esquire via Common Dreams, February 8, 2018).
Democrats' "Resistance" to Trump Is Eroding, and So Are Their Poll Numbers – Will Stancil (The Atlantic, February 9, 2018).
As West Fears the Rise of Autocrats, Hungary Shows What’s Possible – Patrick Kingsley (The New York Times, February 10, 2018).
See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Something to Think About – January 22, 2017
• Global Condemnation for Trump's Latest Ignorant and Racist Comments
• Hope in the Midst of Collapse
• With Republicans at the Helm, It's the United States of Hypocrisy
• Donald Trump: A View from Australia
• Trump's America: Normalized White Supremacy and a Rising Tide of Racist Violence
• Quote of the Day – April 6, 2017
• Quote of the Day – March 26, 2017
• A Profoundly Troubling and Tragic Indictment
• On International Human Rights Day, Saying "No" to Donald Trump and His Fascist Agenda
• Progressive Perspectives on the Election of Donald Trump
• Election Eve Thoughts
• Carrying It On
• Progressive Perspectives on the Rise of Donald Trump
• Trump's Playbook
• Hope, History and Bernie Sanders
Image: Sen. Bernie Sanders. (Photographer unknown)
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