Hold the Line

Want to organize resistance in your blue state or city? Here’s my idea.

Blue State Governors have issued some bullish statements on their role in resisting the Trump Administration this week. 

Washington Governor-elect and current Attorney General Bob Ferguson had a press conference with Attorney General-elect Nick Brown to assure Washingtonians that both men were ready for a fight and that the AG’s office had been analyzing Project 2025 and Trump’s words on the campaign train. Said Ferguson: 

A message I just really have for Washingtonians is we’re not just waking up yesterday thinking ‘Oh my gosh there’s a new Trump administration coming in. There has been a lot of work for many, many months from my team to prepare for this.

Massachusetts Governor Maura Healy, notably also a former state AG, assured her constituents that she would not allow state police to assist with mass deportations and emphasized the pressure state officials would be under to cooperate with the Trump Administration to comply with them. Healy vowed to use every tool available to fight deportation efforts. Said Healy:

The key here is that every tool in the toolbox has got to be used to protect our citizens, to protect our residents and protect our states, and certainly to hold the line on democracy and the rule of law.

Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker was even more blunt: 

To anyone who intends to come take away the freedom and opportunity and dignity of Illinoisans, I would remind you that a happy warrior is still a warrior. You come for my people, you come through me.

These three Democratic blue state governors aren’t alone and others made similar statements. I’ve been following this activity closely. Because it’s been obvious to me for some time that things are going to come to a head and solidly blue states are where the battle lines will be drawn. It starts with litigation and mucking the process by any means necessary. But at some point, these governors, and state governments in general will come up against a SCOTUS decision. Because the reality is we’re going to lose most of those court fights. And Trump is empowered and emboldened by this.

It’s already started. On Friday afternoon, Trump attacked California Governor Gavin Newsom on TruthSocial, pairing it with a threat: “As an “AGENT” for the United States of America on Voting & Elections, I will be DEMANDING THAT VOTER I.D., AND PROOF OF CITIZENSHIP, ARE A NECESSARY PART AND COMPONENT OF THE VOTING PROCESS!“ Donald Trump fully intends to force his will on all of us no matter where he lives, and he’s already firing shots.

What do these governors do when that happens? When SCOTUS enshrines a national abortion ban into law or orders them to comply with Trump Administration deportations? It’s clear from the statements and press conferences that most are hoping they can hold things off long enough that this doesn’t come to pass. But I’m convinced things will come to a head, sooner rather than later. Because Trump and MAGA very much want this fight. They want to wield their power and control all of us, red state or blue.

For those of us in blue states, we need to organize around encouraging and pressuring our governors and elected officials to hold the line. Our elected officials need to know what their constituents expect, and that we’ll have their backs when shit hits the fan. I think this can be accomplished in a myriad of ways, from individuals calling their elected officials to local groups organizing collective planks. It’s also crucial to have supporters ready to mobilize in key moments. If you’re in a solidly blue state, or even a blue city within a red state thinking about how to affect change in your community, this is a good place to start. 

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ICYMI

• There’s No Denying It Anymore: Trump Is Not a Fluke—He’s America (The Nation)

• And Yet It Moves. Thoughts The Day After (PopeHat Report)

• Far-Right Donald Trump Supporters Celebrate His Victory with Violent Memes and Calls for Executions (Wired)

Note: I’m planning to retool this section and the bonus ICYMI post for subscribers in the near future, and I’d love your input. Thanks to the consolidation of media outlets, and reporter layoffs there’s not as much quality mainstream coverage as there used to be and it’s coming from a smaller variety of outlets. Plus I know from the stats that y’all aren’t clicking on the links nearly as much as you used to. Clearly, there’s a disconnect and it’s time for a change. 

If you have thoughts on improving this section or what to replace it with (perhaps with calls to action or static resources), please reply directly to this email or leave your ideas in the comments section. I’m open to new ideas!

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Coda

Thank you to everyone for reading and supporting the newsletter, and a special thanks to the new subscribers and new paid subscribers this week. Building connection and community is vital in these times and I’m proud to stand alongside you in all ways that I can.

As I said in my post-election recap, I’m not going anywhere. I know my role in a resistance movement and what readers need and want. At this point, I’ve been writing about the MAGA Right and organizing against it for a decade. My plan is to make good use of that expertise, expanding and offering more content. I’m not quite sure what that looks like but the need is clearly there. So look to hear more from me in the near future. 

If you want to support my work and are in a position to do so, consider becoming a paid subscriber here or on my Patreon page. CARD isn’t my primary source of income, but the more I can bring in from the newsletter, the more time I can devote to writing and producing it. It also helps me continue to make the newsletter free and available to everyone. 

That’s all for now. Please take care of yourselves and one another. You’ll hear more from me next week.