Signals

The Trump Regime is trying to convince us all that they are the law. It’s only true if we let them.

Donald Trump has always believed that he is the law. He exists in a world where he can do whatever he likes without consequence, and the rest of us are forced to live by his whims. And, crucially, he’s managed to build a coalition of folks willing to fight for his right to rule by force or too scared to stand up to Trump and his MAGA army.

Three examples of this from this week. The Regime issued an executive order that attempts to ban mail-in voting and Federalize elections. Trump also attended the Supreme Court arguments on Birthright Citizenship in person, which is both unprecedented and highly inappropriate for a sitting president to do in a system of government built on a separation of powers. His presence was obviously intended as a threat to the Justices, though court watchers seem to think Trump will lose the case anyway. Finally, Trump fired his staunchly loyal ally Pam Bondi as Attorney General, replacing her with Todd Blanche, his personal lawyer.

Meanwhile, there’s a disconnect between those who say but he can’t do that and those who point out that he’s absolutely doing that. Well-meaning people take both views (I refuse to say both sides), and, understandably, get frustrated at folks who don’t see it the same way.

I find this discourse frustrating, especially on Bluesky, where the conversation tends to be incredibly earnest. People often call me a doomer for pointing out the obvious: Trump has no intention of this next election being free and fair, and his plan all along has been to destroy our system of government from within.

I think it’s vital to name what Trump is attempting and his real agenda. Especially since he and his Regime aren’t even bothering to hide it anymore. However, acknowledging the reality doesn’t mean that the Regime will ultimately succeed. They’ve had some big wins, but we’ve also managed to stop them multiple times in the courts and out in the streets.

To put it another way: Trump can and will get away with as much as the American people and the institutions that hold us together as a nation allow. Acknowledging that doesn’t mean we’re helpless to stop him. It means we all have a role to play, and that we’re in a fight on all fronts.

Trump doesn’t plan on the midterm election being free and fair, so it’s on us to ensure that he fails. We should also fight to win every seat that can be contested. So that MAGA’s power is weakened in the Federal, state, and municipal governments. Then we’ll need to pressure those we helped win to live up to what they promised us as candidates.

Beyond that, we have to organize on every front. I was pleased that two of the calls to action coming out of NoKings were a general national strike on May 1 and a call to organize in hyperlocal groups -- both modeled on how Minnesotans mobilized to resist ICE's occupation of their state. Elections and politics alone won’t be enough to save us, and if we want to build a better nation, we’ll need to get creative and try new things constantly, learning from one another along the way about what works.

I’m not a hopeful person by nature, but with every day I find myself feeling more optimistic about what’s possible. Most Americans don’t want to live in a fascist hellscape, and every day more of us realize that’s exactly what Trump and his MAGA base want America to be. We should be clear-eyed about who Trump is, but we can be just as clear-eyed about how to beat him.

Blatant Self-Promotion: I spoke with The American Prospect’s Naomi Bethune about the MAGA crowdfunding rage machine and how it negatively affects grassroots fundraising for everyone.

Thanks for reading. There’s no newsletter this Sunday, but I’ll be back to it next week. Paid subscribers, please enjoy some bonus ICYMI links below!