My
friends, this is a dark hour. Intolerance, cruelty, racism, misogyny,
xenophobia, and environmental destruction have been let loose across the land.
Trump controls
the Republican Party, the Republican Party controls the House and Senate, and
the Senate and Trump will soon control the Supreme Court.
Republicans also
control both chambers in 32 states (33 if you count Nebraska) and 33
governorships. And in many of these states they are entrenching their power by
gerrymandering and arranging to suppress votes.
Yet only 27
percent of Americans are Republican, and the vast majority of Americans
disapprove of Trump.
The
GOP itself is now little more than Trump, Fox News, a handful of billionaire
funders, and evangelicals who oppose a woman’s right to choose, gay marriage,
and the Constitution’s separation of church and state.
So what are we –
the majority – to do?
First and most importantly, do not give up. That’s what they want us to do. Then they’d have no opposition at all.
Second, in the
short term, if you are represented by a Republican senator, do whatever you can
to get him or her to reject Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, or, at the
least, postpone consideration until after the midterm elections. Urge others to
join with you. Senate switchboard: 202-224-3121
Third, make a
ruckus. Demonstrate.
Engage in non-violent civil disobedience. Fight lies with truth. Join the Resistance. @IndivisibleTeam @swingleft @UpRiseDotOrg@MoveOn @Sister_District @flippable_org.
Fourth, don’t
succumb to divisive incrimination over “who lost” the 2016 election (Hillary
loyalists, Bernie supporters, Jill Stein voters, etc.). This will get us
nowhere. We must be united.
Fifth, vote this
November 6 for people who will stand up to the Trump Republican outrage. Mobilize
and organize others to do so. Contact friends and relations in “red” states,
and urge them to do the same.
Sixth, help lay
the groundwork for the 2020 presidential election, so that
even if Trump survives Mueller and impeachment he will not be reelected.
Finally, know
that this fight will be long and hard. It will require our patience, our
courage, and our resolve. The stakes could not be higher.
Robert
B. Reich is Chancellor's Professor of Public Policy at the University of California
at Berkeley and Senior Fellow at the Blum Center for Developing Economies. He
served as Secretary of Labor in the Clinton administration, for which Time
Magazine named him one of the ten most effective cabinet secretaries of the
twentieth century. He has written fifteen books, including the best sellers
"Aftershock", "The Work of Nations," and "Beyond
Outrage," and, his most recent, "The Common Good," which is
available in bookstores now. He is also a founding editor of the American
Prospect magazine, chairman of Common Cause, a member of the American Academy
of Arts and Sciences, and co-creator of the award-winning documentary,
"Inequality For All." He's co-creator of the Netflix original
documentary "Saving Capitalism," which is streaming now.
