Closing in on President’s Day and I am struck, once again, about how radically different America is now that Mad King Trump is in charge. Were we always this close to chaos? Is it really possible for one ignorant, emotionally unstable former game show host to totally dismantle the last superpower?
It’s tempting to compare his Trumpness to Hitler or Mussolini. I get it, but only because all autocrats share certain qualities. But with Trump, I think he may just be the ultimate manifestation of the Tea Party movement. He’s got that fake folksiness tailored to appeal to “Real America” along with the infectious outrage that the country is being lost to multiculturalism and political correctness. But, like the Tea Party, it is all a ruse meant to shovel as much money as possible into the pockets of America’s business elites. And that is what the Republican Party has always been, at least for a few generations. The outrage over welfare queens, Roe vs. Wade and secret Muslims was just cover for an extreme crony-capitalism that goes so deep as to be indistinguishable from the actual government. Think I am exaggerating? Then count up how many Goldman Sachs alums have served in the Whose House and get back to me.
But while he might be the Tea Party’s great success story, he might also be their last hurrah. He is the monster that sprung fully formed from their toxic and greedy vision, and he’s proving to be a bridge too far not only for the majority who did not vote for him, but for the GOP establishment that has grown comfortable with their “obstruct everything” philosophy. Because I believe the scales have fallen from people’s eyes.
I was one of the marchers at the Women’s March on Washington in January and I was struck by how joyful and confident it was. The voices of women and our allies were deafening, and I felt like we really were the winning side—the side with a future—in a movement that must be led by women.
I had a similar thought when I had drinks with three friends a couple of weeks later. All of us are media people in stable relationships, and all of us voted for Bernie Sanders in the primary and Hillary Clinton in the general election. And we all complained of the same chronic dread that emerged with the Trump victory—followed by an overwhelming desire to do something about it. We also, all, complained that the men in our lives were not as outraged or convinced about how truly awful our new Commander-In-Chief was as we were. And maybe that is how it should be. Men have been trained to see other men as “normal” leaders and even the pseudo alpha energy of Trump works on some deep level on guys who otherwise despise everything he stands for. And maybe the role of women and minorities in this new world is to lead and teach.
I may never fully understand why so many voted against their own best interests in November, but I am now convinced that cruelty and pain were part of it. Sure people can talk about “jobs” and wanting a “straight-shooter,” but people reacted to him in a visceral way, like they do con artists. Sure, there is plenty of buyer’s remorse out there, but should Trump get impeached or resign (and he will) those people and that pain will still be there. So while I am committed to resisting the regime with my daily actions, I know that the trickier part is keeping my heart open, and encouraging others to do so.