Now What?

“The aims of a demonstration, however, are symbolic: it demonstrates a force that is scarcely used.” John Berger

After the massive women’s marches that took place all over the world, it’s reasonable to ask, now what? How can the spirit and energy of the women’s marches be channeled into a political movement that has as its goal supporting candidates who can win elections -- at all levels of government -- and claim power? Because power is what it’s all about. The Democrats never seem to grasp this fact while the Republicans live it and breathe it. If you don’t believe it, look at photographs of Paul Ryan in Trump’s company, look at Ryan’s smug smile; it’s the smile of a man who knows he has power to wield.

The Democrats are as tone deaf today as they were on November 9. The likes of Chuck Schumer and Dianne Feinstein and Nancy Pelosi still believe in the Clinton/Obama neoliberal, corporate-friendly playbook. They will never get it, and as long as they and other Democrats believe that the way to win is to behave like Republicans, the party will continue to flounder on the margins.

The Democratic Party needs an enema.

Make no mistake: Democrats will attempt to co-opt the spirit and energy of the women’s marches for their own ends. We can’t allow this to happen. We can’t allow public demonstrations to be solely focused as anti-Trump exercises: demonstrations need to express the desire for specific policy positions like single-payer healthcare, a reduction in defense spending, free public universities, reform of the criminal justice system, civil and reproductive rights, immigration, regulation to smooth the jagged edges of capitalism, and, perhaps most critical, action to combat climate change.

It’s folly to believe the Democrats will take up such causes in any meaningful way as long as collaborators like Schumer, Feinstein and Pelosi are in the mix. Corporate America and the wealthy have two political parties to do their bidding. Who do working people, women, minorities, immigrants, and other marginalized folks have in their corner? OK, sure, there are a few Democrats who still act like Democrats: Sherrod Brown comes to mind, and Elizabeth Warren (most of the time) but one or two or three champions are not enough to move past the inertia of the Democratic party. Just ask Bernie Sanders.

The first days of the Trump regime are living up to the nightmare and travesty many of us anticipated. Trump acts like a monarch, spews lies, disputes indisputable facts, attacks his detractors, and pushes a radical agenda. His inaugural speech was chilling, with echoes of other authoritarian regimes that placed loyalty and patriotism and allegiance above all. Whenever I think of fascism in America I think about Philip Roth’s 2004 novel, The Plot Against America, which envisioned what might have happened if Charles Lindbergh had defeated FDR in 1940. Here’s what Roth had to say about Trump in the context of The Plot Against America:

“...neither was anything like as humanly impoverished as Trump is: ignorant of government, of history, of science, of philosophy, of art, incapable of expressing or recognizing subtlety or nuance, destitute of all decency, and wielding a vocabulary of seventy-seven words that is better called Jerkish than English.”

Well said, Mr. Roth. Every day with Trump will showcase another outrage, another assault, another middle finger to our country.