It’s not just about voting. They need to rule the whole narrative around them. Otherwise, members of Congress start building their own factions to oppose specific things, and Democrats will strategically ally themselves to one or another on specific bills.
Literally nobody is in favor of Trump’s tariffs besides Trump. That’s him driving it, personally. There isn’t even a real base for that beyond “whatever Trump wants, he gets”.
They can’t pursue their agenda without some kind of populist support. They need a base that will automatically back them, and then have Enlightened Centrists insist that base has something useful to say. Voting doesn’t play into it.
I really doubt Congress is going to start forming factions. Republicans are all in it for the grift, except for a handful of looneys that really believe what they say (and, to their credit, are working on the Epstein files). Most Republican Congressmen do not care about their representees, definitely not enough to stick their own necks out. Two Republicans dissented on the “Big Beautiful Bill” purely based on spending concerns, which is the entire Tea Party Republican viewpoint. Two.
Your scenario also assumes that support of Congress is needed. The White House already has their Gestapo, ICE, as well as the actual US Military. They’ve broken Supreme Court orders, some of them unanimous 9-0 decisions.
I do believe the White House will continue to play along with Congress for as long as Congress obeys, them – just to preserve the veil of normalcy. Should Congress actually attempt to impede the regime, they’ll be ignored, or if deemed preferable, taken out.
We’ve seen the military attack citizens, seen ICE arrest members of Congress, and we’ve seen MAGA hold state legislators hostage. The same country that tormented innocent civilians in nations like Iraq, has turned its guns on its own. To assume that any legal action can stop the regime is to utterly ignore reality. There was nothing legal about George W. Bush’s invasion of Iraq or Afghanistan. The US Military does not follow the law, it follows orders. The Constitution has been shredded in every sense but literal. The only way one can believe we have any protection is to presume that “it would never happen here”… in the face of “it” happening here.
I really doubt Congress is going to start forming factions
It already has factions. They couldn’t even pick a Speaker of the House without causing a ruckus. Republicans are united around Trump, and only Trump. They can’t decide if the Speaker should be more libertarian, more Christian Nationalist, or just straight up MAGA faithful.
Your scenario also assumes that support of Congress is needed. The White House already has their Gestapo, ICE, as well as the actual US Military. They’ve broken Supreme Court orders, some of them unanimous 9-0 decisions.
Only because everyone says “let Trump do whatever he wants”. Nobody else can take up that mantle. Someone will try, probably Vance. He’s an idiot who doesn’t have anything like Trump’s ability to appeal to a certain kind of person, and will fail. Hard.
To assume that any legal action can stop the regime is to utterly ignore reality. There was nothing legal about George W. Bush’s invasion of Iraq or Afghanistan.
They still had to play the game where Congress authorizes it. It was only “illegal” in the sense that international law forbids it, and international law isn’t quite as clear cut about enforcement mechanisms. It’s more like a series of agreements between nation states, and those agreements can get tossed. Especially when the guy with the biggest hammer (the US) decides they can be tossed. Nobody was going to do anything substantive against the US for that.
The Constitution has been shredded in every sense but literal. The only way one can believe we have any protection is to presume that “it would never happen here”… in the face of “it” happening here.
I’m not assuming anything about the Constitution whatsoever. At its most basic, politics is coalitions of people who try to achieve certain goals. Voting and a constitutional republic are just means we’ve traditionally used for structuring that. Coalitions form without any other structure being present, and can fall apart when a central leader goes away. In a scenario where Trump dies and Congress is still around, Congressional Republicans will fight each other trying to be on top. No reason to assume they will form around a new leader at all.
I recall that happening, but I would note that the division in the Republican Party was between MAGA and the “Tea Party” fiscal conservatives, the latter of which have all been branded “Republican In Name Only” and cast out. This division was also why the MAGA plan to refuse to certify the Electoral Vote on Jan 6th, 2021 failed. I’m not talking about the insurrection – there was a genuine argument being made to try to overturn the electoral votes of several key states that voted for Biden, with passionate arguments made for and against completely rigging the election in Trump’s favor.
That speaker debacle was during Biden’s term, after the ousting of Kevin McCarthy specifically because Kevin McCarthy was one of those fiscal conservatives. The Republicans did eventually elect Mike Johnson, and I don’t see him getting kicked out any time soon.
We can not cling to this vision that the Republican Party will collapse in on itself. It’s a nice thought, but us waiting around is exactly what our rulers want. There are US Military soldiers and secret police agents on our streets right now – Today – trafficking people right now. Every day that we continue to play this routine, participating in the corporations and institutions that engineered and empowered this crisis, the USA and the corporations and the Christian Nationalists all get what they want.
A General Strike could put some strain between the corporations and the politicians, but that’s a movement that each of us must partake in. Right now, big business including Silicon Valley, as well as the Christian Nationalists, are quite content with the status-quo.
You’re missing how much these people all hate each other. I’m not counting on the Republican party collapsing. I’m saying it’s inevitable. If you understand how cults of personality work, it’s quite obvious.
I don’t consider it the best possible outcome, though. What probably happens next is closer to European-style democratic socialism. I’m an anarchist, and I consider that to be weak sauce.
It’s not just about voting. They need to rule the whole narrative around them. Otherwise, members of Congress start building their own factions to oppose specific things, and Democrats will strategically ally themselves to one or another on specific bills.
Literally nobody is in favor of Trump’s tariffs besides Trump. That’s him driving it, personally. There isn’t even a real base for that beyond “whatever Trump wants, he gets”.
They can’t pursue their agenda without some kind of populist support. They need a base that will automatically back them, and then have Enlightened Centrists insist that base has something useful to say. Voting doesn’t play into it.
I really doubt Congress is going to start forming factions. Republicans are all in it for the grift, except for a handful of looneys that really believe what they say (and, to their credit, are working on the Epstein files). Most Republican Congressmen do not care about their representees, definitely not enough to stick their own necks out. Two Republicans dissented on the “Big Beautiful Bill” purely based on spending concerns, which is the entire Tea Party Republican viewpoint. Two.
Your scenario also assumes that support of Congress is needed. The White House already has their Gestapo, ICE, as well as the actual US Military. They’ve broken Supreme Court orders, some of them unanimous 9-0 decisions.
I do believe the White House will continue to play along with Congress for as long as Congress obeys, them – just to preserve the veil of normalcy. Should Congress actually attempt to impede the regime, they’ll be ignored, or if deemed preferable, taken out.
We’ve seen the military attack citizens, seen ICE arrest members of Congress, and we’ve seen MAGA hold state legislators hostage. The same country that tormented innocent civilians in nations like Iraq, has turned its guns on its own. To assume that any legal action can stop the regime is to utterly ignore reality. There was nothing legal about George W. Bush’s invasion of Iraq or Afghanistan. The US Military does not follow the law, it follows orders. The Constitution has been shredded in every sense but literal. The only way one can believe we have any protection is to presume that “it would never happen here”… in the face of “it” happening here.
It already has factions. They couldn’t even pick a Speaker of the House without causing a ruckus. Republicans are united around Trump, and only Trump. They can’t decide if the Speaker should be more libertarian, more Christian Nationalist, or just straight up MAGA faithful.
Only because everyone says “let Trump do whatever he wants”. Nobody else can take up that mantle. Someone will try, probably Vance. He’s an idiot who doesn’t have anything like Trump’s ability to appeal to a certain kind of person, and will fail. Hard.
They still had to play the game where Congress authorizes it. It was only “illegal” in the sense that international law forbids it, and international law isn’t quite as clear cut about enforcement mechanisms. It’s more like a series of agreements between nation states, and those agreements can get tossed. Especially when the guy with the biggest hammer (the US) decides they can be tossed. Nobody was going to do anything substantive against the US for that.
I’m not assuming anything about the Constitution whatsoever. At its most basic, politics is coalitions of people who try to achieve certain goals. Voting and a constitutional republic are just means we’ve traditionally used for structuring that. Coalitions form without any other structure being present, and can fall apart when a central leader goes away. In a scenario where Trump dies and Congress is still around, Congressional Republicans will fight each other trying to be on top. No reason to assume they will form around a new leader at all.
I recall that happening, but I would note that the division in the Republican Party was between MAGA and the “Tea Party” fiscal conservatives, the latter of which have all been branded “Republican In Name Only” and cast out. This division was also why the MAGA plan to refuse to certify the Electoral Vote on Jan 6th, 2021 failed. I’m not talking about the insurrection – there was a genuine argument being made to try to overturn the electoral votes of several key states that voted for Biden, with passionate arguments made for and against completely rigging the election in Trump’s favor.
That speaker debacle was during Biden’s term, after the ousting of Kevin McCarthy specifically because Kevin McCarthy was one of those fiscal conservatives. The Republicans did eventually elect Mike Johnson, and I don’t see him getting kicked out any time soon.
We can not cling to this vision that the Republican Party will collapse in on itself. It’s a nice thought, but us waiting around is exactly what our rulers want. There are US Military soldiers and secret police agents on our streets right now – Today – trafficking people right now. Every day that we continue to play this routine, participating in the corporations and institutions that engineered and empowered this crisis, the USA and the corporations and the Christian Nationalists all get what they want.
A General Strike could put some strain between the corporations and the politicians, but that’s a movement that each of us must partake in. Right now, big business including Silicon Valley, as well as the Christian Nationalists, are quite content with the status-quo.
Sone of y’all never been in a cult, and it shows.
You’re missing how much these people all hate each other. I’m not counting on the Republican party collapsing. I’m saying it’s inevitable. If you understand how cults of personality work, it’s quite obvious.
I don’t consider it the best possible outcome, though. What probably happens next is closer to European-style democratic socialism. I’m an anarchist, and I consider that to be weak sauce.