House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries is on Rachel Maddow saying that they are going to continue what they are doing: All hands on deck.
It’s good to have someone in Congress doing their job, but this is not what DEMOCRATS should be doing.
The fascists are tearing the U.S. government apart. That government is what protects us from death and destruction.
In normal times.
With that protection gone, the people of the United States are at risk. What is going to happen, for example, if we have a terrorist attack? The FBI and the CIA are not on the job because they are too busy trying to terrorize Donald Trump’s enemies. That is not their job.
Democrats maybe “doing their jobs” but that’s not good enough. We have an existential treat to the country. That threat is coming from someone in our government who is dedicated to harming the country.
Guy-at-a-town-hall suggested his Rep get arrested at a protest, I presume to show actual effort to stop the destruction. I’m not suggesting anyone get arrested at a protest. That’s small bore, and I agree with Charlie Sykes that the fascists would use this as an excuse to use the power of government to increase their oppression. Public protests, with or without arrests, with or without violence are not the way.
I want to see Democratic officeholders call a general strike of Executive Branch workers until the current regime returns to the rule of law. Until all of those dismissed are called back. Until the Executive Branch agrees to abide by contract law and employment law. Until they return to “regular order”, where to dismiss anyone you need cause. To the normal rules of employment.
Give the fascists something too big for them to ignore and too big for them to deal with, other than by getting back on sides.
Maddow also laid into senior management at MSNBC for their treatment of the producers and others who work behind the scenes, the people who get their shows on the air.
Reading between the lines I get the sense that management is worried about their ability to kowtow to the Trump Administration.
Or, maybe they just think that new management can make things better by shaking things up. In my experience, this is always a truly bad idea. It’s almost always better to think through changes and do them deliberately. And problems are almost never due to people, they are due to processes and the external environment. Smart management looks for how to change the equation to the company’s advantage.
For Maddow to go on the air and deliver her unvarnished message of support for her colleagues is a great act of courage. It is the sort of courage we need from Democratic officeholders. Take a page from Maddow, Democrats in office. We are all up against it. This is the time when a dictator will take over the U.S. or not.
What are you going to do about it?
