Trump’s ability to bend reality to his will is the foundation of his political success. It’s how he has survived so many moments that would have ended other politicians’ careers.
But it is not working this time.
The video and the Trump administration’s response to the killing have gone viral. Data from Magnitude Media shows that the shooting and ICE have been the dominant story on social media for the past week.
According to the most recent Quinnipiac poll, 83% of respondents have seen the video. Among those who have, a majority believe the shooting was not justified.
That number was so high that I assumed it must be an outlier. But the Economist/YouGov poll found that 70% had seen the video, and 99% had either seen or heard about it.
It’s hard to overstate how stunning those numbers are in a fractured media environment where large swaths of the population have tuned out politics.
The shooting of Renee Goode has captured the nation’s attention in a way few events have since Trump took office.
The polling is very clear: Trump’s smear campaign has failed miserably.
First, polls from Quinnipiac, Data for Progress, and The Economist all show that a majority of Americans believe the shooting was not justified.
Across the board, Trump’s lies are falling flat with everyone except his most ardent supporters. And that’s a real problem for him.
For the first time in a long time, Trump is losing control of the narrative on the issue that once defined his political strength. And when Trump can’t bend reality to his will, his power erodes quic
They are weak
On the other, the Trumpists are obsessed, from Pete Hegseth to the ICE goons to the rhetoric from Trump, Miller, and Vance, with a cartoonish manosphere notion of bullying and brutality as strength and masculinity, and they appear to have no ethical limits. But they are weak, and the more horrific their actions the weaker they become, because political strength comes from broad support (or in the case of real authoritarians successful terror-backed repression of a kind I do not believe can be fully realized in this huge, diverse country full of people who are intransigent about our rights). They are weak and they are making themselves weaker.
Yale historian Joanne Freeman said in a video conversation with Heather Cox Richardson
they realize it's their last ditch effort. They know that they're not a majority; they know that they do not have approval even if they're looking at all the polls that say people don't like what they're doing. They realize, and it's hard to believe this, but please listen: they are in a position of weakness, they are performing brutality, they are performing strength, they are performing dominance, because they don't have it. They don't have the numbers, they don't have the power. What we're seeing right now is concentrated, forceful, nasty, bloody because it's their last attempt to grab what they've been trying to get all along but they realize that fates are not with them.
Lawyer and human rights advocate Jay Kuo writes
we could and should view these escalations for what they are: the fever pitch we have long expected. The walls are closing in on Trump, and he finds himself increasingly cornered. As I wrote recently, we should judge every new move by Trump by whether it signifies some new expansion of his power, or whether it falls within his ever-shrinking zone of actual authority. By this measure, Trump continues to signal notable weakness, not strength. That pattern is now unmistakable. The White House escalates, but the public and the opposition do not back down. That will ultimately force Trump to commit even more outrageous acts. Eventually, and across multiple gaps, these acts will prove bridges too far. Whether it’s brutal ICE crackdowns, threats against our allies, or now the baseless criminal prosecution of [head of the Federal Reserve Jerome] Powell, each will accelerate erosion of public support and compound losses at the ballot box.
Peter Hamby in Puck:
To say explicitly what is now obvious: Americans do not like ICE. Period. In just a single year, ICE’s reputation has collapsed so dramatically—and so quickly—that it would be a punchline if not for ICE agents’ tragic, real-world behavior. After Trump’s inauguration, ICE had a +16 net favorability rating with Americans, according to YouGov. Now the agency is underwater at –14. That’s a 30-point swing since last January—an unheard-of political collapse.
As ICE’s tactics and the shooting continue to permeate the public consciousness, approval of Trump’s handling of immigration keeps falling. In a brand-new Associated Press poll, Trump’s immigration approval is now under 40%.
Even ICE doesn’t like ICE: ‘I’m Embarrassed’: ICE Agents Speak About the Shooting in Minneapolis
behind the scenes, current and former ICE agents have expressed concerns about the agent’s conduct, about the agency’s operations in Minneapolis, and about a broader push by the Trump administration to aggressively recruit more agents.
“I’m embarrassed,” one former ICE agent with more than 25 years of experience told TIME. “The majority of my colleagues feel the same way. It’s an insult to us, because we did it the right way to see what they’re doing now.”
Both the former agent and the current agent also questioned why Ross was assigned to this operation in the first place, given a previous injury involving a driver at the wheel of a vehicle just a few months before the confrontation with Good.
“That, to me, has red flags all over it,” the former ICE agent said.
x
This is how they lose.
A YouGov poll the other day, amidst a major all-out admin push to vilify Renee Good, found that 14% of REPUBLICANS think Ross should be charged.
ICE is overplaying its hand. They will do tremendous harm in short-run, but hatred of them is starting to cross party lines.
— John Pfaff (@johnpfaff.bsky.social) 2026-01-13T02:21:56.432Z
Trump's mass deportations are in big trouble
Support for President Trump's immigration crackdown is unraveling quickly and reviving Democratic opposition on an issue that helped decide the last election.
Why it matters: Border chaos under former President Biden helped return Trump to power. Now, it's chaos from ICE and other Trump immigration enforcers that's turning off the public, one viral video at a time.
- Just weeks after Trump was sworn in, ICE had a +16 positive favorability rating, according to a YouGov/Economist poll.
- Majorities now disapprove of ICE raids and how the agency is handling its job. Americans are now statistically split on whether to abolish ICE altogether, according to one poll.
- If that anger carries over into the midterms, a Democratic House majority could cut off ICE funding, use subpoena powers to investigate every move by DHS and even impeach Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
Trump Aides Panic After Finding Out How Much Americans Hate ICE Carnage
Those numbers have set off an alarm in Trump’s inner circle. Some aides are now talking about “recalibrating” ICE tactics, Axios said, fearing a collapse among moderate, independent, and minority voters who helped deliver Trump’s 2024 victory and will decide whether Republicans keep their tiny House majority in November’s midterms.
One senior adviser was quoted as saying of Trump, “He wants deportations. He wants mass deportations. What he doesn’t want is what people are seeing. He doesn’t like the way it looks. It looks bad, so he’s expressed some discomfort at that.”
and the manosphere is turning against this:
Joe Rogan’s Harsh New Takedown of Trump ICE Raids Hands Dems a Weapon
When a Trump supporter refers to ICE as the “Gestapo,” a door has definitely opened
This week, Rogan harshly criticized Trump’s ICE raids again after the horrific and unjustified killing of Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis. “You don’t want militarized people in the streets just roaming around, snatching up people, many of which turn out to be U.S. citizens that just don’t have their papers on them,”
If this was trump’s only weakness that would be one thing. But it isn’t. It was his only polling STRENGTH and now it is gone and he is left with nothing:
His numbers are lower than W after Katrina. His numbers are lower than any president ever. Loser.
3. The Cracks in His Support are growing
When Rs show spine it isn’t because they have spines, it is because they see the writing on the wall. They know he has already lost. They are moving against him, more and more, because that is where their future will be.
It sucks that 2 Rs caved on the Venezuela vote but...
The fact that Trump had to personally lobby two GOP Senators and rely on JD Vance to defeat a rebuke of his invasion of Venezuela is a sign of Trump’s increasing weakness. Trump also needed a promise by Secretary of State Marco Rubio to Hawley and Young that the administration would notify Congress in advance of any significant armed excursion into Venezuela—a promise that is both illusory and merely a restatement of the requirements of the War Powers Act. It offered nothing to Hawley and Young, other than political cover for their cowardly retreat.
and there have been many more defections that are working. Think about how unheard of these would have been six months ago!!
Republicans vow to block Trump from seizing Greenland by force
Senate Republicans are vowing to block any effort by President Trump to seize Greenland by military force, as Trump officials on Wednesday refused to back off their demands to control the island during a meeting with top diplomats at the White House.
Two Republican senators — Sens. Thom Tillis (N.C.) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) — plan to travel to Copenhagen on Friday to assure the Danish prime minister that there would be strong Republican opposition to any effort by Trump to use military force to seize Greenland.
“I’m going to remind them that we have coequal branches of government and I believe that there [is a] sufficient number of members, whether they speak up or not, that are concerned with this,” Tillis said of Trump’s threats.
Murkowski has teamed up with Shaheen to co-sponsor a bill that would prohibit the use of Defense Department funds to blockade, occupy, annex or conduct military operations against Greenland or any sovereign territory of a NATO member state. Their bill would also block the State Department from using funds to do the same.
Murkowski and Shaheen are both senior members of the Senate Appropriations Committee, which has jurisdiction over the Defense and State departments’ budgets.
Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), the chair of the Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, which controls the Pentagon budget, on Wednesday delivered a searing rebuke to Trump’s threat to seize control of Greenland by military force.
Sen. James Lankford (Okla.), a member of Senate GOP leadership, pushed back on Trump’s threat to use military force.
and
Republican centrists and populists combine to kill series of GOP labor bills
Republican centrists and populists in the House blocked a series of GOP labor bills on the chamber floor Tuesday, marking the latest blow to Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and GOP leaders, who are increasingly losing their grip on the restive Republican conference.
The House was poised to vote Tuesday evening on three Republican bills designed to ease regulations on businesses — partisan bills that were expected to pass given the GOP’s long-standing appetite for deregulation.
The first of those bills, sponsored by Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa), would have changed the way work hours are calculated by excluding certain voluntary training sessions. It hit a roadblock when six Republicans joined every voting Democrat in opposition — a number sufficient to sink the legislation, given the Republicans’ razor-thin House majority.
Embarrassing floor meltdown has House Republicans questioning their leaders
Frustrations are growing among House Republicans as their majority dwindles and agenda sputters — and it’s not just Speaker Mike Johnson who is feeling the heat.
Members were aghast after a stunning Tuesday night meltdown on the House floor, where opposition from a handful of GOP members led to the defeat of one labor bill and the postponement of three others. Some questioned why the Republican floor and whip teams — under the direction of Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Majority Whip Tom Emmer, respectively — had allowed the votes to be scheduled.
The rising concerns about the GOP whip operation come as the party struggles to hang onto its razor-thin voting majority. Since the beginning of the year, Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene resigned, Rep. Doug LaMalfa of California suddenly died and a spate of medical-related absences and family emergencies have plagued the party.
The GOP currently has a 218-213 majority if all members are present and voting — which day-to-day is a huge “if.”
Leaving the floor after the failed vote Tuesday night, Johnson insisted, “We’re totally in control of the House.”
ok buddy.
and
Bacon says he would ‘lean’ toward Trump impeachment if Greenland invaded: ‘Utter buffoonery’
Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) said Wednesday he’d consider impeaching President Trump if the U.S. decides to invade Greenland, which he described as “utter buffoonery.”
“It’s ridiculous that this has to even be done,” Bacon told the Omaha World-Herald. “But when the president talks about taking Greenland one way or the other way every day this last week or so and that it’s unacceptable if Greenland refuses to be part of the United States, I felt like I needed to make a statement that Republicans disagree.”
and
GOP senators try to talk Trump down from invoking Insurrection Act in Minneapolis
Republican senators are trying to put the brakes on talk of invoking the Insurrection Act to quell angry protests against immigration officers in Minneapolis after one fatally shot Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother of three.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) called for cooler heads to prevail when asked about Trump’s threat to trigger the Insurrection Act.
“I think that we need to calm the country down, not head further toward chaos,” he said.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) tried to downplay Trump’s threat but called on local officials to work with law enforcement to “settle things down.”
and
US Senate passes bill to boost federal science spending after White House sought major cuts
The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday to approve billions of dollars in funding for federal science agencies, rejecting deep cuts proposed by President Donald Trump in space and other areas.
The Senate bill approved significant science funding for NASA, the National Science Foundation and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration above what the White House had sought. NSF will receive $8.75 billion for research efforts including in quantum information science, artificial intelligence and other areas.
and
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell sounded the klaxon Sunday evening about the Justice Department’s effort to intimidate the central bank.
Every living former Fed chair, along with several former treasury secretaries and members of the Council of Economic Advisors, signed on to a public letter cautioning that the erosion of the central banks’ independence would be catastrophic.
“This is how monetary policy is made in emerging markets with weak institutions, with highly negative consequences for inflation and the functioning of their economies more broadly,” they warned. “It has no place in the United States whose greatest strength is the rule of law, which is at the foundation of our economic success.”
The backlash was strong enough to rouse Senate Republicans from their customary torpor.
“If there were any remaining doubt whether advisers within the Trump Administration are actively pushing to end the independence of the Federal Reserve, there should now be none,” North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis said. “It is now the independence and credibility of the Department of Justice that are in question.”
Tillis’s imminent retirement may have something to do with his newfound spine. But he sits on the Senate Banking Committee, so his promise to oppose any nominees for the Fed “until this legal matter is fully resolved” ensures that none of Trump’s picks will move forward. His fellow Republican Lisa Murkowski agreed, warning on X that “if the Federal Reserve loses its independence, the stability of our markets and the broader economy will suffer.”
4. The Judiciary still has some checks left in them
The SCOTUS sucks 80% of the time but there are still lots of checks on him.
from just last night a huge victory:
x
Even with a tilted SCOTUS, Trump’s power grabs aren’t going unchecked
When the Court limited nationwide injunctions, we @democracydefendersfund.org acted & filed a class action on birthright citizenship & got a new injunction
The rule of law still fights back
I explained on @ms.now👇
— Norm Eisen (@normeisen.bsky.social) 2026-01-13T16:26:24.928Z
Oregon not required to give feds voter data, judge rules
A federal judge tentatively ruled Wednesday that Oregon does not have to hand over personally identifiable data of more than 3 million Oregon voters to the federal government.
In an oral ruling Wednesday evening, U.S. District Court Judge Mustafa Kasubhai said he plans to dismiss the U.S. Justice Department’s lawsuit against Oregon and Secretary of State Tobias Read. Kasubhai, appointed by former President Joe Biden, allowed that his final written decision may be different.
Judge hands offshore wind industry another victory against Trump in clearing way for NY project
A federal judge Thursday cleared the way for a New York offshore wind project to resume construction, a victory for the developer who said a Trump administration order to pause it would likely kill the project in a matter of days.
District Judge Carl J. Nichols, an appointee of President Donald Trump, ruled construction on the Empire Wind project could go forward while he considers the merits of the government’s order to suspend the project. He faulted the government for not responding to key points in Empire Wind’s court filings, including the contention that the administration violated proper procedure.
Judge sides with Minnesota, blocks USDA from cutting off SNAP funding
A district court judge on Wednesday blocked the U.S. Department of Agriculture from ceasing payments to Minnesota for federal food assistance unless the state recertified all households receiving SNAP benefits.
Last month, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins gave Minnesota a 30-day deadline to conduct in-person interviews for more than 100,000 households enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. That deadline would have come around on Thursday.
In a lawsuit seeking to stop the impending funding freeze, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison called the demand “utterly impossible,” even with advance notice.
5. We can take back the congressional branch in less than a year!
Anyone saying that elections can’t change things is wrong or a bot.
Anyone saying we will never have elections again is wrong or a bot.
Anyone saying that there is nothing YOU can do to make this better is wrong or a bot.
From Jamelle Bouie who knows way more about this than most people:
the question to ask about this is, okay, he wants to cancel the midterms. how does he get the VA state board of elections to cancel the midterms? how does he get the georgia board of elections to do it? how does he convince republican house members to quit their jobs and give up their paychecks?
what does he do about the fact that in most states midterms and state wides are on the same cycle, so "canceling the elections" might mean that tennessee doesn't have a governor next year. how does he convince tennessee republicans to give up power in their own states?
ICE can't even deal with irate middle-aged midwesterners. how does he occupy hundreds, if not thousands, of polling cites and precincts? trump v. illinois clarified that he has no legal authority to unilaterally commandeer national guards, how does he move forward from there?
who cares what he cares about, the question is "how does this process actually work, and what mechanisms exist for him to affect it." the executive branch plays exactly zero role in the composition, certification and seating of a new congress.
here's what happens after house elections, which are conducted by each state and locality:
the state certifies the winner
the winners go to washington
they convene a new house
they choose a speaker
notice who isn't involved here? the president or the current speaker or the senate.
Will elections be unfair? Will they try to get people to not vote through some kind of intimidation or other means? Is he trying to rig elections? 100% he is and 100% they won’t be fair.
But to be clear: our elections have never been fair. Why do you have to wait 8 hours to vote in a bright blue inner city and 30 seconds in a rural area? Is that fair? No. It isn’t.
Will they lie? Will they try to cheat? Sure. Why should this election be any different. Bomb threats were called into Black voting areas in 2024. Absentee ballots were never sent out in Erie, PA in 2024. They will pull that shit again.
But we will fight it. And we have shown in the past that we can win DESPITE their shenanigans. And we will show it again.
We ARE having elections. And we are winning them. Why from just this week:
Chris Dzadovsky wins Fort Pierce commission seat by 31 votes, flips control to Democrats
Democratic candidate defeats Republican challenger in tight District 2 runoff with 50.60% of vote, shifting commission balance
Chris Dzadovsky won a tight runoff election Tuesday for the Fort Pierce City Commission District 2, Seat 2, defeating Jaimebeth Galinis by just 31 votes and flipping the commission to Democratic control.
The Florida Democratic Party celebrated the victory, with Chair Nikki Fried issuing a statement congratulating Dzadovsky.
The polling for trump and the Rs is terrible and getting worse. And the worse he gets (which seems to be the path he is on) the worse polling gets for them
this shift from Cook is just breathtaking:
Eighteen House Ratings Shift Toward Democrats
Ten months out from Election Day, it’s increasingly clear that Democrats are in a strong position to win control of the House this November.
All the major indicators — the president’s unpopularity, special election results and the generic congressional ballot — point to a favorable environment for Democrats. President Donald Trump’s approval rating sits at 42%, driven by Americans’ widespread frustration over the economy. And Democratic candidates’ consistent overperformance in special elections shows their voters are more motivated to turn out than Republicans — despite the fact that many Democratic voters have a dim view of their own party.
House Democrats only need to flip three seats to win a majority. Even if Democrats lose some of their own members defending particularly difficult seats, the number of Republicans in peril should give Democrats more than enough opportunities to win 218 seats.
As the contours of the battleground map come into view, we’re shifting 18 ratings in favor of Democrats. Eight of these shifts are from the Likely Democrat column into Solid Democrat, as it becomes more obvious that these races
New poll shows most Americans think Trump has 'gone too far' with military actions abroad
More than half of U.S. adults believe President Donald Trump has "gone too far" in using the U.S. military to intervene in other countries, according to a new AP-NORC poll.
and people are embracing good old fashioned FDR liberalism again!
And Y’all… the Senate is in play!!!!
Democrat Mary Peltola Edges Out Incumbent Republican in Alaska Senate Poll
Democratic former Representative Mary Peltola narrowly leads Republican Senator Dan Sullivan in Alaska’s 2026 U.S. Senate race, a potential shakeup in the fairly red state, according to a new poll.
Democrats Now Have a Path to a Senate Majority
Former Congresswoman Mary Peltola announced her candidacy for the Senate. Senator Schumer has been recruiting Peltola for months, and her decision to throw her hat in the ring gives Democrats a plausible candidate against Republican Dan Sullivan.
While Democrats have a clear (though not easy) path to winning the House, a Senate majority has seemed out of reach for much of the past year. But through a series of recruiting coups, Republicans opting out of key races, and Donald Trump’s deteriorating political position, a path has emerged. Peltola’s decision is the final piece of that puzzle. Democrats now have a real shot at the Senate.
6. Democrats are great
Do I agree with every decision by every Democrat? Well, no. We are a big tent and have a lot of folks.
But so many Democrats are doing so many amazing things. And frankly, people who just trash them ignore that the people they like (and the actions they like) are a part of the Democratic party.
Like:
and:
Hochul: New York will not assist ICE, New Yorkers allowed to hold agents accountable in court
At her State of the State address on Tuesday, Governor Kathy Hochul pledged to stand up to federal immigration agents.
"I will do whatever it takes to protect New Yorkers from criminals, but people of all political beliefs are saying the same thing about what we’ve seen lately: enough is enough," said Hochul.
At her State of the State address on Tuesday, Governor Kathy Hochul pledged to stand up to federal immigration agents.
"We will not allow masked federal ICE agents to storm into our schools, daycares, hospitals, and houses of worship for civil immigration raids unless they have a judicial warrant, meaning signed by a judge," said Hochul.
and:
and
Virginia Democrats advance redistricting effort
Virginia House Democrats passed their redistricting constitutional amendment for a second time on Wednesday, teeing it up for a vote in the state Senate as the party looks to quickly redraw the Old Dominion’s House map before the November midterms.
In a 62-33 vote, Democrats in the lower chamber passed a constitutional amendment giving the state legislature the green light to temporarily redraw their congressional lines under certain conditions. Those include another state conducting mid-decade redistricting for another reason other than complying with a court order or completing the decennial redistricting process after the last U.S. Census.
and:
and:
House Progressives To Oppose Any New DHS Funding Without Reforms
The Congressional Progressive Caucus, a group of nearly 100 House Democrats, announced Tuesday its members will oppose any new funding for immigration enforcement until “meaningful reforms” are put in place.
The caucus’ official new position reads: “The CPC opposes any appropriations bill that provides any funding to immigration enforcement agencies within the Department of Homeland Security unless there are meaningful and significant reforms to immigration enforcement practices.”
7. We are amazing
Just amazing. Just beautiful. Just inspiring.
And we will continue to be. And though it is #7, it is really the #1 reason that the trump regime will lose.
Is Anyone Doing Anything?! The answer is a heartening “absolutely.”
Across American cities, from large urban centers to towns in South Carolina, protests broke out immediately against ICE over the weekend. The infrastructure for rapid, mass protest now exists where it did not before.
On the internet, videos circulated widely documenting widespread ICE abuses, including of peaceful protesters and legal observers who are U.S. citizens. (To view collections of these clips, I recommend the accounts LongTimeHistory, Oliya Scootercast and Status Coup (no relation!), all of which you can view on the Twitter mirror site Xcancel.)
We’ve seen the bravery and impact of ordinary people who are rallying to their immigrant neighbors’ aid. At significant risk to their own safety, and in the face of illegal threats and arrests by ICE, they are speaking out, documenting abuses and standing firm.
In sum, the Trump regime is lashing out. We expected it to, after all. We all have long understood that the more pressure Trump faces on all fronts, including those pesky Epstein files, the more desperate and reckless he will become. That is precisely what we’re seeing.
But unlike how it felt last January, the resistance is organized, ready and responding rapidly and effectively.
Do those protests work? YES!!!!
Here are two articles from my Substack (ManyWaystoBelong) about that. If you like them, click on the links to give them a like and subscribe to the Substack to get a new article (free!) in your inbox once a week
Why Protests Are Good For You (And For Your Cause)
My students and I collected data on people at last year’s No Kings protests and Hands Off protests. Our data suggesting that people at protests experienced large amounts of collective effervescence — a combination of a sense of connection to others in the crowd and a sensation of sacredness.
Not only did they feel collective effervescence but it was powerful.
The high levels of collective effervescence at the event predicted feeling increased energy and hope and increased the likelihood of future action.
In other words: protests not only were meaningful collective events, they also had an impact on the psychology and action of participants!
And here is something really cool — people could get those positive effects even when they didn’t attend the protest! Just looking at pictures and video and descriptions of the protests online made people feel collective effervescence and led to increases in hope, energy, and the likelihood to keep fighting for what they believe in!
So keep at it. Protest not show the nation, the leaders, and the world that we care, they also give oxygen and energy to the movements they support.
and for those of you wondering, YES, that is based on data from all of you!! Thank you!!
And the second article about protests from my Substack:
Who We Call "We" Couldn't Matter More: An incredible change has happened and its a reason for hope
Enormous amounts of research shows that people will often to wonderful things to help people who are included in “we” but very little for those who they see as “they.” And the wonderful, amazing, and beautiful thing that has happened is that more and more of us are expanding our concepts of “we” to include people with less power. People different from us. People who are marginalized.
American citizens — people who are not the targets of ICE — are participating in mass, organized, and successful protests all around this country to protect marginalized people.
so many - millions and millions of Americans — have made the decision that we will not be divided. Have dedicated themselves to not allow their privilege to keep them silent. Have included all of those in America — even those with the least amount of power — in their definition of who is “we.”
The big change isn’t that there are people full of hate and people willing to ignore it. That has always been the case. The big change is in the number of people who won’t stay quiet about inequality and hatred. The big change is the number of people who don’t need the benefit of history and hindsight to know that we are stronger, better, and more moral when everyone has a chance to belong.
A Minneapolis minister, writes Bill Lindeke, says
You’ve probably seen the videos of agents saying to protestors and legal observers, ‘You saw what happened. Didn’t you learn your lesson?’ The only lesson learned is the love for our neighbors is growing three sizes each and every day.
My heart and gratitude goes out to all of you. In particular our brothers and sisters in Minnesota.
What can you do to save democracy?
First, continue to find joy in your life! Don’t let that fuckface live rent free in your mind! This is your life!!!!!
Second, If you want to start out the year on a “good luck” note you can donate to our House efforts.
It splits our donations among the 15 seats held by Republicans in swing districts. These are seats that were either won by a margin of 4% or less or were won by Harris in 2024. In other words, these are seats we can win in 2026. None of them are in CA or TX (and thus likely to be redistricted). Any money you donate will go directly to whomever our candidate will be in 2026. We only need to flip three of these!
Here is the link:
WE CAN WIN THESE ELECTIONS!
Some other ways to get involved
-
If you can, I strongly recommend going to an in person meeting in your area. One way to find a local group is through indivisible: indivisibleproject.formstack.com/…
-
Election Response Center is a project hosted by Working Families Party, MoveOn Civic Action, Indivisible, and Public Citizen. They are organizing lots of events to get people fighting. Join one at this link
-
The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression. Get involved with them at this link.
-
Get involved with the Democratic party. We aren’t perfect, but they are fucking evil.
- Get involved with the States Project They are working on turning state legislatures blue
- Get involved with Swing Left. They are working on races right now!
- People For the American Way is a national progressive advocacy organization that inspires and mobilizes Americans to defend freedom, justice, and democracy from those who threaten to take them away. Get involved with them here
- Center for American Progress Action Fund is an independent, nonpartisan policy institute and advocacy organization that is dedicated to improving the lives of all Americans through bold, progressive ideas, as well as strong leadership and concerted action. Get involved with them here
Looking for something more specific?
Want to focus on the ENVIRONMENT:
Want to focus on CIVIL RIGHTS:
HUMAN RIGHTS - GENERALLY:
LGBTQ+:
WOMEN:
Huge thanks to DKos user dabug for help with this list.
Don’t let the options overwhelm you! Try to pick one thing and see if it calls to you. If it doesn’t find something else.
There are so many ways to get involved and help!
Some inspiration before I say goodbye
x
Lee: As a Black woman, there’s no way I don’t have hope. I’ve seen a lot in my life, and we have these moments of backward steps. But we have hope. I see hope. I see our young people—they have hope. I see them fighting hard for our democracy and for a better life.
— Acyn (@acyn.bsky.social) 2026-01-02T21:24:10.262Z
“Whatever happens, stay alive.
Don't die before you're dead.
Don't lose yourself, don't lose hope, don't lose direction.
Stay alive, with yourself, with every cell of your body, with every fiber of your skin.
Stay alive, learn, study, think, read, build, invent, create, speak, write, dream, design.
Stay alive, stay alive inside you, stay alive also outside, fill yourself with colors of the world, fill yourself with peace, fill yourself with hope.
Stay alive with joy.
There is only one thing you should not waste in life,
and that's life itself..."
by Virginia Woolf
.
At Albany Bulb with Elaine
By Alison Luterman
Side by side on a log by the bay.
Sunlight. Unleashed dogs,
prancing through surf, almost exploding
out of their skins with perfect happiness.
Dogs who don't know about fired park rangers,
or canceled health research, or tariff wars,
or the suicide hotline for veterans getting defunded,
or or or. We've listed horror upon horror
to each other for weeks now, and it does no good,
so instead I tell her how I held a two-day old baby
in my arms, inhaling him like a fresh-baked loaf of bread,
then watched as a sneeze erupted through his body
like a tiny volcano. It was the look of pure
astonishment on his face, as if he were Adam
in the garden of Eden making his debut achoo,
as if it were the first sneeze that ever blew,
that got me. She tells me how her dog
once farted so loudly he startled himself
and fell off the bed where he'd been lolling,
and then the two of us start to laugh so hard
we almost fall off our own log. And this
is our resistance for today; remembering
original innocence. And they can't
take it away from us, though they ban
our very existence, though they slash
our rights to ribbons, we will have
our mirth and our birthright gladness.
Long after every unsold Tesla
has vaporized, and earth has closed over
even the names of these temporary tyrants,
somewhere some women like us
will be sitting side by side, facing the water,
telling human stories and laughing still.
.
please, keep this in mind when you despair:
I am so proud and so lucky to be in this with all of you. ✊🏼✊🏽✊🏾✊🏿 💙❤️💛💚✊🏼✊🏽✊🏾✊🏿
