“Do Something!”
Democratic voters have been demanding that the elected officials in their party “Do Something!” as Donald Trump’s reckless agenda, largely illegal, has been unfurling. There is, however, a hard lesson in much of this that Democrats, like pretty much everybody else, don’t actually have magic wands and the president holds immense power despite not being a king, which means there’s only so much they can put the brakes on. It’s even worse if we’re facing up against a Republican president who has a trifecta on the federal government – even if it’s slightly less than the one Donald Trump had when he took office eight years ago.
We’ve seen Democratic lawmakers acting in defiance of the Trump administration, however, but it didn’t gain much coverage prior to Cory Booker’s speech because it was largely in the form of behind the scenes court filings. Now, Sen. Brian Schatz is announcing his refusal to vote for future Trump appointments until the GOP puts a check on Trump – holding up over 300 potential nominees whose names must be advanced unanimously. It also likely means the end of much bipartisan legislation, and we’re even seeing some of Trump’s fellow Republican senators speak out publicly against the tariffs.
The only way resistance can move forward in a loud and visible fashion – and actually achieve something against a president is when the president’s approval ratings begin plummeting, and they relinquish their political capital. It hasn’t been 100 days of Trump yet, and we’re already seeing his approvals drop. It’s our primary job to make sure his approval ratings stay low from here on out, if we plan to halt his destructive agenda.
James Sullivan is the assistant editor of Brain World Magazine and an advocate of science-based policy making