Lately, it’s become even clearer that it’s up to us, the American People, to save our democracy. If you thought that the Congress or the Democrats or the Supreme Court would save us from Trump’s authoritarianism, think again.

As for the House of Representatives, the Republicans are in complete control. No way they were going to find common ground with the Democrats on anything of import. While I had some hope that Republican “moderates” in the Senate would save us from Trump’s horrendous budget bill, in the end Alaskan Republican Sen. Murkowski, who had hinted at again standing up to Trump, folded and became the crucial 50^th vote to support the bill. Once she got what she wanted for Alaskans, which wasn’t all that much[1], Murkowski got on board. To hell with the needs of the rest of the country, including millions of low-income Republicans who will lose their healthcare coverage under this bill.

The Democrats in both chambers, on the other hand, were solid in their opposition to the bill. Still, there was little in the way of real outcry from the Blue Team. While they went through the motions—making Senate Republicans read the entire 887-page bill out loud and forcing votes on numerous amendments, all of which were defeated—to slow the process down somewhat, they did nothing to reduce the terrible impact the bill will have on most Americans. Low-income people who need government assistance, like Medicaid, the most, will be hit the hardest. Black Americans, students and those needing food assistance will also be negatively affected in a big way. Where is the Democrats’ outrage! What are they doing to mobilize all those opposed to Trump’s power grabs? And how are they going to make the Republicans accountable?

As for the Supreme Court, it’s recent ruling in the birthright citizenship case of Trump v. CASA siding with Trump puts all our rights at risk. Michael Waldman, President of the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law, noted that the CASA decision banning nationwide injunctions stripped federal judges of a key power used to stop illegal actions. The Court has handed Trump greater executive power at the expense of all Americans, just as its ruling on presidential immunity did last year.[2]

That means it’s up to us. We, the people, are the only ones who can save our democracy. But what can we do?

The national, grassroots organization, Indivisible, has a plan: One Million Rising, Strategic Non-cooperation to Fight Authoritarianism. One Million Rising is “a national effort to train one million people in the strategic logic and practice of non-cooperation, as well as the basics of community organizing and campaign design.”[3]  The three-part, online training begins on July 16. For more details and to sign up for the training, go to https://www.mobilize.us/nokings/event/803953/?utm_source=email&utm_medium=_20250702link4.

We can stop Trump. But it’ll take all of us — not just on single days of mass action, but through sustained organizing in our communities. I urge you to sign up and get involved. Like never before, our country needs all of us now!

Bruce Berlin, J.D.

A retired, public sector ethics attorney, Berlin is the author of Breaking Big Money’s Grip on America (See breakingbigmoneysgrip.com.), the founder of New Mexicans for Money Out of Politics, a former U.S. Institute of Peace fellow, and the founder and former executive director of The Trinity Forum for International Security and Conflict Resolution. He can be reached at breakingbigmoneysgrip@gmail.com.

Subscribe to this blog at https://breakingbigmoneysgrip.com/my-blog-3/. Join the movement to revive our democracy. Together we can save the soul of America.

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[1] https://www.yahoo.com/news/carveouts-alaska-tax-breaks-whalers-210111943.html?fr=yhssrp_catchall; https://www.yahoo.com/news/senate-republicans-sneak-wild-rule-131807906.html

[2] https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/supreme-court-nationwide-injunction

[3] https://www.mobilize.us/nokings/event/803953/?utm_source=email&utm_medium=_20250702link4