Small daily acts of resistance 2025 edition

[Kris]

I sent some emails to my reps/senators. I know calls are better, but I have been paralyzed trying to get myself to do the calls. This helped me break that barrier. My friend pushed me into it by reminding me that "If it's worth doing, it's worth doing poorly." I'll try to work up to doing calls, but emails are better than nothing.

Psychology is weird. I can't explain why this has been giving me so much trouble.

I'm attending a meeting tonight to try to do some volunteer research for a local democrats group.

Do you have the 5 Calls app. If not, download it on your phone. It makes calling so much easier.

Also, I am a fellow phone-phobe, and in my experience, I usually get sent straight to voice mail. It still counts as calling if you leave a message.

[Tasse]

I do have the 5calls app. It wasn't even exactly the calling that was wigging me out--I think it was related to perfectionism. There's so much I want to say, and I can't say it all at once, and it got overwhelming. Procrastinating because I can't do it PERFECTLY so I might as well avoid it entirely.

Doing the emails helped shake me out of that a bit. I emailed about one topic (Ukraine), and it made me want to address another topic next time, and I can see more clearly how to break the task into chunks.

It's been a hectic and anxious few weeks in my personal life as well, so some brain functions just haven't been fully online. I am hopefully coming out of that period now.

[La Bibliotecaria Feroz]

I do have the 5calls app. It wasn't even exactly the calling that was wigging me out--I think it was related to perfectionism. There's so much I want to say, and I can't say it all at once, and it got overwhelming. Procrastinating because I can't do it PERFECTLY so I might as well avoid it entirely.

Doing the emails helped shake me out of that a bit. I emailed about one topic (Ukraine), and it made me want to address another topic next time, and I can see more clearly how to break the task into chunks.

It's been a hectic and anxious few weeks in my personal life as well, so some brain functions just haven't been fully online. I am hopefully coming out of that period now.

Woo hoo!

People say that calling is more effective, BUT - it's okay if that is not something you have to give! And when I emailed my senator's office I received an on-topic form letter reply, suggesting that they are at least sort of logging those emails by topic at at least some of those offices.

I've also been really struggling with anxiety lately so I feel you. This week is feeling better.

[Fru-Gal]

Made my calls to Congress today, thanks to reminders on this thread.

[LifeHappens]

Snail mailed a public records request to DOGE to see how they are using my personal data:
https://jamieraskin.com/doge-privacy-act-requests/

[Kris]

Snail mailed a public records request to DOGE to see how they are using my personal data:
https://jamieraskin.com/doge-privacy-act-requests/

Thanks for this. I’ll do it as well, and urge everyone I know to.

[RetiredAt63]

As a Canadian, can I ask a favour here that will also hopefully benefit you?

When you do these calls, could you mention:
1. the tariffs are a trade war started by Trump and you think it is folly.  Also immoral and illegal, breaking a trade agreement with his allies and trade partners that he himself negotiated and signed in his previous term.
2. drop the talk and threats of annexing Canada and Greenland.  If he does this, it is an illegal war and an immoral war, and puts the Armed Forces to choose between obeying their Commander in Chief but obeying unlawful orders, or disobeying unlawful orders and not obeying their CIC.

Seriously, Trump talks as if he is sort of joking but he sounds just like Putin did before invading Ukraine, and we here in Canada are understandably upset and nervous about this.  But don't frame it like that, because they obviously don't care about damaging international relations.  Frame it as putting the Armed Forces between a rock and a hard place*.  Which is true, just not the whole picture.

* I doubt they would understand a reference to Scylla and Charybdis.

[Fru-Gal]

Made my calls to Congress again.

My number one issue has been the threats against our allies. It’s such bullshit that we are letting this threat be normalized, sanewashed and camouflaged with Trump’s Orwellian language.

If someone (with a massive military) tells you they will take over your house because it’s not a real house, not really yours, you depend on them, you owe them, you’re less than them, or whatever bullshit reason they give, we can’t normalize this by saying, well, they didn’t say they were gonna invade or hurt us. I guess they really want my house. They just said it would belong to them now.

Fuck this shit. It’s been a fucking threat of invasion from day one and ridiculous that anyone would say otherwise. 100% Putin playbook.

[RetiredAt63]

Made my calls to Congress again.

My number one issue has been the threats against our allies. It’s such bullshit that we are letting this threat be normalized, sanewashed and camouflaged with Trump’s Orwellian language.

If someone (with a massive military) tells you they will take over your house because it’s not a real house, not really yours, you depend on them, you owe them, you’re less than them, or whatever bullshit reason they give, we can’t normalize this by saying, well, they didn’t say they were gonna invade or hurt us. I guess they really want my house. They just said it would belong to them now.

Fuck this shit. It’s been a fucking threat of invasion from day one and ridiculous that anyone would say otherwise. 100% Putin playbook.

Thank you.

The entitlement is astonishing.

I saw  a clip from what I would guess is Congress with the new US ambassador to Canada.   He stated we are a sovereign state.  The rep questioning him also stated we are sovereign,  not a US state.  So there is a bit of clarity.   It is a shame that state in terms of a US state sounds similar to a sovereign state.  The US needs to have provinces, then there would be less confusion.  Or they should be saying sovereign nation.

[Poundwise]

Left messages on Sen Gillibrand and Schumer's voicemail urging them to vote NO on the continuing resolution for MAGA's dirty budget. We must NOT write Musk a blank check!

[Kris]

Left messages on Sen Gillibrand and Schumer's voicemail urging them to vote NO on the continuing resolution for MAGA's dirty budget. We must NOT write Musk a blank check!

Yes! If your Senators are Democrats, please call them tonight and leave a voice message demanding they vote no on cloture!

[Tasse]

Wrote some more emails today about how NIH cuts threaten my job. (My senators are Republicans, so I scolded them about voting for a budget while allowing their past budgets to be ignored.)

Major thanks to MMM for me not being especially worried about the job loss possibility, but I think it makes the message more compelling.

[merula]

Yes! If your Senators are Democrats, please call them tonight and leave a voice message demanding they vote no on cloture!

Thanks for the heads up, I checked quick and freaking Amy Klobuchar is undecided?! Do we all get more like our dads as we age???? (Niche Minnesota reference.)

I called and left a message.

[GuitarStv]

Made my calls to Congress again.

My number one issue has been the threats against our allies. It’s such bullshit that we are letting this threat be normalized, sanewashed and camouflaged with Trump’s Orwellian language.

If someone (with a massive military) tells you they will take over your house because it’s not a real house, not really yours, you depend on them, you owe them, you’re less than them, or whatever bullshit reason they give, we can’t normalize this by saying, well, they didn’t say they were gonna invade or hurt us. I guess they really want my house. They just said it would belong to them now.

Fuck this shit. It’s been a fucking threat of invasion from day one and ridiculous that anyone would say otherwise. 100% Putin playbook.

Thank you.

The entitlement is astonishing.

I saw  a clip from what I would guess is Congress with the new US ambassador to Canada.   He stated we are a sovereign state.  The rep questioning him also stated we are sovereign,  not a US state.  So there is a bit of clarity.   It is a shame that state in terms of a US state sounds similar to a sovereign state.  The US needs to have provinces, then there would be less confusion.  Or they should be saying sovereign nation.

Yeah, tell your government to stop negging Canada.  We're just not that into you.

[RetiredAt63]

Made my calls to Congress again.

My number one issue has been the threats against our allies. It’s such bullshit that we are letting this threat be normalized, sanewashed and camouflaged with Trump’s Orwellian language.

If someone (with a massive military) tells you they will take over your house because it’s not a real house, not really yours, you depend on them, you owe them, you’re less than them, or whatever bullshit reason they give, we can’t normalize this by saying, well, they didn’t say they were gonna invade or hurt us. I guess they really want my house. They just said it would belong to them now.

Fuck this shit. It’s been a fucking threat of invasion from day one and ridiculous that anyone would say otherwise. 100% Putin playbook.

Thank you.

The entitlement is astonishing.

I saw  a clip from what I would guess is Congress with the new US ambassador to Canada.   He stated we are a sovereign state.  The rep questioning him also stated we are sovereign,  not a US state.  So there is a bit of clarity.   It is a shame that state in terms of a US state sounds similar to a sovereign state.  The US needs to have provinces, then there would be less confusion.  Or they should be saying sovereign nation.

Yeah, tell your government to stop negging Canada.  We're just not that into you.

We need a stalker do-not-contact minimum distance order.

[Tasse]

Some info on the public comment period for several anti-trans changes to passport policies: https://transequality.org/news/freedom-fly-passport-access-action

I personally know a trans guy with a legal name and gender change who applied for an expedited passport after the election, only to receive it back recently with an "F" gender marker. I know other trans people who are afraid to apply for any similar documents because of reports of the documents they HAVE being confiscated.

My comments will be along the lines of "The purpose of an ID is to allow an official to confirm the person in front of them is who they say they are. This policy makes that harder, not easier."

[Kris]

This anti-trans shit is so fucking disgusting, what kind of a piece of shit do you have to be to agree with this?!

[LaineyAZ]

Made a bulk food purchase online directly with the manufacturer.  Avoided ordering via Amazon.  Pricing was nearly identical.

[jeninco]

Made a bulk food purchase online directly with the manufacturer.  Avoided ordering via Amazon.  Pricing was nearly identical.

Who did you order from?

[LaineyAZ]

Made a bulk food purchase online directly with the manufacturer.  Avoided ordering via Amazon.  Pricing was nearly identical.

Who did you order from?

It was a coffee manufacturer.   Given the ongoing effects of climate change along with the tariff situation, I'm stocking up.

[dragoncar]

It’s so obnoxious that manufacturers often charge more than Amazon/walmart.  Just had to buy gopher traps from the manufacturer and it was a few bucks more… I get they need to establish an MSRP or whatever but ugh

[Rural]

Some info on the public comment period for several anti-trans changes to passport policies: https://transequality.org/news/freedom-fly-passport-access-action

Done, and I also pointed out that these changes would actually infringe on states' rights, since they're the ones who sey policy for birth certificates and name changes. It's a stupid argument, but I figure it might carry some weight with some of the republicans.

[Tasse]

I wrote to my state rep about a concerning bill targeting higher education in Ohio.

I've heard he's kind of nuts, so I'm not hopeful, but what else can I do...

[midweststache]

A White House Executive Order on late Friday (3/14) is effectively shuttering a number of tiny government programs and initiatives, including the IMLS (Institute for Museum and Library Services), which provides federal funding that has a huge impact on Native and Rural libraries, as well as funds research and initiatives in library spaces across the county.

I know we Mustachians love libraries, so please consider joining the ALA to send your elected officials a message to support the IMLS (https://app.oneclickpolitics.com/campaign-page?cid=9CyapZUB9sorxFLO4J0c&lang=en) and sign EveryLibrary's petition to stop those funding cuts (https://action.everylibrary.org/eoimls2025), both of which I've done.
 

[rantk81]

Some info on the public comment period for several anti-trans changes to passport policies: https://transequality.org/news/freedom-fly-passport-access-action

Done, and I also pointed out that these changes would actually infringe on states' rights, since they're the ones who sey policy for birth certificates and name changes. It's a stupid argument, but I figure it might carry some weight with some of the republicans.

The republicans only care about "states rights" insofar as when they can apply it to impose their beliefs on others.  Same as being "deficit hawks" only when they aren't controlling all branches of government.

[Tasse]

A topic to call about, if anyone is looking for one: https://aidsunited.org/action/policy-action-center/protect-cdc/

CDC’s Division of HIV Prevention Is Under Attack! We Must Fight Back

We have heard very unfortunate news that there is an effort underfoot to completely eliminate CDC’s Division of HIV Prevention as quickly as within the next 24 hours.

We must take action now. There is no time to waste.

As part of the Trump administration’s efforts to cut programs and personnel, they’re eliminating any chance we have to end the HIV epidemic in the U.S. by dismantling critical prevention efforts. This unconscionable decision would place all of our progress in reducing new HIV transmissions at risk and fly in the face of decades of bipartisan federal HIV policy, including the Ending the HIV Epidemic Initiative that President Trump created.

More details and sample script at the link.

[Poundwise]

I joined a protest in front of the local Tesla dealership.  It was great, about 20-30 people, and lots of supportive honks and thumbs up from passersby.  I only regret that I didn't get more people to go; there were two journalists there but they looked disappointed with the turnout and I didn't find any articles about us later.

[GuitarStv]

US on track to lose Democratic status by next year - https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/trump-democracy-report-1.7486317


Small acts are not enough.  Ready yourself to fight for real or lose everything.

[Tasse]

Small acts are not enough.  Ready yourself to fight for real or lose everything.

I truly don't know what type of action this comment is supposed to inspire me to. If I knew how to "fight for real" beyond contacting my representatives and supporting protests, I'd be doing it already.

[LifeHappens]

Small acts are not enough.  Ready yourself to fight for real or lose everything.

I truly don't know what type of action this comment is supposed to inspire me to. If I knew how to "fight for real" beyond contacting my representatives and supporting protests, I'd be doing it already.

I think some people are frustrated there hasn't been a "Big March" yet. They want to see millions on the streets. IMO that day is coming, but in the meantime there are many, many people doing many, many things every day. Just like compound interest, it adds up.

[Tasse]

I said this in another thread already, but I heard the founders of Indivisible talk about the need for a "Big March" by saying: the worst thing they can do is call for a big event and have it flop. That kills all momentum, it tells the administration they don't have to take us seriously, etc. The big event has to be built up to by successively bigger grassroots events.

To make that happen, we do need to be attending the smaller events and helping build the momentum toward a bigger one. This is not something I've been doing so far just due to scheduling conflicts, but it's something I want to do more of going forward.

[LifeHappens]

Totally agree, Tasse. Things are building.

[GuitarStv]

It's unbelievably frustrating to watch as Trump ignores all constitutional limits on his power and entrenches himself further daily on the one side.  On the other side I see a bunch of people trying to play by rules that no longer exist -attending town halls with representatives who are clearly uninterested in representing voters, sending emails and texts to the same, or occasionally standing with a handful of people with signs at street corners.  It's like you have two groups playing paintball but one of them is running around with real guns . . . and the folks with the paint are arguing that if they just tag enough on the other side they'll come out OK in the end.  The asymmetry of capability has never been so stark, and things don't seem to be building anywhere near as quickly as necessary.

This is compounded by the fact that the Democrats absolutely should have shut down the government rather than completely abdicating responsibility as an opposition.  They gave up the only leverage that they have, and in return got nothing.  It's beyond insane.  Would some Americans have been hurt by the government shut down?  Yep.  Will more Americans be hurt by appeasing Trump?  Yep.

[Tasse]

I agree with all of that, but it still doesn't have any suggestions for what more I can do as an individual. And it's fine if you don't have them, but your previous post seemed like a call to action to me.

[Kris]

It's unbelievably frustrating to watch as Trump ignores all constitutional limits on his power and entrenches himself further daily on the one side.  On the other side I see a bunch of people trying to play by rules that no longer exist -attending town halls with representatives who are clearly uninterested in representing voters, sending emails and texts to the same, or occasionally standing with a handful of people with signs at street corners.  It's like you have two groups playing paintball but one of them is running around with real guns . . . and the folks with the paint are arguing that if they just tag enough on the other side they'll come out OK in the end.  The asymmetry of capability has never been so stark, and things don't seem to be building anywhere near as quickly as necessary.

This is compounded by the fact that the Democrats absolutely should have shut down the government rather than completely abdicating responsibility as an opposition.  They gave up the only leverage that they have, and in return got nothing.  It's beyond insane.  Would some Americans have been hurt by the government shut down?  Yep.  Will more Americans be hurt by appeasing Trump?  Yep.

Dude, I 100% agree with you. Can you suggest things that individuals should be doing that would be more impactful?

[RetiredAt63]

It's unbelievably frustrating to watch as Trump ignores all constitutional limits on his power and entrenches himself further daily on the one side.  On the other side I see a bunch of people trying to play by rules that no longer exist -attending town halls with representatives who are clearly uninterested in representing voters, sending emails and texts to the same, or occasionally standing with a handful of people with signs at street corners.  It's like you have two groups playing paintball but one of them is running around with real guns . . . and the folks with the paint are arguing that if they just tag enough on the other side they'll come out OK in the end.  The asymmetry of capability has never been so stark, and things don't seem to be building anywhere near as quickly as necessary.

This is compounded by the fact that the Democrats absolutely should have shut down the government rather than completely abdicating responsibility as an opposition.  They gave up the only leverage that they have, and in return got nothing.  It's beyond insane.  Would some Americans have been hurt by the government shut down?  Yep.  Will more Americans be hurt by appeasing Trump?  Yep.

Dude, I 100% agree with you. Can you suggest things that individuals should be doing that would be more impactful?

I'm not sure asking Canadians that is useful.   We don't intimately understand your system so we don't know what tactics will work. 

Offhand, for little things, support Canada, and Mexico, and the EU, however you can. Buy our goods instead instead of American products. Holiday internationally.  Maybe fly multiple flags?  But basically our economies are taking a hit,  so economic support helps keep us going.

Canadians are trying to hit the US economy (especially red states, and yes we know blue voters also live there) hard and fast in hopes that your government realizes this was a bad idea.  And we are increasing our military in case your government escalates.

We internationally would all be very happy if this policy disappears.  Sadly for the US, the more other countries realign trade the more the US will not be seen as a good trade partner for a long long time.

[Fru-Gal]

It's unbelievably frustrating to watch as Trump ignores all constitutional limits on his power and entrenches himself further daily on the one side.  On the other side I see a bunch of people trying to play by rules that no longer exist -attending town halls with representatives who are clearly uninterested in representing voters, sending emails and texts to the same, or occasionally standing with a handful of people with signs at street corners.  It's like you have two groups playing paintball but one of them is running around with real guns . . . and the folks with the paint are arguing that if they just tag enough on the other side they'll come out OK in the end.  The asymmetry of capability has never been so stark, and things don't seem to be building anywhere near as quickly as necessary.

This is compounded by the fact that the Democrats absolutely should have shut down the government rather than completely abdicating responsibility as an opposition.  They gave up the only leverage that they have, and in return got nothing.  It's beyond insane.  Would some Americans have been hurt by the government shut down?  Yep.  Will more Americans be hurt by appeasing Trump?  Yep.

Dude, I 100% agree with you. Can you suggest things that individuals should be doing that would be more impactful?

I saw a clip of Schumer on THe View where he was absolutely reprimanded for his (in)action, but he defended it well, saying that while the budget was harmful, it would not have been as harmful as a shutdown would be. I am no expert one way or the other. But I had called Schumer two times prior asking for him to vote for the shutdown.

But I read this as evidence that all our phone calls and emails are WORKING! Our reps are having to justify their actions. My local congress reps were also making statements about Schumer and I really don’t think they would have if it weren’t for all the calls.

Politicians are a weird breed. No matter who you elect, if you don’t remind them that you’re watching, they either do nothing or do the opposite of what they said they’ll do. I can see that in my local politics which are a mess, filled with useless, performative people. Then you have the ones who think they’ve got it all figured out, and it’s easy. LOL.

No matter what, we must elect, then manage these people. Remind them they are civil SERVANTS. Democracy requires a modicum of participation.

[Tasse]

I'm not sure asking Canadians that is useful.   We don't intimately understand your system so we don't know what tactics will work.

Totally. I don't really expect any of us to know how to fix this. But the request for suggestions is in response to Steve's post implying we ought to be doing more ("Small acts are not enough.") If he's got specific suggestions, I would genuinely love to hear them. If not, then it feels a bit like being booed from the sidelines. Everybody in this thread agrees we have a massive problem, and we are all trying to do something about it.

[NorCal]

It's unbelievably frustrating to watch as Trump ignores all constitutional limits on his power and entrenches himself further daily on the one side.  On the other side I see a bunch of people trying to play by rules that no longer exist -attending town halls with representatives who are clearly uninterested in representing voters, sending emails and texts to the same, or occasionally standing with a handful of people with signs at street corners.  It's like you have two groups playing paintball but one of them is running around with real guns . . . and the folks with the paint are arguing that if they just tag enough on the other side they'll come out OK in the end.  The asymmetry of capability has never been so stark, and things don't seem to be building anywhere near as quickly as necessary.

This is compounded by the fact that the Democrats absolutely should have shut down the government rather than completely abdicating responsibility as an opposition.  They gave up the only leverage that they have, and in return got nothing.  It's beyond insane.  Would some Americans have been hurt by the government shut down?  Yep.  Will more Americans be hurt by appeasing Trump?  Yep.

Dude, I 100% agree with you. Can you suggest things that individuals should be doing that would be more impactful?

I saw a clip of Schumer on THe View where he was absolutely reprimanded for his (in)action, but he defended it well, saying that while the budget was harmful, it would not have been as harmful as a shutdown would be. I am no expert one way or the other. But I had called Schumer two times prior asking for him to vote for the shutdown.

But I read this as evidence that all our phone calls and emails are WORKING! Our reps are having to justify their actions. My local congress reps were also making statements about Schumer and I really don’t think they would have if it weren’t for all the calls.

Politicians are a weird breed. No matter who you elect, if you don’t remind them that you’re watching, they either do nothing or do the opposite of what they said they’ll do. I can see that in my local politics which are a mess, filled with useless, performative people. Then you have the ones who think they’ve got it all figured out, and it’s easy. LOL.

No matter what, we must elect, then manage these people. Remind them they are civil SERVANTS. Democracy requires a modicum of participation.

They assume voters aren't paying attention unless voters tell them otherwise.  Which is usually true.  Hundreds of pieces of legislation pass most years.  How many people can only name one or two?  How many people can name zero?  How many people don't even know who their representatives are?

They usually vote with what they think their voters will want unless they start hearing from a lot of people.

I once heard a representative say that every phone call or email they get probably represents the views of about 15,000 voters.

Calling your representative about lesser known bills has a HUGE impact.  If you're one of three people calling about a small bill than your voice means a lot. 

Calls to Republican representatives are particularly powerful now, even if it doesn't seem obvious.  Republican representatives are doing the mental math of whether they are more scared of Elon Musk's primary threats or if they're more afraid of their own voters.  The craziness they tolerate is directly tied to how pissed their constituents are.

[GuitarStv]

I'm not sure asking Canadians that is useful.   We don't intimately understand your system so we don't know what tactics will work.

Totally. I don't really expect any of us to know how to fix this. But the request for suggestions is in response to Steve's post implying we ought to be doing more ("Small acts are not enough.") If he's got specific suggestions, I would genuinely love to hear them. If not, then it feels a bit like being booed from the sidelines. Everybody in this thread agrees we have a massive problem, and we are all trying to do something about it.

I've been thinking hard about this.

The problem is that Trump has now decided to order his administration to ignore the law, and is regularly breaking laws.  Playing by the rules when fighting someone not beholden to them is doomed to failure.  The country is currently undergoing a constitutional crisis.  There are limited options that civilians have in this sort of situation.

The two that seem like they may be effective:
Even large and coordinated marches in the street are not enough - we saw massive BLM protest marches after the George Floyd thing, and they amounted to little real change of any kind when all was said and done.  What the BLM protests showed us though, is that law enforcement will seriously hurt and kill many in the protests (including journalists) with impunity.  The only peaceful way that I can see to handle this problem is a going to be massive civil disobedience/strike.  Enough damage to the economy cannot be ignored by those who profit the most by it.  This seems to be the way that things are very, very slowly headed . . . but Americans are currently a fractured and individualistic people.  This would require large scale coordination of a sort that hasn't been seen since the civil rights movement of the 60s.

Assassination of Trump seems like a reasonably safe option for the country.  He is Fuhrer of the Republican party, and there is no obvious successor to take his place.  Sure, Vance would step into power and continue pushing the government into bad directions, but the stranglehold that the cult of Trump has over Republicans would be broken and I strongly suspect that infighting would render the coordinated coalition to subvert democracy much less effective.  There is a lot of knock on bad that would go along with this of course.  I see this as a slim/outside possibility at best anyway.  Trump knows he's unpopular and the last attempt on his life failed - he's certainly going to be much more careful now.

If the small things that you're doing are working towards one of those two goals, then they're probably helpful.

[RetiredAt63]

I'm seeing online commentary about trump's mental decline.  It is becoming obvious he has some sort of dementia.

Maybe pushing your reps to demand a thorough full health evaluation? Isn't there something in your constitution about forcing a president to step down for health reasons?

You have to push.  It came out years later that Reagan was also declining mentally, his wife and staff concealed it.  Trump's staff are also hiding his health status.

Of course then you are stuck with Vance.

[Tasse]

The only peaceful way that I can see to handle this problem is a going to be massive civil disobedience/strike.  Enough damage to the economy cannot be ignored by those who profit the most by it.  This seems to be the way that things are very, very slowly headed . . . but Americans are currently a fractured and individualistic people.  This would require large scale coordination of a sort that hasn't been seen since the civil rights movement of the 60s.

I'd quit my job today if I thought it would help. As an employee of an NIH-funded research lab, though, striking kinda feels like doing their dirty work for them. But I'll support other strikes and boycotts if I can.

I'm not going to address your second suggestion.

Maybe pushing your reps to demand a thorough full health evaluation? Isn't there something in your constitution about forcing a president to step down for health reasons?

The cabinet can force a president to step down. Those are Trump's handpicked people (though confirmed by the Senate), not elected officials. I suppose congresspeople could informally pressure the cabinet to invoke it, but they don't have an official way to force it. That seems like the longest of long shots to me.

[Kris]

It's unbelievably frustrating to watch as Trump ignores all constitutional limits on his power and entrenches himself further daily on the one side.  On the other side I see a bunch of people trying to play by rules that no longer exist -attending town halls with representatives who are clearly uninterested in representing voters, sending emails and texts to the same, or occasionally standing with a handful of people with signs at street corners.  It's like you have two groups playing paintball but one of them is running around with real guns . . . and the folks with the paint are arguing that if they just tag enough on the other side they'll come out OK in the end.  The asymmetry of capability has never been so stark, and things don't seem to be building anywhere near as quickly as necessary.

This is compounded by the fact that the Democrats absolutely should have shut down the government rather than completely abdicating responsibility as an opposition.  They gave up the only leverage that they have, and in return got nothing.  It's beyond insane.  Would some Americans have been hurt by the government shut down?  Yep.  Will more Americans be hurt by appeasing Trump?  Yep.

Dude, I 100% agree with you. Can you suggest things that individuals should be doing that would be more impactful?

I saw a clip of Schumer on THe View where he was absolutely reprimanded for his (in)action, but he defended it well, saying that while the budget was harmful, it would not have been as harmful as a shutdown would be. I am no expert one way or the other. But I had called Schumer two times prior asking for him to vote for the shutdown.

But I read this as evidence that all our phone calls and emails are WORKING! Our reps are having to justify their actions. My local congress reps were also making statements about Schumer and I really don’t think they would have if it weren’t for all the calls.

Politicians are a weird breed. No matter who you elect, if you don’t remind them that you’re watching, they either do nothing or do the opposite of what they said they’ll do. I can see that in my local politics which are a mess, filled with useless, performative people. Then you have the ones who think they’ve got it all figured out, and it’s easy. LOL.

No matter what, we must elect, then manage these people. Remind them they are civil SERVANTS. Democracy requires a modicum of participation.

Yes, I agree that the pressure on politicians is doing some good. Schumer is on a CYA tour now because so many Dems are asking for him to step down. And for the record, I absolutely think his reasoning is bullshit, as do many other people, including Nancy Pelosi and Hakeem Jeffries. He absolutely should step down.

[Gremlin]

Calls to Republican representatives are particularly powerful now, even if it doesn't seem obvious.  Republican representatives are doing the mental math of whether they are more scared of Elon Musk's primary threats or if they're more afraid of their own voters.  The craziness they tolerate is directly tied to how pissed their constituents are.

I may be an outsider looking in, but I disagree.  I think many of the Republican representatives know that they will never again be answerable to the voters.  The flagrancy with which your laws and constitution are being shitcanned speaks to this.  The regime is ignoring every rule of law and every clause of the constitution it dislikes.  Why would it turn around in 2026/2028 and subject themselves to the law and constitution and risk giving up even an ounce of power they have seized?  It just ain't gonna happen.

I think the Republicans who understand this know that their choices lie between being Trump's faithful lapdog and accidentally falling out of a window, Russia-style.  Self-preservation, not from a political perspective but something more fundamental, is now their most major objective.

I wouldn't be surprised if many of the Democrats who have been criticised for not pushing harder believe this to be a reality and are also genuinely fearful for their lives.

I think @GuitarStv is actually on the money in terms of viable options.  Totalitarian brutalism can persist for an incredibly long time.

[Fru-Gal]

When Trump first came into office this term, there were a number of democratic reps who expressed fear for their lives due to specific threats they were getting. It is my impression that this has diminished a lot. People are finding their strength, realizing that this is not what they voted for and not happy with the violation of basic norms. these packed Townhall meetings in Republican areas are proof of this.

It’s obvious that focused protest is what makes a difference. That’s why the Tesla boycott is working so effectively.

[Gremlin]

When Trump first came into office this term, there were a number of democratic reps who expressed fear for their lives due to specific threats they were getting. It is my impression that this has diminished a lot. People are finding their strength, realizing that this is not what they voted for and not happy with the violation of basic norms. these packed Townhall meetings in Republican areas are proof of this.

It’s obvious that focused protest is what makes a difference. That’s why the Tesla boycott is working so effectively.

I genuinely hope you're right and I'm wrong.

[GuitarStv]

I'm not going to address your second suggestion.

It feels weird to even be mentioning it.  Under normal circumstances, I'd be completely against it.  In fact when there was an assassination attempt on Trump's life during campaigning, I was completely against it.  But when rule of law is no longer in effect it severely limits legal means that exist to deal with a problem.

[Poundwise]

I said this in another thread already, but I heard the founders of Indivisible talk about the need for a "Big March" by saying: the worst thing they can do is call for a big event and have it flop. That kills all momentum, it tells the administration they don't have to take us seriously, etc. The big event has to be built up to by successively bigger grassroots events.

To make that happen, we do need to be attending the smaller events and helping build the momentum toward a bigger one. This is not something I've been doing so far just due to scheduling conflicts, but it's something I want to do more of going forward.

The right thing to do is to do like the South Koreans did... have protests in the same place at the same time every week. This built up over time until they got huge.

[Poundwise]

Oh yeah, here's another thing we could do.  Somebody handed out a bunch of American flags at the last rally I was at.  They said that we need to reclaim patriotism while the other side is playing around with black and grey flags, Gadsden flags, Trump flags, and Nazi flags. I think this is a good look.

[LaineyAZ]

I said this in another thread already, but I heard the founders of Indivisible talk about the need for a "Big March" by saying: the worst thing they can do is call for a big event and have it flop. That kills all momentum, it tells the administration they don't have to take us seriously, etc. The big event has to be built up to by successively bigger grassroots events.

To make that happen, we do need to be attending the smaller events and helping build the momentum toward a bigger one. This is not something I've been doing so far just due to scheduling conflicts, but it's something I want to do more of going forward.

I'm thinking the same thing:  if everyone knows to go to the state capitol (or wherever) every Saturday morning at 9am, it's an easy way for everyone to connect and increase the visible protest movement.

The right thing to do is to do like the South Koreans did... have protests in the same place at the same time every week. This built up over time until they got huge.