Looking at the nonstop train wreck that is the presidency of Donald Trump, it’s easy to become despondent.
The damage that Trump is doing to our nation is profound and it will be long-lasting. From his appointment of extremists to the federal bench, to his casual shattering of political and behavioral norms, to his foolish courtship of conflict in Iran, to his attacks on efforts to combat climate change and protect clean air and water, to his encouragement of bigotry and violence, Trump is creating a legacy that will take decades to erase.
But it would be a mistake to conclude that nothing good has or will come of Trump’s tenure in office, however long (or short) it may be.
Trump’s utter incompetence at governing has stymied, or at least slowed, his mean-spirited agenda. He is seen as a buffoon, not just in his own country (where his closest associates use terms like “idiot,” “dope,” and “fucking moron” to describe him), but throughout the world. Republicans, including the always-odious House Speaker Paul Ryan, are jumping ship. Trump’s role in wide-ranging misconduct could lead to his impeachment and even ouster from office.
All of this is good news.
Let’s take a moment to reflect on some positive things about Trump’s presidency. Here’s a top ten list:
1. He’s Brought Us Together
Trump is the Great Uniter . . . of the majority of Americans who oppose his foul reign.
From coast to coast, political progressives are motivated and united, focused on defending shared values now under attack. There are burgeoning movements working together in support of immigrant protections, LGBTQ rights, police accountability, sensible gun restrictions, sane environmental policies, and an end to sexual harassment. The connections among these issues have never been clearer. Trump is the Great Uniter . . . of the majority of Americans who oppose his foul reign.
2. People Are Getting Involved
There’s nothing like having a morally bankrupt, sociopathic liar with his tiny finger on the nuclear button to remind people of their civic obligations. Trump’s presidency has galvanized the left and made people realize they must do more for their democracy than just vote.
“Tens of millions of Americans have joined protests and rallies in the past two years, their activism often driven by admiration or outrage toward President Trump,” reported The Washington Post, citing a poll it helped commission. “One in five Americans have protested in the streets or participated in political rallies since the beginning of 2016. Of those, 19 percent said they had never before joined a march or a political gathering.”
3. Public Opinion Is on Our Side
A recent poll by The Economist/YouGov found that more than half the U.S. population feels the nation is on “the wrong track” and less than a third say it’s “headed in the right direction.” More people disapprove of Trump’s handling of the economy and international relations than are in favor. Nearly half think transgender people should be able to serve openly in the military, compared to just 34 percent against. And all this was from a sample group in which 60 percent of respondents identified as “moderate” or “conservative,” compared to just 25 percent “liberal.”
And, of course, huge majorities of the American public support universal background checks on gun sales and a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. And most Americans want action on climate change, oppose a border wall, and favor protection for “Dreamers”—undocumented immigrants brought to this country as children.
4. Some Presidential Abuses Are Being Kept in Check
To date, three federal judges have rejected Trump’s cruel effort to end the Obama-era program that protects Dreamers from deportation, rejecting arguments that it is somehow unlawful; even the U.S. Supreme Court refused to intervene. In April, the high court struck down another law meant to spur immigrant deportations, with Trump’s hand-picked justice, Neil Gorsuch, joining the court’s liberals in declaring that the law was impermissibly vague.
Of course, Gorsuch is an ideologue who will have the President’s back most of the time. But it still matters, in some small way, whether laws are constitutional. Hurray for that. The courts might even restrict the profligate abuse of partisan redistricting.
5. Trump Is Heading for a Fall
Whether or not special counsel Robert Mueller is allowed to complete his probe, here’s what we already know: The Russian government intervened to sway the 2016 election in Trump’s favor. Crooked Donald publicly urged the Russians to help him beat Hillary Clinton by hacking emails, which it had already done. A cadre of high-ranking Trump campaign staffers met with Russian operatives to get dirt on Clinton. Russians conducted what The New York Times called “an audacious operation spreading disinformation and propaganda to disrupt American democracy,” drawing more than a dozen criminal indictments. A handful of the President’s associates have also been indicted for felony misconduct, and some have pleaded guilty.
Crooked Donald has, at every stage in the process, attacked the integrity of the investigators and broadcast his willingness to obstruct justice, egged on by his allies at Fox News and in Congress. No one thinks there’s any chance that he could answer Mueller’s questions without committing perjury. If Trump does shut down the inquiry, that will spark a constitutional crisis that pits him against a broad swath of the American public and possibly even some Republicans in Congress.
Trump’s presidency has galvanized the left and made people realize they must do more for their democracy than just vote.
6. Long Live the Free Press!
No President has done more than Trump to disparage the news media, even labeling it “the enemy of the American people,” and no campaign of press vilification has failed so spectacularly. In fact, Trump has underscored the key role of journalism as a check on power.
Thomas Jefferson said he would rather have “newspapers without a government” than “a government without newspapers.” A free press—from The New York Times to MSNBC to The Progressive—is essential to a functioning democracy. As William T. Evjue, who founded The Capital Times newspaper in Madison and served in the 1930s as editor of The Progressive, memorably remarked, “Let the people have the truth and the freedom to discuss it and all will go well.”
7. The Evangelical Christian Right Has Been Exposed
The ranks of conservative Bible thumpers have always harbored hypocrites, but seldom has their perfidy been cast into such sharp relief. The back-stabbing, philandering, foul-mouthed hate-monger-in-chief still enjoys the evangelical community’s overwhelming support. Even after it came to light that Trump’s lawyer paid an adult film star $130,000 to keep mum about allegedly having had sex with Trump, a Washington Post-ABC News poll found that more than two-thirds of white evangelicals were standing by their man.
Here’s what Michael Steele, former chairman of the Republican National Committee, had to say to evangelicals in response: “Just shut the hell up and don’t ever preach to me about anything ever again. I don’t want to hear it. [Because] after telling me how to live my life, who to love, what to believe, what not to believe, what to do and what not to do . . . now you sit back and [say] the prostitutes don’t matter? The grabbing the you-know-what doesn’t matter? The outright behavior and lies don’t matter? Just shut up.”
8. The Left Has Allies on the Right
Yes, Virginia, there is such a thing as a principled conservative. While a distressing majority of Republican members of Congress have toadied up to the President, fearful of incurring the wrath of his supporters, an impressive number of conservatives are refusing to drink the Kool-Aid. This includes MSNBC commentators Michael Steele, Steve Schmidt, Nicolle Wallace, and Charlie Sykes, as well as columnists David Frum, Max Boot, Bill Kristol, Jonah Goldberg, Jennifer Rubin, and George Will.
When, as is likely, events compel a push to remove Trump from office, conservatives like these will make common cause with progressives. Yes, they will then go back to supporting bad policies, but that is their right under our system of government, should it survive.
9. Now We Know—Anything Is Possible
If Donald Trump can be elected President (albeit despite losing the popular vote) and Bernie Sanders can come within a Che Guevara mustache hair of winning the Democratic nomination, then clearly the contours of American democracy are more elastic than once believed.
Can we have single-payer universal health care? Yes we can!
Can we beat back the NRA and pass meaningful gun restrictions? Darn tootin’!
Can we insist on voting as a right and eliminate onerous requirements meant to shut people out? Why not? It’s our country!
10. Our Actions Now Are Vitally Important
Donald Trump’s presidency threatens our nation and the world. We all bear responsibility for undoing the disastrous mistake made by the minority of voters who put him in office. Whatever our politics, we can and must come together to throw this bum out. Standing by and hoping that others will act is a prescription for disaster.
Some moments in history create opportunities for heroism; this is one of them. We must do everything we can, individually and collectively, to bring Trumpism to its knees. Yes, that will require disobedience; yes, it will mean sacrifice; yes, there will be setbacks. But yes, we will prevail.
Trump will be defeated, and his presidency will end in disgrace. And we will emerge in a stronger position than ever to achieve progressive change.