I believe we are past the tipping point ... your opinion

[Bread and Circuses]

Dear DU Community,

We’ve all shared our thoughts, hopes and fears these past 6 weeks concerning the #47 president.

There are several patriotic elected officials who have stepped forward to speak from their hearts about the dangers that lie ahead for nation. Additionally, there are numerous lawsuits filed to stop the actions that are underway that have resulted in court rulings against the current administration.

Yet, the firehouse of threats, lies and new policies and actions continue daily.

The check on the Executive Branch lies with Congress. The courts can’t enforce their orders if this administration does not comply.

We agree that that is much more happening to dismantle the federal government that is unknown to us. Particularly, in the areas of control of the monetary and other assets of the US. Also, there is grave concern that both the military and DOJ is now in the hands of #47 Loyalists .

Even if everyone democratic senator and representative were to speak against the chaotic decisions and actions, I suggest that it will have little impact to stop the destruction of our shared values and government institutions.

It is the Republican Party and republican voters who have the most power to stop the seditious conspiracy that is underway. We are in the ebb and flow of a coup that is likely under the direction of a foreign adversary-Russia. With Russian agents in the White House who have gained access to much of the information about how the government works. This includes national security information and intelligence information of our allies.

As such, it appears ( I do hope that I’m wrong) that until the Republicans in Congress and their voters strongly oppose everything that is occurring under this administration…there is little chance that #47 will be stopped and removed.

Each day gives #47 and his many co-conspirators more time to consolidate power, discard those who do not pledge loyalty, and to continue ravaging the federal government.

I believe we are on the tipping point and it is wildly shaking , the nation can fall at any moment. Some, say that it has already happened and we don’t know it yet because much of the treasonous deeds have been done secretly.

I’d like to hear your thoughts. These are stressful conditions for us. Thanks

[elleng]

1. I tend to agree (generally,) The one 'caveat' would/could/might be if/when We the People

could/would drag 'congress' along with our developing thinking that tmp is a traitor in putin's hands.

[DSandra]

2. Is everyone really prepared for autocracy to takeover the world? That's what Russia is doing

Putin and Musk are funding far right parties around the world, threatening to crush the rest of the free world.

If you think you can live ok in an autocratic world, consider yourself lucky. Independent women and LGBT people get crushed in autocracies. And I hope you are ok with dear leader ordering you to do this or that and you have no choice but to comply.

If you don't want to live in a world like that, you must fight against this possible future.

[LS0999]

3. To me the USA died when the Felon was inaugurated

There's nothing United about these states anymore and the constitution is dying. It's just Amerika now, a country run by a gang of lawless pirates.

[markie]

6. sadly

you are correct

[unblock]

4. We are, for now, not a democracy.

We have a government that is clearly not acting in the general interests of the people. Their policies are generally unpopular and the people certainly didn't vote for musk's sledgehammer destruction of the government's full faith and credit.

Authoritarian regimes have numerous ways of winning elections, so even if one thinks the election was "fair", democracy isn't about having a fair election. Democracy is about having a government that acts in a way that is responsive to the people. This government is not.


The question is whether or not we can get it back or if we are stuck in an authoritarian model for decades.

[Bread and Circuses]

18. Indeed , that is the question...

It may be that we are under the rule of a despot for many years . It also seems that other countries could fall into the trap of the misinformation blasts that are now dominating social media.

[ZRB]

44. Some of the states are still democracies

So there's that. There really never was a Federal democracy. This era is making that clear (to non-minority groups; minorities have known about the non-Democracy for centuries).

[William769]

5. I'm right there with you on everything you said.

I honestly believe it's going to come down to a armed conflict. I also believe that people that have been mortal enemies politically speaking will come together & fight as one. I know that sounds strange, but it's what I believe.

I am retired LEO & have been around weapons all my life. I have a arsenal in my home that would make some preppers blush and I know I am not alone.

Here's hoping for the best but prepared for the worst.

[markie]

7. I have no arsenal

in my home.... (only the super soaker that my partner just bought me to scare off the squirrels at the bird feeder)

however, I will fight as I can

[Bread and Circuses]

39. Cool

[Bread and Circuses]

19. Agree.

I, too saves in Federal LEO for a short period when I was younger. I pray that there is a peaceful way forward. However, we must acknowledge that there may a long road ahead that may include brave people standing against the tyranny, as our founding fathers did. Thanks .

[tetedur]

8. I believe Trump thinks he is Dictator. He is acting as such. He is, of course, insane.

He has said out loud he is the law. He has the majority in the Legislative Branch under his thumb. He has much of the Judiciary under his thumb, not all but a substantial number of judges. Will he out and out refuse to obey court orders he doesn't like? Of course he will. The military will obey orders. This time he has a group of Cabinet and staff that are directing him, encouraging him and going along with his insanity.

We are 6 weeks in. By the time it is 6 months, we will either see riots in the streets or complete compliance. By then he may be rounding up political enemies and giving orders for demonstrators to be shot. The economy will have either collapsed or just be in utter chaos.

Until the Maga faithful feel his damage in their lives, they will excuse his insanity and blame anything that goes wrong on Biden. They will still believe the lies until they are really feeling pain that they can't blame on anyone but him. No one can convince them. They have to figure it out for themselves.

We are in a dictatorship.

[Bread and Circuses]

20. Yes, we are moving closer to tyranny....

… and farther away from democracy.

The Republican Party and their voters have emboldened #47. We know that he’s already starting to retaliate against his critics and I expect that he will spare no one from his vengeance.

I’ve been saying that by summer, we will loose our republic and personal liberties if he and all of his co-conspirators aren’t stopped, arrested, and imprisoned.

Thanks for your thoughts

[ReRe]

9. I don't know how much more the nation can take

Have been wondering myself when the bottom is going to fall out of the bucket. Wondering, worrying, tossing and turning. Indeed, how long until the inevitable. It's turning me into a manic-depressive, I'll tell you that.

[DSandra]

13. Putin wants to break America, revenge for the breakup of the USSR.

Make us experience the economic pain the Russians felt in the late 90's.

Of course this is my hunch, but Putin was a KGB agent during the Soviet Union era, and saw the pain that Russia went during the era after the breakup of the USSR.

[ReRe]

17. It's just that

I have been around for 3/4 of a Century and suddenly I have awoken in the Twilight Zone. Your explanation sounds like it fits at this point, DSandra. I'm having a particularly hard time at the moment dealing with this new reality show.
Hope we make it through the night.

[Bread and Circuses]

21. Yes, I've been bouncing around with my emotions too

[OldBaldy1701E]

10. Yup.

We're screwed.

And, we have no one to blame but ourselves (societally speaking).

Sure, you can blame some foreign power, but they would not have been able to get a foothold in this country without someone on the inside. And, that someone is an American (technically).

[Bread and Circuses]

22. Yes...the fact that our fellow Americans have opened the door to our enemies

[Crunchy Frog]

32. There have been domestic forces working towards this for decades,

when Putin was still just a low level KGB agent in East Germany, and before.

He's certainly taken advantage, but he didn't set things in motion.

[OldBaldy1701E]

35. Exactly. (n/t)

[Bread and Circuses]

36. Absolutely, starting with Ronnie Raygun....and the end of the Fairness Doctrine

[betsuni]

11. Democrats have "stepped forward" and warned about dangers and used the law all this time and fought

for the American people. Thank you, Democrats!

[Martin Eden]

12. Depending on court rulings, we are heading towards a Constitutional crisis

Trump has clearly exceeded presidential authority, ruling by decree (executive order) and putting an unelected "adviser" (Musk) in charge of dismantling agencies established and funded by Congress. There are laws against summarily firing government employees, and impoundment of funds is clearly illegal.

All of this will sooner or later come to a head when the Trump regime blatantly refuses to obey court orders. Currently they're delaying compliance with appeals or simply saying they are complying when in fact they are not.

Ultimately this will land in the Supreme Court, which is no sure thing given the "conservative" 6-3 majority.

We will know for sure if our Constiutional democracy has ended in dictatorship when court rulings are ignored with no means of enforcement or the Supreme Court (which has already placed the president above the law) rules in his favor.

Another test will be the 2026 midterm elections. I think there is a very real possibility that mass protests next year will give Trump an excuse to declare martial law and cancel the elections -- especially if it becomes apparent his Republican lapdogs will lose control of the House and/or Senate.

Dictators will do ANYTHING to hold onto power.

[Bread and Circuses]

25. Very succinct and accurate! And....

We can’t rely in SCOTUS or Congress to stop the coup.

I do expect he is looking for a reason to declare martial law and to impose a military force on us.

I am sure that we will go to the streets and blood will be shed. He may cancel elections and perhaps put Congress on hiatus. The cabal will put the locks on, they know this is their moment to steal it all.

Thanks

[intheflow]

14. Even if true, what good does it do to lament in this way?

It sounds defeatist. "Poor us! We're doomed" Yeah, so, what else is new? We can wallow in fear and despair or we can can take those feelings and turn them into direct action. Every grain of sand in their gears disrupts their plans.

Chinks in their armor are beginning. LTTEs, Tesla dealership protests, even some Republicans beginning to push back on Social Security and Medicaid cuts, cuts to veterans jobs, the complete Ukraine betrayal, tariffs, and exactly how much power Elon has. Elon himself is beginning to crack between DOGE, exploding rockets, Tesla stock crashing, and baby mamas reaching out to him on social media. I saw a screen shot of an X by Elon the other day that begged X users to post more beautiful and inspiring things, as if he hadn't been carefully cultivating it into a sewer since he bought it.

If you give into this despair, you are buying into their propaganda. The whole point of shock and awe is to overwhelm and depress any opposition. Fuck that! I invoke the power of our American ancestors to gather strength for this fight: the men who wrote the Constitution; the enslaved people who pushed back against their enslavers in a hundred different ways; the Union soldiers and Southern white sympathizers who fought against the Confederacy; the women who fought for equal rights; etc. None of these fights were easy, and many, many people felt despair in those situation. But they didn't give up, they continued to throw as much sand into the dehumanizing mechanisms as they could.

[Bread and Circuses]

37. You missed my point . Thanks

[Kaleva]

15. The tipping point won't be reached until there's an armed uprising

When there are wide spread reports of Patriots gunning down their Maga neighbors, then you'll know for sure

[Efilroft Sul]

16. The political process got us into this situation. It will not get us out of it.

Democratic leadership had two and a half months between the election loss and inauguration to prepare for this onslaught and proved to be incapable of rising to the moment. Trump daily is ripping out the load-bearing supports of government, leaving us wide open to Russian attacks upon our infrastructure, and stabbing allies in the back. Meanwhile, too many Democrats insist on seeking bipartisanship or maintaining proper decorum as befitting members of Congress. Pathetic.

We're dealing with a tyrant and fascist cult of personality that are not governing like they expect to be held to account in free and fair elections in 2026 and 2028. Sooner or later, they will push the people too far, and there will be a violent, well-deserved backlash in response. It might come from a lone wolf like Luigi, or it might be the masses finally realizing there's nothing else to lose but our lives in descending upon Washington. Removing this administration will not happen because of the political process, Democratic leadership, or the Constitution, but rather in spite of their failures.

I for one do not care to go back to the political status quo as it existed before the November 2024 election. What we had is gone, and I think it deserves to be gone. When the people get through the other side of this existential crisis, we need to build a form of government better than what was established in the tattered Constitution, one that doesn't have the same system exploits, so as to ensure a more perfect union that truly ensures liberty, justice, and equality for all.

[Crunchy Frog]

33. I agree except that I think the country is going to need to split up.

The divisions are too deep, and are at least somewhat geographical.

[Efilroft Sul]

34. I can't rule out that possibility.

The liberal political entities will need to provide for a strong defense and ruthlessly effective intelligence agencies. That's because the enemy MAGA nations ultimately will be imperialistic, with their own Putin analogs desiring to get the band back together again.

[Bread and Circuses]

38. Absolutely 💯 of what I feel ....and...

The Dems know since November, I can only hope they are working behind the scenes.

But, I am looking for a revamp of our current political model. Clearly it’s not appropriate for the current time period , because 77 million people voted for a despot and there is NO way to stop him if Congress is scared and playing hide and seek.

Your comment and thoughts are appreciated

[Efilroft Sul]

41. Thank you, kindly.

[Demovictory9]

23. that's the point. Musk is on a tear to disassemble US agencies because he wants to make sure they cant be reassembled.

[Bread and Circuses]

48. Yes....our country is being placed in the shredder....so awful

[Demovictory9]

24. the point of no return

[PufPuf23]

26. Already pass several tipping points from my perspective.

Accept that due to health highly unlikely to experience a turn to the better.

Worry that the USA will alienate long term friends and allies and then have Trump's buddies laughingly turn on USA.

Ultimately the people of USA need to address our problems and the will and desire and awareness appear lacking in the near future.

What Trump breaks will be much harder to fix than the destruction.

Privatization is a one-way street.

[Bread and Circuses]

47. I understand....i remain hopeful....

And do recognize that the Republican have blown several guardrails and we may already be under a dictatorship. I’m trying to be careful with my posts, and need other opinions to help me sort it all out.

My thanks

[sinkingfeeling]

27. There will be no going back. No normal again. The reputation, trust in and

belief in Anerica that has exited since the end of WWII is gone. Almost all advances in civil rights and equally are gone. The brilliant expertise of our civil service, scientists, and education is being eliminated. The United States of America I was born into and believed in is gone forever.

[Bread and Circuses]

46. Yes, this seems more likely....

To happen the longer #47 occupies the White House and malevolent forces have free reign.

[waterwatcher123]

28. No - we are only defeated if we act defeated ourselves.

We have no choice but to fight this hostile takeover of our country. The minute these people convince you fighting is futile, and you agree, then they have won. Most of this battle is psychological. In fact, the whole shock and awe process of trying to overwhelm you (flood the zone) is all about getting you to a state where fighting seems futile. The tide is turning right now with lots of people turning out at these town halls and turning out to see an 83-year-old man give lectures on oligarchy. If Bernie can fight on, then the rest can do it as well. These MAGA people are going to be the ones running before too long. So, fight with every fiber in your body and do not listen to the naysayers who tell you it is over (it is never over until you decide it is).

Call your elected officials, write editorials, turn out for rallies, comment on everything they propose (here is one place where you can comment now). The Trump cronies want to repeal the rules for the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). This is one of the bedrock environmental laws that require federal programs and actions to disclose potential environmental impacts in an Environmental Worksheet or Environmental Impact Statement. It is one of the few laws of its type that exist and has worked well for 56 years. Now, Trump and his friends want to end it. Except they must go through a rule-making process and accept public comments (too bad for them). Here is the address if you want to add your two cents. I have also been writing Trump on his White House Contact page telling him to resign (never going to happen, but it provides some satisfaction).

https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/02/25/2025-03014/removal-of-national-environmental-policy-act-implementing-regulations?fbclid=IwY2xjawIzHMdleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHTvgpzMt6iJwABWY9zwGPOvBqQu4d_dJm5nxc3I2S7WDa07uJJz5WZIEcA_aem_QwET_EJxdx6KV9MHtYon4A

[yellow dahlia]

31. Hear! Hear!

We were writing somewhat similar replies at the same time.

Encouraged by the fighting oligarchy message from Bernie.

I'm doing all I can do. One of my contributions is to disseminate truth and information and fact checks on social media. And I am calling and writing Congress critters, even those not in my state. Working on some other creative resistance ideas.

Don't give up the ship.

[Bread and Circuses]

43. Yes, several Dems and others....

Have been outspoken and pointing out the duplicity of the Republicans.

I, too call and write all my elected officials.


It seems that we’re all waiting for a call to action from the Dem leadership

[Bread and Circuses]

45. Yes, I've posted similar previously

I’ve attended a town hall and continue to call and write,

I formed my local neighbors into a group to resist and coordinate advocacy work with larger groups such as swing left and indivisible. Thanks for your thoughts.

[yellow dahlia]

29. I believe two things can be true at once.

We may be past a tipping point, "on paper".

But there are still some possibilities for retrieval. I don't know what they may be. I know there are a lot of people and factions who aren't giving up, including myself.

I believe one turning back could happen, if those who have been duped (who are decent people), realize they have been conned. They would have to turn away from the brainwashing of RWmedia. Once they see the reality - they will hopefully be on the side of democracy...and they damn well better fight...because they created an atmosphere that helped to get us here.

I don't see anything as easy right now. But I haven't given up the ship.

[Bread and Circuses]

42. Yes, I always remain hopeful and....

Perhaps some republican voters will realize that they’ve been manipulated. It’s theirs to do. They will not listen to us.

[Crunchy Frog]

30. Since the minute the election was called.

And I always thought it was extremely likely that they would take back power after a single Biden term.

I doubt that it can ever be resolved through electoral politics at this point.

[Bread and Circuses]

40. Sadly, you've been right with all your posts. Thanks