Proteste „Bekämpfen Sie die Trump -Übernahme“, breiteten sich landesweit aus

Healthy democracies rely on independent media to keep the public informed, an independent legal profession to maintain the rule of law, independent universities to guard objective truth and provide forums for dissent to authority, and independent State and Local governments to counterbalance a powerful Federal government.

Trump’s regime is attacking independent media, law firms, universities, and State and Local governments that don’t bend the knee and pledge unquestioning loyalty.

Trump is leveraging U.S. spending like it is a protection racket.

‚Nice research projects you have there – would be a shame if something were to happen to them.‘

The founders of our country created a President with limited and checked powers. they specifically put the power of spending and taxation in the hands of the Congress, because they had seen how Kings and Despots used spending and taxes to control their subjects.

British kings used taxation to reward loyalty and punish dissent. Our revolution was spurred by the King’s use of heavy taxation of the Colonies to punish our push for self-governance. The King’s message was clear: stop protesting and I will stop taxing.

Trump knows he can weaken (and maybe destroy) democracy by spending and taxation in the same way. He is using access to government funds to bully universities, law firms, and State and Local governments into loyalty pledges.

The true purpose of the tariffs are the same thing – the tariffs are Trump’s way of eroding the independence of the private sector. Now, one by one, every industry or company will need to pledge loyalty to Trump to get the sanctions relief they need to stay in business.

What will Trump demand as part of these loyalty pledges? Public shows of support for all his policies. Contributions to his political efforts. Promises to police their employees to ensure that they support Trump and that none dare oppose Trump in any way.

Trump did not invent this strategy. It is the playbook for destroying democracy, for those who get elected and want to ensure that they can never be voted out, those who want to remain ‚President for life‘. This is how a democracy becomes a dictatorship.

Trump is setting up a two-tier legal system, in which groups of people targeted by Trump are denied access to the legal system used by the rest of the country. This is a common ploy of authoritarians – because resistance to these attacks on the rule of law is weaker when these changes do not apply to everyone. It is much easier to pretend ‚this is fine‘ when you yourself are not a member of one of the groups being attacked.

[Video discussing two-tier legal systems](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a99moLo1Hhg#t=15m33s)

When fascists are consolidating their power and dismantling our democracy, you have to find out if you will accept the situation you’re in. Either let that become the new normal, or do something. And with that risk everything.

If you fail to defend other people’s rights – that is how you lose your own.

this combined with police and national guard being given weapons starting from dc is a sign that these next few weeks will decide if democracy and america will continue to exist

Another protest, that’ll show him. Don’t forget a strongly worded letter too.

This is…. What? A year and 7 months to late? Pretty on brand for Americans.

Hm. Weird. No other source for that picture can be found.