I just listened to an interview with Anthony Scaramucci on Times Radio. Say what you will.... the guy has insights and should be listened to. He rightly sees that Trump is a "Napoleon who can see the battlefields of the culture wars." And the Dems do not have a Wellington. We can debate and discuss and fall apart on all the details, including this feudal bill that puts more power into the hands of extremely powerful people. We can point to the US decline into a police state. We can show how the dictator is taking over, even going so far as to replicate the classic attacks on universities...* All of that is material that the Trump regime uses to continue attacking democracy and especially whatever might look like opposition.
Trump is also attacking the media, joined by many right here on Substack and other independent sites, whose need for clicks and eyeballs makes use of the same methods, attention-hogging outrage. But the media, for all their faults, are still gathering information the way few can. Do I like what I see on clips (I don't have a TV)? No, I think those talking heads and all that "fairness" is a waste of oxygen and the argumentation you see there is ridiculous. Guys like Scott Jennings constantly saying "whatabout? And bothsides," embarrassing themselves to the point that no one even dares tell it to them to their faces... But they, the media, still get the odd scoop in sideways.
Don't look for help in the media. And don't look for a presidential candidate for the 2028 campaign. And while we can discuss history, philosophy, etc... entre nous, as it were, you will not convince a single Maga voter (the large hardcore) to exit the cult -- because that ius the functioning of the Maga) with intelligent, thought-out arguments. How many of you have tried to argue with them? They are the proverbial pigeon on the chessboard. Facts don't matter. So for the moment, don't engage in battles you cannot win, becasuse you play by the rules, the Trump cult does not. Their rules are simply to knock everything over, and the members like that, they really don't care about the hours you spend listening to complaints about their guru. In fact, they like it, because they see you wasting your time.
When I taught kids and had to give them a little pep talk about their future on graduating, I had a few important lessons from my own observations: The first was: be passionate, but keep your head about you; second was: Freedom is not doing what you want, but remaining a master of your self (this thought goes all the way back to Socrates), because in the toughest times you will remain calm and lose no sleep, which is important; and the last one was this: If you focus too much on prevention and countering every perceived threat, the punch will come from another direction. While quite depressing, it works for the positive as well. Learn from cats: They pounce (usually) when they know the terrain and when that bird is taking a breath. They expend minimum energy for maximum returns.
Summary: If you keep focusing on Trump, you will increase his strength, weaken your resilience, and probably miss Wellington when he or she shows up.
*Both Mussolini (in 1931) and Hitler (in 1933) demanded loyalty from Universities. The former with a pledge profs had to sign, the latter was a more complicated attack, but it began on the U. of Frankfurt, which was the more staunchly liberal.... But the German Unis had already a tendency towards conservatism...
I know you probably think I am crazy for suggesting this but I think an Adam Kinzinger may appeal to the masses (not the MAGAs). - I know he is a Republican, however, John McCain was too and I see many similarities in Kinzinger as I did in McCain. I would have voted for him had it not be for his airhead running mate. If Kinzinger were to switch to being an independent, i know a lot of independents as well as some dems would support him. I would be interested in your thoughts on this.
McCain could have won had he not chosen that nutcase Palin (by the way, Kristol had a lot to do with that).... He could have picked Olympia Snow for instance)... But people were tired of the war rubbish, and he drifted off into culture wars as well...
I think, personally, the Dems have to remain calm right now. Focus on the midterms, and then see... No choosing candidates. We don't know how the Trump regime will go... Right now, it looks as if Hegseth is in trouble.... The Trump apparatchik will be fighting like cats and dogs for the candidacy in a few months (they already are)... there will be backbiting, leaks, etc... The Dems should step back, watch, and behave like adults in the room (I taught in public schools for 9 years... The Trump regime remind me of some of them...)
There is a difference between calm and complacent. The DEMs need a leader who has the ability to organize,mobilize and inspire people to get off their asses and protest. I honestly believe people are not paying attention to all this crap being thrown at them. I just heard consumer confidence is up. How can that be with the instability of this economy? I don’t think sitting back and watching a knife fight is the way to go. However, they can’t chase everything that he throws out. The focus should be on the economy. Most people care more about their pocketbook than their democracy. Why isn’t this talked about 24 x 7 by every democrat.
You are spot on with hardcore Trump supporters. I believe they’re loving watching the left go crazy over Trump, it really does fuel them. It is so hard not to get sucked in. I also believe they want this Republic to fall. Their miserable and misery loves company. It’s a way of getting back at the elites. The sad part about it is they are always working against their own self interest and they don’t even know it.
Thanks. I woke up this morning and realized: The "elites" are now a counterculture of sorts... I don't mean the feudal leaders like Zuckerberg, Musk, etc..., but rather those who steer a rational or empirical course, who do not let themselves get caught upèè in culture wars...
Doestoyevsky wouldn't stand a chance to get published these days. He was excellent for his time, though. Today, he'd have to rewrite Raskolnikov wouldn't be tortured by feelings of guilt. He'd be triumphant and would probably rape Sonja, just to make a point of his power over life and death.
You have some very good points. For one, the constant attacks by progressives on the so-called "legacy media" remind me of the Goya painting popular during the Vietnam protests, "Saturn Devouring His Son." Perhaps each media piece is not a thoroughly documented exposé of every tRump action, but without even the basic presentation of facts, MAGA would win by default.
Your discussion of a potential Democratic "Wellington" is also important. I doubt that any of the more noticeable personalities (particularly AOC) will be able to attract any significant national following in 2028. All facets of the opposition are going to have to give a little (or perhaps, more than a "little") to coalesce around some individual. It's going to be very difficult. Remember 1988: GHW Bush was not particularly popular nor a very good candidate, but he was the VP of an immensely popular president (OK, so not that popular to those on this site!). In order to counter the Rump Runoff to Vance, the D's are going to have to come up with a really strong candidate with broad appeal...and keep him from riding in a tank!!
The tax-free tips provision sounds populist until you realize it's a corporate scam. Restaurants and service industries can now reclassify regular wages as "tips" to dodge payroll taxes entirely. Workers think they're getting tax-free income while actually losing employer-paid Social Security, Medicare, and unemployment contributions. Base wages drop to $2.13 per hour while everything else becomes a "tip"—wage theft disguised as worker relief.”
They always could have done that. It would be outright fraud. And the restaurant would have to totally fudge their books to somehow show that the "tip wage" (i.e. tips called wages) came from restaurant receipts. Even the MAGA IRS would go after that, since wages are deductible.
It's ironic that the "war on tips" to ensure that they are reported began during the Carter administration, and is ending under tRump. Once again, Rump scores a PR win with the "working people," while progressives either accept it in silence or complain about the benefit.
Democrats obsession with following unwritten rules and traditions (seniority schmeniority….AOC should have led that committee) will likely continue to play a role in their future losses to MAGA and Republicans.
I have mixed feelings on the topic. I do agree that a person who is well aware they’re in poor health should step aside. To do otherwise is selfish. Being older but in fine shape mentally and physically is another story. If they are up to the job on the physical/ mental front then good for them and no immediate reason to step aside. No one has a crystal ball and a 40 year old can die or suddenly become very sick. Politics brings power with it and politicians all have healthy egos no matter the age. The older a politician is the more power they are likely to wield too. Pelosi a case in point. Power is the name of the game and none of them want to give it up. In fact the younger ones in both parties aspire to having more power. It’s true of both parties. Maybe the answer is term limits on everyone so the lust for power doesn’t get the best of anyone.
This is an excellent article. Terrific analysis. Thank you Julie!
It’s not ageist to encourage people who have had long successful careers to make room for a new generation so the party can have strength at critical moments.
Nancy promised on TV that she had a handle on house in the 2024 election and wouldn’t lose it. Then she lost it anyway. Then she made the gaffe you reference putting a member in a leadership role that should have been stepping away to cope with a terminal disease, even though she claimed to have left her leadership chair. Now, her failure to actively manage succession while she was in the leadership role seems to have let the Big Beautiful Debt Bomb and Antidemocracy bill slip through. Tragic slide at the end of a long career and we are all.the victims partly because she wouldn’t let go.
Wow! Ageism much? Do you think only older people die of cancer? I would have taken your post more seriously, if you came at this from another perspective. SMDH!
I agree with you, your article was a painful truth that we all will have to face one day. I related to your article from this perspective. When my animals were sick and I was told they weren’t going to get better. I saw their quality of life diminish. As much as I wanted them to stay, I knew in my heart it wasn’t about me but them. It’s hard to do the selfless act of letting go when you love something so much, but because you do, it’s the right thing to do.
I am nearly 70. To me this is not ageism but rationality. The Founders never intended the legislature to be a career. I am still angry with Clyburn over Joe Biden. He rescued a floundering campaign for someone who lied about being a transitional president, who aided and abetted genocide, who lied about his capacity to serve four more years and who also did a lot of phenomenal things domestically; must of which are being undone because of Joe’s hubris.
You are SO right on this. There should be term limits, but people also need to do the f'n right thing and get out when they reach age 70, and even earlier if they develop a disease. Ruth Bader Ginsberg wrecked the Supreme Court when should could have left when she was diagnosed with cancer. She SHOULD left! I'm sick of these old people in charge, and I'm 72!
My only question on your article- Do they have the ability to let go of their egos and do the selfless act of letting go?
I just listened to an interview with Anthony Scaramucci on Times Radio. Say what you will.... the guy has insights and should be listened to. He rightly sees that Trump is a "Napoleon who can see the battlefields of the culture wars." And the Dems do not have a Wellington. We can debate and discuss and fall apart on all the details, including this feudal bill that puts more power into the hands of extremely powerful people. We can point to the US decline into a police state. We can show how the dictator is taking over, even going so far as to replicate the classic attacks on universities...* All of that is material that the Trump regime uses to continue attacking democracy and especially whatever might look like opposition.
Trump is also attacking the media, joined by many right here on Substack and other independent sites, whose need for clicks and eyeballs makes use of the same methods, attention-hogging outrage. But the media, for all their faults, are still gathering information the way few can. Do I like what I see on clips (I don't have a TV)? No, I think those talking heads and all that "fairness" is a waste of oxygen and the argumentation you see there is ridiculous. Guys like Scott Jennings constantly saying "whatabout? And bothsides," embarrassing themselves to the point that no one even dares tell it to them to their faces... But they, the media, still get the odd scoop in sideways.
Don't look for help in the media. And don't look for a presidential candidate for the 2028 campaign. And while we can discuss history, philosophy, etc... entre nous, as it were, you will not convince a single Maga voter (the large hardcore) to exit the cult -- because that ius the functioning of the Maga) with intelligent, thought-out arguments. How many of you have tried to argue with them? They are the proverbial pigeon on the chessboard. Facts don't matter. So for the moment, don't engage in battles you cannot win, becasuse you play by the rules, the Trump cult does not. Their rules are simply to knock everything over, and the members like that, they really don't care about the hours you spend listening to complaints about their guru. In fact, they like it, because they see you wasting your time.
When I taught kids and had to give them a little pep talk about their future on graduating, I had a few important lessons from my own observations: The first was: be passionate, but keep your head about you; second was: Freedom is not doing what you want, but remaining a master of your self (this thought goes all the way back to Socrates), because in the toughest times you will remain calm and lose no sleep, which is important; and the last one was this: If you focus too much on prevention and countering every perceived threat, the punch will come from another direction. While quite depressing, it works for the positive as well. Learn from cats: They pounce (usually) when they know the terrain and when that bird is taking a breath. They expend minimum energy for maximum returns.
Summary: If you keep focusing on Trump, you will increase his strength, weaken your resilience, and probably miss Wellington when he or she shows up.
*Both Mussolini (in 1931) and Hitler (in 1933) demanded loyalty from Universities. The former with a pledge profs had to sign, the latter was a more complicated attack, but it began on the U. of Frankfurt, which was the more staunchly liberal.... But the German Unis had already a tendency towards conservatism...
I know you probably think I am crazy for suggesting this but I think an Adam Kinzinger may appeal to the masses (not the MAGAs). - I know he is a Republican, however, John McCain was too and I see many similarities in Kinzinger as I did in McCain. I would have voted for him had it not be for his airhead running mate. If Kinzinger were to switch to being an independent, i know a lot of independents as well as some dems would support him. I would be interested in your thoughts on this.
McCain could have won had he not chosen that nutcase Palin (by the way, Kristol had a lot to do with that).... He could have picked Olympia Snow for instance)... But people were tired of the war rubbish, and he drifted off into culture wars as well...
I think, personally, the Dems have to remain calm right now. Focus on the midterms, and then see... No choosing candidates. We don't know how the Trump regime will go... Right now, it looks as if Hegseth is in trouble.... The Trump apparatchik will be fighting like cats and dogs for the candidacy in a few months (they already are)... there will be backbiting, leaks, etc... The Dems should step back, watch, and behave like adults in the room (I taught in public schools for 9 years... The Trump regime remind me of some of them...)
There is a difference between calm and complacent. The DEMs need a leader who has the ability to organize,mobilize and inspire people to get off their asses and protest. I honestly believe people are not paying attention to all this crap being thrown at them. I just heard consumer confidence is up. How can that be with the instability of this economy? I don’t think sitting back and watching a knife fight is the way to go. However, they can’t chase everything that he throws out. The focus should be on the economy. Most people care more about their pocketbook than their democracy. Why isn’t this talked about 24 x 7 by every democrat.
You are spot on with hardcore Trump supporters. I believe they’re loving watching the left go crazy over Trump, it really does fuel them. It is so hard not to get sucked in. I also believe they want this Republic to fall. Their miserable and misery loves company. It’s a way of getting back at the elites. The sad part about it is they are always working against their own self interest and they don’t even know it.
Thanks. I woke up this morning and realized: The "elites" are now a counterculture of sorts... I don't mean the feudal leaders like Zuckerberg, Musk, etc..., but rather those who steer a rational or empirical course, who do not let themselves get caught upèè in culture wars...
Doestoyevsky wouldn't stand a chance to get published these days. He was excellent for his time, though. Today, he'd have to rewrite Raskolnikov wouldn't be tortured by feelings of guilt. He'd be triumphant and would probably rape Sonja, just to make a point of his power over life and death.
You have some very good points. For one, the constant attacks by progressives on the so-called "legacy media" remind me of the Goya painting popular during the Vietnam protests, "Saturn Devouring His Son." Perhaps each media piece is not a thoroughly documented exposé of every tRump action, but without even the basic presentation of facts, MAGA would win by default.
Your discussion of a potential Democratic "Wellington" is also important. I doubt that any of the more noticeable personalities (particularly AOC) will be able to attract any significant national following in 2028. All facets of the opposition are going to have to give a little (or perhaps, more than a "little") to coalesce around some individual. It's going to be very difficult. Remember 1988: GHW Bush was not particularly popular nor a very good candidate, but he was the VP of an immensely popular president (OK, so not that popular to those on this site!). In order to counter the Rump Runoff to Vance, the D's are going to have to come up with a really strong candidate with broad appeal...and keep him from riding in a tank!!
“The Restaurant Industry's Payroll Heist
The tax-free tips provision sounds populist until you realize it's a corporate scam. Restaurants and service industries can now reclassify regular wages as "tips" to dodge payroll taxes entirely. Workers think they're getting tax-free income while actually losing employer-paid Social Security, Medicare, and unemployment contributions. Base wages drop to $2.13 per hour while everything else becomes a "tip"—wage theft disguised as worker relief.”
They always could have done that. It would be outright fraud. And the restaurant would have to totally fudge their books to somehow show that the "tip wage" (i.e. tips called wages) came from restaurant receipts. Even the MAGA IRS would go after that, since wages are deductible.
It's ironic that the "war on tips" to ensure that they are reported began during the Carter administration, and is ending under tRump. Once again, Rump scores a PR win with the "working people," while progressives either accept it in silence or complain about the benefit.
Democrats obsession with following unwritten rules and traditions (seniority schmeniority….AOC should have led that committee) will likely continue to play a role in their future losses to MAGA and Republicans.
They do it to themselves.
I have mixed feelings on the topic. I do agree that a person who is well aware they’re in poor health should step aside. To do otherwise is selfish. Being older but in fine shape mentally and physically is another story. If they are up to the job on the physical/ mental front then good for them and no immediate reason to step aside. No one has a crystal ball and a 40 year old can die or suddenly become very sick. Politics brings power with it and politicians all have healthy egos no matter the age. The older a politician is the more power they are likely to wield too. Pelosi a case in point. Power is the name of the game and none of them want to give it up. In fact the younger ones in both parties aspire to having more power. It’s true of both parties. Maybe the answer is term limits on everyone so the lust for power doesn’t get the best of anyone.
This is an excellent article. Terrific analysis. Thank you Julie!
It’s not ageist to encourage people who have had long successful careers to make room for a new generation so the party can have strength at critical moments.
Nancy promised on TV that she had a handle on house in the 2024 election and wouldn’t lose it. Then she lost it anyway. Then she made the gaffe you reference putting a member in a leadership role that should have been stepping away to cope with a terminal disease, even though she claimed to have left her leadership chair. Now, her failure to actively manage succession while she was in the leadership role seems to have let the Big Beautiful Debt Bomb and Antidemocracy bill slip through. Tragic slide at the end of a long career and we are all.the victims partly because she wouldn’t let go.
Wow! Ageism much? Do you think only older people die of cancer? I would have taken your post more seriously, if you came at this from another perspective. SMDH!
It’s not ageism. None of us can outrun time.
I agree with you, your article was a painful truth that we all will have to face one day. I related to your article from this perspective. When my animals were sick and I was told they weren’t going to get better. I saw their quality of life diminish. As much as I wanted them to stay, I knew in my heart it wasn’t about me but them. It’s hard to do the selfless act of letting go when you love something so much, but because you do, it’s the right thing to do.
It is ageism. Members of congress get elected by their constituents. The question
you should be asking is why younger democrats aren’t challenging their senior congressional candidates. They are up for election every 2 years.
I am nearly 70. To me this is not ageism but rationality. The Founders never intended the legislature to be a career. I am still angry with Clyburn over Joe Biden. He rescued a floundering campaign for someone who lied about being a transitional president, who aided and abetted genocide, who lied about his capacity to serve four more years and who also did a lot of phenomenal things domestically; must of which are being undone because of Joe’s hubris.
I’m Scared 😱 we’re supposed to be retired, but my husband works 3 days wk to help ! So much for our Golden Years !!🤬😱 Him 46 yrs @ same Co.
You are SO right on this. There should be term limits, but people also need to do the f'n right thing and get out when they reach age 70, and even earlier if they develop a disease. Ruth Bader Ginsberg wrecked the Supreme Court when should could have left when she was diagnosed with cancer. She SHOULD left! I'm sick of these old people in charge, and I'm 72!