There is much anxiety among liberals about how Donald Trump will govern. There is particular anxiety among groups that might be lumped as marginalized, such as homosexuals, the indigent, and others. Given some of his campaign rhetoric there is also concern among women, blacks and Jews. While I think this anxiety is misplaced, I do understand why it is felt.
We have lost a sense of polity over the last 15 years. Both parties are polarized, enacting the agendas of their party rather than seeking consensus between groups. While liberals are noisier than conservatives about their fear and unhappiness, there has been much quiet anger among conservatives as well. In such an atmosphere, each electoral victory is used as a chance and excuse to reverse the other's policies, to rub the loser's nose in their loss, to repudiate.
To support their behavior, each party has claimed a 'mandate' to govern, or stated that 'elections have consequences', this despite the fact that the biggest electoral win in the last 5 elections has placed only 13th among the 26 elections since 1860. The popular vote has reflected no mandate at all, being lost by the winning candidate twice in the same period. The biggest winning margin has been 4 points in the last 16 years.
This is not a mandate to enact a unilateral agenda. It ought to be a wake-up call to work together. It is unreasonable to expect the losing party to simply cave in, and cravenly seek the approval of the winner. It is the winner, with the status and the apparatus of power, that has the obligation to reach out to the loser, to show bona fides that they will govern in the interests of all. Oddly, I think it is Trump, of all the candidates in this election cycle, who has the greatest opportunity to actually do this. He won without the backing of most in his party, and so owes no favors and must kowtow to no one. While liberals fear what he might do, he is in a position to do what has been undone for years. I have several suggestions for steps to achieve this.
-Meet with the Democratic leaders of the House and Senate. Work actively to seek compromise and enact legislation everyone agrees to. Don't posture or 'leak' information to the press for inflammation.
-Stop using executive orders and signing statements to govern outside of law. Both parties have done this increasingly as a way to walk around an obstructionist legislative branch.
-Stop the obvious use of the federal bureaucracy to enforce law differentially and preferentially for your own agenda. This has been done by both parties, although quite obviously by Obama, ignoring enforcement of immigration law and using the IRS as an enforcement arm. Recapitulating such errors does not make up for them.
-Stop resisting the legality of abortion. Trump has been pro-choice all his life. He has a unique chance to jump party dogma, get the pro-life plank out of the Republican platform, and end the idiotic and divisive abortion debate. He, and the Republicans, have clear proof from this election that evangelicals will vote Republicans, even for a plainly non-Christian candidate.
-Enforce immigration law, but make plain that US citizens will be respected.
-Reach out to fearful groups.Steps might include endorsing gay marriage and making a serious effort to engage black communities to understand their problems.
The losers have obligations as well.
-Liberals need to respect the transition of power, and stop protesting, rioting, lecturing at plays, and shouting that Trump is not their president. It is difficult to talk with someone who will not listen. Many writers have commented on the Democrats' arrogance and certainty of rectitude as sources of their loss. Even the New York Times has pointed this out. You can't listen from inside an echo chamber.
-Stop using identity politics to divide the nation along sexual and racial lines. Again, there is a terrific editorial from the NYT on exactly this problem. As they note, identity politics is dead.
The cycle of war in Europe was perpetuated from 1870 all the way through 1945 by punitive peace treaties. It took the near-complete destruction of more than one nation to get everyone to work together. This was facilitated by the US, which did not use victory as a reason to oppress but rather to rebuild. We recognized then that we had fought largely against our friends, ancestors and brothers. In the US we are now arguing not with blood enemies but our fellow citizens. We must avoid the harsh reconstruction of the Civil War, and keep in mind the image of the Marshall Plan.
Trump is able to do this, if he wants to. I believe that much of the fear about him is simply overblown. I hope I am right. He can do much to calm and unite a divided country. He needs to reach out and reassure. Democrats need to listen. Both sides need to resume cooperative work.
Ted
We have lost a sense of polity over the last 15 years. Both parties are polarized, enacting the agendas of their party rather than seeking consensus between groups. While liberals are noisier than conservatives about their fear and unhappiness, there has been much quiet anger among conservatives as well. In such an atmosphere, each electoral victory is used as a chance and excuse to reverse the other's policies, to rub the loser's nose in their loss, to repudiate.
To support their behavior, each party has claimed a 'mandate' to govern, or stated that 'elections have consequences', this despite the fact that the biggest electoral win in the last 5 elections has placed only 13th among the 26 elections since 1860. The popular vote has reflected no mandate at all, being lost by the winning candidate twice in the same period. The biggest winning margin has been 4 points in the last 16 years.
This is not a mandate to enact a unilateral agenda. It ought to be a wake-up call to work together. It is unreasonable to expect the losing party to simply cave in, and cravenly seek the approval of the winner. It is the winner, with the status and the apparatus of power, that has the obligation to reach out to the loser, to show bona fides that they will govern in the interests of all. Oddly, I think it is Trump, of all the candidates in this election cycle, who has the greatest opportunity to actually do this. He won without the backing of most in his party, and so owes no favors and must kowtow to no one. While liberals fear what he might do, he is in a position to do what has been undone for years. I have several suggestions for steps to achieve this.
-Meet with the Democratic leaders of the House and Senate. Work actively to seek compromise and enact legislation everyone agrees to. Don't posture or 'leak' information to the press for inflammation.
-Stop using executive orders and signing statements to govern outside of law. Both parties have done this increasingly as a way to walk around an obstructionist legislative branch.
-Stop the obvious use of the federal bureaucracy to enforce law differentially and preferentially for your own agenda. This has been done by both parties, although quite obviously by Obama, ignoring enforcement of immigration law and using the IRS as an enforcement arm. Recapitulating such errors does not make up for them.
-Stop resisting the legality of abortion. Trump has been pro-choice all his life. He has a unique chance to jump party dogma, get the pro-life plank out of the Republican platform, and end the idiotic and divisive abortion debate. He, and the Republicans, have clear proof from this election that evangelicals will vote Republicans, even for a plainly non-Christian candidate.
-Enforce immigration law, but make plain that US citizens will be respected.
-Reach out to fearful groups.Steps might include endorsing gay marriage and making a serious effort to engage black communities to understand their problems.
The losers have obligations as well.
-Liberals need to respect the transition of power, and stop protesting, rioting, lecturing at plays, and shouting that Trump is not their president. It is difficult to talk with someone who will not listen. Many writers have commented on the Democrats' arrogance and certainty of rectitude as sources of their loss. Even the New York Times has pointed this out. You can't listen from inside an echo chamber.
-Stop using identity politics to divide the nation along sexual and racial lines. Again, there is a terrific editorial from the NYT on exactly this problem. As they note, identity politics is dead.
The cycle of war in Europe was perpetuated from 1870 all the way through 1945 by punitive peace treaties. It took the near-complete destruction of more than one nation to get everyone to work together. This was facilitated by the US, which did not use victory as a reason to oppress but rather to rebuild. We recognized then that we had fought largely against our friends, ancestors and brothers. In the US we are now arguing not with blood enemies but our fellow citizens. We must avoid the harsh reconstruction of the Civil War, and keep in mind the image of the Marshall Plan.
Trump is able to do this, if he wants to. I believe that much of the fear about him is simply overblown. I hope I am right. He can do much to calm and unite a divided country. He needs to reach out and reassure. Democrats need to listen. Both sides need to resume cooperative work.
Ted
At the beginning of each new president's term, there is always hope that things will be better this time around. That hope is usually gone within three months.
ReplyDeleteWith respect to one item, "Enforce immigration law, but make plain that US citizens will be respected," I don't think the worry is how U.S. citizens will be treated. The worry is how non-U.S. citizens who are LEGAL aliens will be treated, the permanent residents with green cards, students in the U.S. to study, those on work visas, etc. These are the people who - rightly or wrongly - genuinely fear what will happen to them under Trump. Let us hope that Trump not only respects the rights of these folks but that he is also able to somehow convince a recalcitrant congress to institute what is so badly needed: reform of immigration law.
(And while we are at it, we need Trump's government to come up with a new plan to replace the Affordable Care Act, then persuade congress to run with the ball.)
-D-
Well said! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteGood post, Ted; as always, well spoken.
ReplyDeleteResponse!:
Your side comment about liberals being noisier complainers was unnecessary to your point, and from my point of view incorrect. Have a look at Breitbart, or Fox News' website for that matter during most of the Obama administration, if you need confirmation! On a personal level, I have refrained from answering the inflammatory personal attacks on "liberals" on your own facebook page, calling them (and me by extension) "morons", "idiots", and often worse. My liberal friends (and many are far more radical-left than I) have, indeed, expressed frustration and in some cases incomprehension at "conservative" views, but personal attacks and namecalling, of the sort that I've seen on Facebook, have been quite rare until the election turned everything upside down.
You and I could discuss how the loss of polity and sense of common ground happened; I blame Newt Gingrich, but I imagine you would disagree. But remember that Obama made a point, in public and in private, to reach out to Republicans in Congress at the beginning of his administration, and in fact managed to form a consensus on a budget with the "Gang of 8". It was the far-right members of Congress who formed the "Tea Party" (remember them?) who shot down the consensus, and then publicly stated that their primary aim was not to govern, but was to ensure that Obama was a "1-term President", and (as you note) behaved in an obstructionist way. It's ironic for those on the Right to now call for the Democrats to work for consensus, especially since Trump was elected by (loudly!) doing the opposite.
I strenously disagree with your sense that organized protest now is misplaced.
1- this is still America; the rights of free speech and of free peaceful "association" are both protected by the constitution.
2- I agree that people shouting "Trump isn't my president" are misguided (and of course incorrect); but most protest after the first few days has been directed at encouraging exactly the sort of respect that your post argues for. As far as I've seen, most protest has been "for" policies that you yourself would support, if presented in a non-political way. Playing wait-and-see, to watch Trump do exactly what he's promised to do and to protest afterwards, would be ineffective. (I doubt that the protests will be effective anyway - he's going to do what he wants.)
3- The cast of Hamilton had every right to make their point to Mr. Pence. Mr. Pence himself was reported to say that no apology was necessary, after Trump had called for one. Again, free speech is protected; and what the cast actually said to Pence was unarguable.
“We, sir — we — are the diverse America who are alarmed and anxious that your new administration will not protect us, our planet, our children, our parents, or defend us and uphold our inalienable rights,” he said. “We truly hope that this show has inspired you to uphold our American values and to work on behalf of all of us.”
The correct answer from Mr. Pence would have been something like: "Yes indeed, we plan to do exactly that, for ALL American citizens. Your show, and the story it tells, is an inspiration to us all." He didn't quite say that, but his response was appropriate, as far as it went. (See it here)
As far as the rest, I agree with you - it would be lovely and endearing if Trump were to reverse all his behavior during the campaign, and to do the things you suggest, to reassure his critics and move towards reconciliation. In the 10 days since the election, he's made exactly zero moves to that, and in fact generally done exactly the opposite.
If he were to make any such moves, and the Left repudiated them, then I would agree that the protests and fear would be misplaced.
I also disagree that Trump is beholden to no one. He is very beholden to the "Alt-Right", who are his only reliable support and who got him elected.
David