5 months ago
About a twelvemonth ago, astatine nan commencement of nan Trump 2.0 regime, a female was astir to walk maine connected nan sidewalk and past stopped, turned toward maine and almost shouted: “It’s a fucking nightmare!”
It has been a “fucking nightmare”.
But sometimes a federation needs a nightmare earlier it tin afloat awaken to long-simmering crises.
Martin Luther King Jr mobilized nan federation against group injustice by making judge almost everyone successful nan United States saw its horrors – connected nan nightly news, watching serene Black group getting clubbed and arrested for exercising their rights.
Were it not for that achy nationalist vulnerability to racist brutality, we wouldn’t person gotten nan Civil Rights Act aliases nan Voting Rights Act.
Something akin happened successful nan first years of nan 20th period erstwhile muckraking journalists revealed nan monopolies, corruption and public-be-damned arrogance of nan robber barons.
Were it not for that achy nationalist exposure, we wouldn’t person gotten nan reforms of nan progressive era.
A akin move is playing retired arsenic Americans witnesser nan nightmare of Trump’s neofascism – its mindless cruelty, blatant attempts to soundlessness critics, wanton demolition of overmuch of our government, unfastened racism and misogyny.
Trump has revealed himself successful ways his first-term handlers wouldn’t let – arsenic a sociopath who posts AI cartoons showing himself shitting connected millions of Americans who marched against him. A malignant narcissist incapable to respond to nan tragic killings of Rob and Michele Reiner without making it each astir himself. A chronic liar who says prices are dropping erstwhile everyone knows they’re rising.
As Americans spot each this, outrage has been growing. We are opening to mobilize – not each of us, of course, but nan awesome majority.
Record numbers of america marched connected 18 October, No Kings day. Democratic candidates person won conscionable astir each typical predetermination and each mayoral and gubernatorial contest, and a singular number of down-ballot races successful agleam reddish states and cities. Maga is coming apart. Trump’s polls are tanking.
We are organizing and mobilizing pinch a resoluteness I person not seen successful my lifetime.
The US had to travel to this point. We couldn’t spell connected arsenic we were, moreover nether Democratic presidents. For 40 years, a constrictive economical elite has been siphoning disconnected ever much wealthiness and power.
I’m aged capable to retrieve erstwhile nan US had nan largest and fastest-growing mediate people successful nan world. We adhered to nan basal bargain that if personification worked difficult and played by nan rules, they’d do amended than their parents, and their children would do moreover better.
I retrieve erstwhile CEOs took location 20 times nan salary of their workers, not 300 times. When members of Congress acted successful nan interests of their constituents alternatively than being bribed by run donations to do nan bidding of large corporations and nan super-wealthy.
I retrieve erstwhile our biggest home challenges were civilian rights, women’s authorities and cheery authorities – not nan very endurance of populist and nan norm of law.
But complete nan past 40 years, starting pinch Ronald Reagan, nan US went disconnected nan rails: deregulation, privatization, free trade, chaotic gambling by Wall Street, union-busting, monopolization, grounds levels of inequality, stagnant wages for most, staggering wealthiness for a few, large money taking complete our politics.
Corporate profits became much important than bully jobs and bully wages for all, banal buy-backs and nan wellbeing of investors much important than nan communal good.
Democratic presidents were amended than Republicans, to beryllium sure, but nan underlying rot worsened. It was undermining nan foundations of nan US.
Trump has precipitated a long-overdue reckoning.
That reckoning has revealed nan rot.
It has besides revealed nan suck-up cowardice of truthful galore CEOs, billionaires, Wall Street bankers, media moguls, tech titans, Republican politicians and different alleged “leaders” who person stayed silent aliases actively sought to curry Trump’s favor.
America’s alleged “leadership class” is simply a sham. Most of them do not attraction a whit for nan remainder of nan US. They are retired for themselves.
The “fucking nightmare” is not complete by immoderate stretch. It’s apt to get worse successful 2026 arsenic Trump and his sycophants, and galore of America’s “leaders”, recognize 2026 whitethorn beryllium their past unrestrained twelvemonth to inflict harm and siphon disconnected nan spoils.
But nan nightmare has awakened overmuch of nan US to nan truth astir what has happened to this state – and what we must do to get it backmost connected nan way toward societal justice, populist and wide prosperity.
I’d for illustration to judge that nan horrific acheronian of this past twelvemonth is simply a basal prelude to a brighter and saner future.
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Robert Reich, a erstwhile US caput of labor, is simply a professor of nationalist argumentation emeritus astatine nan University of California, Berkeley. He is simply a Guardian US columnist and his newsletter is astatine robertreich.substack.com. His caller book, Coming Up Short: A Memoir of My America, is retired now
