Into The Wilderness

Strategies for the near future when Trump controls the Presidency, the U.S. House, the U.S. Senate, and has an ultraconservative SCOTUS.

1. Favor legislation transferring federal government functions to the states. Republicans hate the federal government. Democrats don't want national policies made by Republicans. 

2. End diversity jurisdiction, end generic federal question jurisdiction, and to repeal crimes that duplicate state law crimes, thus narrowing the docket of the federal courts.

3. Don't help the federal government carry out bad policies, especially with respect to immigration.

4. In clear cases, use litigation, labor actions, the filibuster if it survives, and other means to prevent or delay the worst policies. Don't concede anything that can be fought. Challenge bad regulations and laws in court. Delay appointments. Use rights under collective bargaining agreements.

5. Pass good laws at the state and local level.

6. Seek outside pressure from treaty partners if the U.S. goes astray from its treaty obligations.

7. Use direct democracy to defeat unpopular policies in red states.

8. Strengthen civil society and private charity.

9. Use economic clout. Blue jurisdictions have much more income and wealth than red ones.

10. Pursue movement politics: i.e. focus on changing public opinion on important issues in the medium to long term.

11. Call out missteps and failures of the administration and hold it responsible. Emphasize bad news.

12. Gather evidence for civil and criminal litigation when the administration is gone.

13. Monitor and track the behavior of people who are pardoned and make their crimes costly despite pardons.

14. Develop consistent, simple messages to repeat ad nauseam. 

15. Cultivate turncoats and spies in their camp. Ideally, flip some pre-MAGA Republicans.

16. Push Trump's buttons in calculated ways.

17. Recruit strong candidates for 2026 Congressional swing races.

18. Divide their camp with wedge issues, fan the divisions that already exist.

19. Look for opportunities to undermine policies with non-cooperation at the grass roots level.

20. Help the most vulnerable to abuse in this administration leave their states or the country as it seems necessary.

21. For as long as possible, do whatever is necessary to save democracy, but try to keep the democratic process as regularized as possible. Trump won't live forever, and his followers are cowards. Make deviations from democracy temporary aberrations to leave open the possibility of a return to something approaching normal.

22. Put second guessing the election and redesigning the coalition at the bottom of the list. Pay attention to the zeitgeist. Look for missteps that open the door to small coalition wins.

23. Don't sell out our core values.

24. Look for bipartisan/nonpartisan good legislation opportunities, even small ones, even if they take credit for it. Favor piecemeal laws addressing specific situations over omnibus reforms. Don't oppose good bills simply because they support them.

25. Strengthen media allies.

26. Give people hope, even if it might not work out.

27. Punish people who behave badly with severe social sanctions.