There are a number of weird revelations in the much-discussed recent New York Times article detailing what the chaotic first two weeks of the Trump regime looked like from the inside — the weirdest revelation perhaps being that when night falls new White House staffers literally “confer in the dark because they cannot figure out how to operate the light switches in the cabinet room.”
But it turns out they’re not the only ones having trouble settling into the White House. Trump apparently spends most evenings alone, puttering about in his bathrobe, watching TV and stewing about the unexpected opposition he’s facing from regular citizens like you and me.
Usually around 6:30 p.m., Mr. Trump retires upstairs to the residence to recharge, vent and intermittently use Twitter. With his wife, Melania, and young son, Barron, staying in New York, he is almost always by himself … When Mr. Trump is not watching television in his bathrobe or on his phone reaching out to old campaign hands and advisers, he will sometimes set off to explore the unfamiliar surroundings of his new home. …
Cloistered in the White House, he now has little access to his fans and supporters — an important source of feedback and validation — and feels increasingly pinched by the pressures of the job and the constant presence of protests, one of the reasons he was forced to scrap a planned trip to Milwaukee last week.
In other words, #TheResistance isn’t futile. Far from it. It’s pinching Trump, frustrating Republicans, and pushing Democrats to start to mount a real fightback.
If you need more proof, check out these recent segments from the Rachel Maddow show.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EN7l1M4jT6k
So give yourself a hand for all the resisting you’ve done so far — and keep it up!
So what’s on the menu today?
For some of you, one last call to oppose Betsy DeVos — and get one more Republican senator to pledge to vote against her. Here’s the relevant info, pasted in from the latest Action Checklist for Americans of Conscience.
If you live in the states below, call today:
Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) 202-224-4521, 602-840-1891 or 520-575-8633
Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS) (202) 224-6521 or (785) 628-6401
Sen. Deb Fischer (R-NE) (202) 224-6551 or (402) 441-4600
Sen. Dean Heller (R-NV) (202) 224-6244 or (702) 388-6605
Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA) (202) 224-4254 or (814) 453-3010
Sen. Shelley Capito (R-WV) (202) 224-6472 or 304-347-5372
Script: Hi! I’m a constituent in _ZIP code_. I am calling to ask _senator_ to vote no on Betsy DeVos for Secretary of Education. (If you have a child in school, explain how they would be affected.)
If you don’t live in one of those states, 5calls.org has more suggestions for calls you can make.
The Action Checklist has another good suggestion. I highlighted it yesterday but here it is again:
Support bill to remove Steve Bannon from the Nat. Security Council (source).
Call: Your congresswo/man (lookup).
Script: Hi! I’m a constituent from _ZIP code_ and am concerned about Steve Bannon’s role on the National Security Council. I would like _Rep. Name_ to support Rep. Stephanie Murphy’s bill to remove him from this role. Can you tell me his/her position on this?
Note: Contrary to circulating memes, Bannon does not require senate vote as an “invitee” to council (source).
See my posts here and here for information and advice on how to make your calls and emails effective. If making these sorts of calls is tough for you, here’s some advice on calling politicians if you have social anxiety.
Called my rep, Tony Cardenas, and was told that he is a co-sponsor of Stephanie Murphy’s bill! Any other Mammotheers in CA-29, adjust your script accordingly!
(Also? If there are any other Mammotheers in CA-29, dude, we should totally get together!)
Light switches. The fate of the free world is in the hands of people who can’t figure out light switches. If you wrote this in political fiction, it wouldn’t be believed.
About that “conferring in the dark” stuff – if true, why doesn’t some genius bring in a lamp? Surely, there are outlets in there. Or how about a flashlight? It may be a ” pecking order” thing – everyone believes they’re too important to concern themselves with such mundanities, so they all sit in the dark. Don’t they have assistants?
Doesn’t surprise me, that the Cheeto is alone in the evenings. It’s proof no one wants to be around him, unless there’s something in it for them.
I managed to call my senator last night to please vote no for DeVoss.
I said that she was woefully underqualified and that I hope my senator would do the right thing and not vote for her.
It was tough, but I left a voicemail, which was much easier than actually talking to someone.
6:30 pm? Wait, wasn’t Hillary supposed to be the candidate that didn’t have the stamina to be leader of the free world?
Barely two weeks in, and Trump’s presidency is already turning into the Amityville Horror.
Only a little off topic, but the Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow, has decided that Trump shall not be invited to speak in the House if he comes over to the UK!
If Teresa the Appeaser isn’t going to do anything and suck up to the Cheeto Benito, there are people in the British government who will.
More on topic, this (what’s going on in the White House) is what the sort of campaign Trump waged leads to. Lonely, frightened nitwits who will never be happy. Can’t say I’m not surprised, nor can I say I don’t feel any joy. This is what they get for being the bigoted fascists they are.
This was also a weird revelation from that article:
Pay-per-view idea: Put a piece of cheese and a burning Constitution at one end of the West Wing. Race Steve Bannon against a lab rat.
(…Steve Bannon’s portion of the maze, of course, will be paved entirely in Lego caltrops.)
Karalora – Although my dad’s house is in the Valley, unfortunately I live down in the 42nd district. I do come up once a month or so, though, if you’d like to get together sometime.
trump is accustomed to being able to ignore any criticism of himself or of his actions, but now his critics are world-wide, and the criticisms are manifold.
this does not bode well for the Howler
Bannon isn’t going to work that way. I think he’s smart enough to know he can’t continue to embarrass the Cheeto, but I don’t think he’s ideologically capable of working with checks on his putting forth his agenda.
This reminds me a great deal of Warren Harding’s administration. I don’t think Harding was evil in the way trump is, but both are bumbling fools way out of their depth, and both have filled their staff and their cabinets with people who have a personal agenda. Harding appointed Andrew Mellon as Treasury Secretary (“fox, this is the henhouse, please watch over it”). Harding’s legacy is scandal, indicted and jailed cabinet members, resulting directly from allowing subordinates to govern while he maintained only a modicum of engagement.
The tweeter-in-chief is charting a very similar path.
Bummer….How can a non-american support the Trump-resistance? I sign all relevant petitions that come my way and I have started to boycot american goods. I plan to join all relevant marches in my country.
@Anne
Where do you live? If your country’s president/prime minister has condemned Trump, phone or write to them to congratulate them. If they haven’t condemned Trump, or worse yet, have condoned him, phone or write to them to condemn them, and threaten to never vote for them again unless they reverse their stance and condemn him. Do the same thing for your local representative(s). This is what I’ve done.
I am so pleased to discover Americans of Conscience and their activism! Thank you, David.
@Hambeast
Let me know the next time you’ll be in town and maybe we can arrange something.
I live in Denmark, Scandinavia. 🙂
Paradoxy – why was it hard?
This whole business is another example of just how upside-down Trump’s presidency is.
Normally, you have talk about how Presidents live in a ‘bubble’–they get shielded from outside commentary, and this usually leads to a feeling that they are increasingly disconnected from the people they serve. Some push back against it more strongly than others, but it’s been a feature of the three prior administrations, at a minimum.
But not Trump, because Trump was already living in a bubble of his own making, and his was gilt inside, so that he could only even see his own reflection. For him, the White House isn’t a bubble, it’s a crack–one that’s letting him constantly be exposed to the criticism that’s always been there, but without the ability to just blithely ignore it and go on with his day–he is forced by the office to try to engage his critics, and this is something he is fundamentally unable to do.
Naturally, this leads to him seeking to blame someone, anyone, for his suddenly apparent shortcomings (since he can’t blame himself). I expect there to be firings within a month or so, not only of whoever is still holding on from the prior administration, but also the first ousters of his own selections. At which point, of course, he’ll fume because he can’t immediately fill the position with a different toady.
No pity for him on this, of course, but I do find it an interesting phenomenon.
Hello.
Our dear PUA friends would tell that constantly looking for validation is so “beta”… Ah, but i forget that the validation of PUA by PUA is not beta but “alpha”. My bad.
The range of his seen world is shrinking more and more. Not sure it is a good new…
Have a nice day.
Genevieve – I do not know why it is hard for Paradoxical Intention to make calls, but I get stomach cramps every time, from nerves. I am on medication for anxiety and phone calls still get me every time. Not even sure I’m doing much good, since I live in Massachusetts, but my senators deserve to know I’m supporting them. I’m hoping that at some point the staffers won’t have to ask how to spell my name.
Karalora – Will do! I generally come up either Thursdays or Sundays to spend some time with the very nice lady who lives next door to the house, but my schedule is pretty much open.