David Domke on getting rid of Trump

The 2020 presidential election is an election between democracy and authoritarianism, not between Republican and Democrat. We have moved beyond just policy here into a political arena where the heart of America is the prize. Will it be a heart filled with hate, ignorance and greed or will it be a heart filled with tolerance, fairness and information. This is the year to ACT to elect a democratic president - democratic with a small 'd'.

 If you have 8 hours and want to spend it well, watch David Domke's five part lecture series "How to beat an American Demagogue: Donald Trump and the future of democracy." The links are:

 Lecture 1 - https://youtu.be/AG0FNyVI-cE
Lecture 2 - https://youtu.be/qr0rIHb2FAE 
Lecture 3 - https://youtu.be/7WiTcyX8FP0 
Lecture 4 - https://youtu.be/PUOv8DNxKgY 
Lecture 5 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iD2kKSXFPTg

 But if you don't have time for the whole lecture series read this blog.

 David Domke is a professor of Communications at the University of Washington and chairman of the department. He is one of the founders of Common Purpose (https://commonpurposenow.org/about-us). His lecture series is an attempt to define the problem we face having Trump as president and how we must proceed to get rid of him. Unlike other presidents Trump is the first president in the history of America who doesn't believe in democracy. He is an autocrat and attempting to rule from the White House as if he was the king of America and as if there was no 250 year history of a rule of law, backed up by the constitution. Trump has acquired access to the podium of the world's most powerful stage for two reasons: he is a demagogue who managed to get access to media in for the form of Fox News and Twitter to spread his message. America has enough social injustice that there are a large number of citizens suffering enough they grabbed onto Trump's pseudo-Populist rhetoric and pushed him into power.

 Trump is a demagogue in the American tradition of Huey Long, Joe McCarthy, George Wallace, Pat Buchanan and Sarah Palin. Domke defines demagogues as people who follow a five step process:
  1. Vilification: "Those people are the problem - immigrants, press, etc."
  2. Fear Mongering: "those people are destroying America, raping, killing"
  3. Revelation: "only I, with my special knowledge, can save America"
  4. Populist: "I will stand up for the suffering, silent majority"
  5. Performer: on stage 24/7 with the same message
Of these five demagogues of the 20th century, Trump is most closely related to Joe McCarthy. McCarthy hired Roy Cohn to do his dirty work. Cohn practiced dominance, attack and brutality when engaging opponents. Trump hired Cohn in 1971 to defend him against prosecution for violating fair-housing rules in the form of racial discrimination. Trump became a student of Cohn's methods and held him up as a model for all attorneys. When Trump was complaining about Jess Sessions not being loyal enough to him personally, Trump said, "Where is my Roy Cohn?" There is now a documentary film with that same name which looks at the relationship between Cohn and Trump.

 For Domke the civil rights movement is a good example of a difficult task accomplished in American politics. His observation of how this was done yielded seven key points:

1. Observe and gather information
2. Laser focus on concrete goals and communicate these to both foes and friends
3. Choose courage - life is difficult, work to overcome the difficulties
4. Emphasized national goals
5. Act on the plan
6. Sustain the effort despite hardship
7. Reassess and moved forward

Here are some of the things this president has done that have harmed America that need to be changed.

 THIS DEMAGOGUE PRESIDENT
Federal government dominator
Medieval immigration policy
Voter suppression
Non functioning government
Judiciary is white (90%) and male (80%)
Foreign allies are offended
Authoritarians embraced
Press attacked

 WHAT WE NEED (BASELINE) 
Three branches of Federal government
1986 immigration policy
Voter safeguards
Functioning government
Judiciary diversity
Allies respected
Authoritarians monitored
Press tolerated
In order to make these changes we will have to be courageous. Domke chose the book The Road Less Traveled by M. Scott Peck as a guide to doing difficult things in life. He quotes Peck and I am summarizing Domke's quote with the following: 
Life is difficult. Once we accept this we transcend it. Don't complain about the problems; welcome them. Life poses an endless stream of problems and through confronting them and solving them we learn. But, we need to act to solve them.
Once we know the task and have girded ourselves to the difficulties involved in solving them we must act if we want to get rid of this demagogue and return our country onto the path of democracy and not the path of authoritarianism. 
HOW TO BEAT AN AMERICAN DEMAGOGUE

1. Fighting for Democracy - non violently, like Elizabeth Warren/Civil Rights Movement
2. Understand and respect Public Pain - people are suffering and need a plan
3. Call America to its better angels, our ideals. Team of Rivals, Lincoln’s cabinet of opponents
4. Keep discipline and dignified.

The highlighted first letters gives Domke's acronym for remembering what we must do to get rid of the first American demagogue to attain real power at a national level.

 Lastly, it takes Time and Treasure to beat a demagogue. We must give money and time. We must go door to door and get voters to register and to turn out. When the discussion happens we need to argue for electing a democratic president - democratic with a small 'd'. This election is an election between democracy and authoritarianism, not between Republican and Democrat. We have moved beyond just policy here into a political arena where the heart of America is the prize. Will it be a heart filled with hate, ignorance and greed or will it be a heart filled with tolerance, fairness and information. This is the year to ACT.

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