E. Scott Cracraft: Resistance is not futile

When those of us who oppose Trump and his mean, bullying, racist neo-fascist words and action, many Trump supporters think that “resistance” means violence. Trump and his supporters are disseminating false propaganda that the worst is going to happen if Trump is removed from office or fails to win reelection. Trump wants his followers to think that because, once he leaves office, he could face serious criminal charges at both the state and federal levels.

The “worst” these people fear takes many forms. Some say that liberals and progressives will kill all conservatives. Rev. Jim Baker, a convicted religious scam-artist, tells his listeners that, if Trump is removed from office or not reelected, it will hasten the “end of the world.”

If Trump is not reelected, it is doubtful the world will come to an end. But if, on the other hand, he is reelected, it might be closer to the truth. At the least it would be the end of the democratic world and weaken the rule of law. Political corruption would be even worse than it is now. Trump would continue to refuse to take the necessary steps to deal with global climate change.

Despite dire warnings from members of the Cult of Trump, almost all political violence in this country is coming from the right, not the left. A few incidents of antifascist violence in no way equates to the violent and toxic atmosphere which has been created by Trump and his followers. After all, it is Trump supporters, not Trump resisters, who are threatening armed violence if they do not get their way in 2020. Some of these are the same people who were promising a “Second Amendment solution” if Hillary was elected in 2016. Where is the violence, really coming from?

The overwhelming majority of those who want Trump out of office prefer to accomplish it legally and constitutionally, such as the impeachment hearings. They do not want a “civil war” with conservatives. It is the right that is talking civil war. The overwhelming majority want to remove Trump peacefully, legally, and constitutionally. That is what the impeachment proceedings are all about. Far from being a coup or a witch hunt, it is Congress exercising its constitutional oversight of an executive branch that is out of control.

So, supporting the impeachment efforts not only against Trump but also against Pence, Barr and others in his administration is a peaceful and legal form of resistance. Voting next year, not only against Trump but against any of his supporters at the federal, state, and local level is a legal and peaceful way to oppose not only Trump but the toxic movement he has created. We must make sure that we elect a president with the courage to not pardon Trump or members of his administration and at the same time demand that a full-fledged criminal investigation into all their activities be conducted.

For this to be successful, progressives must be practical; we can vote our consciences in the upcoming primary and we should demand that the Democratic establishment listen to us. But, next November, we need to support whomever runs against Trump. For many Trump resisters, this may mean voting for the “lesser of two evils.” While one can understand and admire the principled approach of those who will not, history has demonstrated that only one of the two major parties can win the Presidency.

The reason that Trump won in 2016 was that many liberals and progressives were too “pure” to vote for Hillary or just sat home because they assumed Hillary would win. Once Trump is out of office and hopefully prosecuted, progressives can then begin to work out the differences between themselves.

Another way to resist Trump is for us all to start demanding the I.R.S. do its job and start pulling the tax-exempt status of churches and televangelists who publicly endorse Trump from their pulpits and use fear to make their followers vote for Trump and other extreme politicians. Part of the “deal” of our tradition of separating church and state is that the state doesn’t interfere with religion but that in return, religion does not get partisan.

Clergy certainly can talk about political and social issues, but they cannot tell their flocks who they should vote for. Since some of these “preachers” are just scam artists running lucrative businesses in the name of religion and not sincere, stripping their organizations of tax-exempt status is also a way to get the dishonest ones to pay their fair share of taxes.

Still another way we can resist Trump is to start at the local level. When someone defends Trump or denies his criminality, we can all be brave enough to respond to them and vigorously expose their lies and misinformation. That includes many people who write to this paper. We should not be afraid to resist these local bullies either.

Moreover, we can vote with our wallets. While large national boycotts of national companies who support Trump might be hard to organize, we can act at the local level. Find out which local businesses support Trumpism and our local right-wing extremists and do not do business with them and let them know why.

Finally, we need to once again marginalize the hate that used to be marginalized but which Trump is clearly inciting and making “mainstream.” As individuals, we need to speak out against hate. When someone expresses something racist, sexist, homophobic or anti-immigrant, we should respond politely but firmly. We should tell them that we will not tolerate such hatred in our homes, schools, workplaces or personal and social lives. We can remain friends and maintain family relationships with them but we certainly do not have to tolerate their hatred. We certainly do not have to tolerate the fascist extremists in their number.

We must work on making Trumpism as attractive as the bubonic plague. If we do it right, Trump resistance will not be futile.

E. Scott Cracraft is a citizen, taxpayer, veteran and resident of Gilford.