With all of Trump's words recently regarding the value of being a dictator and his hihts he will run for a third term in 2028 (in violation of the Constitution which he ignores and gets away with), is it time for the Democrats to position themselves as a pro-democracy party?
Democrats have been floundering around in search of a positive message. This is one and Trump's recent dog whistle to MAGA dictatorship lovers is an opening. The implied contrast with the GOP is rich. MUFTIC FORUM BLOG: So is Trump now appealing for the pro dictator vote while he says he is not one?
If you want to reach ordinary people with ordinary words, please, I have some pet peeves that need to be retired
Overreach: as President Trump overreaches his power. It is worse than that. How about "power grab" and if appropriate," unconstitutional power grab:"
Unprecedented: So what. Some want to try something new since the old way didn't work:...If the historical reference is the point, how about "never in the history of our
democracy" and if appropriate, "never in the history of our country did we have a president who wanted to be a dictator"
Existential: It meant one thing to Camus and other European novelists of the last century..and it sounds like the speaker has got to be some sort of a fancy intellectual, but how about" happening now" or if appropriate," 3 alarm fire"; or" the threat is right now"
There is a flood of great speaking out by others: here are two that particularly hit me.
Ali Velshi 8/30/25 on MSNBC delivered a blistering, first class opinion asking "Where's the party'. The party: Democrats This is well worth while for you to hear. It expresses the same frustration I have felt regarding a party that can't stop examining its navel and wringing hands, but they are not providing any real leadership to save our democracy. Where is the Party?: Time for Democratic leaders to ‘fight with both hands’ or ‘step aside’
In Trump's words about his views of beging called a dictator, he instead glorifies the concept of becoming one: From
Don’t be fooled by Trump’s dictatorship jokes "
In comments he recently made at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, he said that instead of calling him a dictator, “they should say we’re going to join him and make Washington safe.” This week, he brought it up again — several times. On Monday, during a meeting at the White House, he complained, “They say, ‘We don’t need him, freedom, freedom… He’s a dictator. He’s a dictator.’ A lot of people are saying, ‘Maybe we like a dictator.’” He made a similar comment the next day: “The line is that I’m a dictator, but I stop crime. So a lot of people say, ‘You know, if that’s the case, I’d rather have a dictator.’” He added later, “Most people say, “If you call him a dictator, if he stops crime, he can be whatever he wants.’ I’m not a dictator, by the way.”
But since he believes he has unlimited power to do anything he chooses, it’s pretty clear that he is open to entertaining the notion. As he said on Tuesday during a Cabinet Meeting, “I have the right to do anything I want to do. I’m the president of the United States. If I think our country is in danger, and it is in danger in these cities, I can do it.”
If those aren’t the words of a would-be dictator, I don’t know what would be.
Trump is raising the prospect of a dictatorship over and over again to normalize it, to make it something from which the American people will no longer recoil — and that it’s accepted and even supported by many Americans. Will it work? CNN has reported that Trump’s followers are increasingly in favor of dictatorship — as long as he is the dictator. The question is whether the rest of the country will be so sanguine.
In the meantime, even if he’s not quite embracing the term itself, the president is behaving like a dictator. And so far, he’s getting away with it. ..
Now, Trump senses an opening — and he is going for it."
Another great op ed from the Raw Story: These two factors — and no others — will lead to Trump's defeat | Opinion
Here is my take on whether to keep on the pro-Democracy track or not. Read it.
This Raw Story op-ed is on target, in my opinion. To comment and agree with Raw Story: 1.) Whatever public polls there are, most have Trump's approval rating at mid-40s and disapproval at low 50's. not good enough to cause a blue wave.. That is despite everything thrown at him from calling a dictator, fascist, to Epstein, to being inhumane, and polls showing disapproval of every one of his issue policies. 2) The only two that will make the difference in 2026-2028, his obvious signs of aging (it worked against
Biden, too) and the economy, with or without the tariffs. Consumers will still feel the pain and his failure to deliver. Prices will remain high if they do not get higher.
I will continue to beat the drum for democracy. Maybe someone besides a (D) will listen and care, but so far, that one seems to be preaching to the choir. The choir needs a director, and it has not found its voice, but it is at least attentive and still searching for the right notes.
However, that one... keeping democracy as my drumbeat.. is dear to my heart because I am old enough and have personal experiences with dictatorships to wish it on no one, especially Americans who do not realize or have taken for granted the gem of the system of governance we have had for 250 years. Any American who thinks strongmen, autocrats, and dictators are better than the system we have is...to put it rawly...an ignorant fool. Fundamentally in any of those degrees of dictatorships, people lose their ability to complain without repercussions and to influence or make changes to the policies of the big guy in charge. The big guy controls the power buttons, including the ballot box results and the media message. Instead of government of, by, and for the people, it is government of, by, and for the great leader whose main goal is to stay in power by any means. That is still why I think it is important to brand the Democratic Party as the pro-democracy party, too. In the long term, it will be what counts in our lives. It is the right thing to do.
