An eventful coming week.

November 13, 2023

          Current funding for the government will expire on Friday, November 17 at midnight. Speaker Mike Johnson proposed a “laddered continuing resolution” on Saturday that was met by deafening silence. Well, almost. The White House called it “unserious.” But there was little evidence of legislative activity over the weekend with only five days before shutdown.

          A “laddered continuing resolution” has rightly been called “gimmicky.” It has never been used before. It probably won’t be used now. But since we will hear the phrase “laddered CR” for the next 72 hours straight, let’s take a look at the context and meaning of the proposed “laddered CR.”

          When Congress fails to pass a budget, it frequently passes a “continuing resolution” that keeps the government operating at existing funding levels until Congress can do its job. But Mike Johnson couldn’t pass a regular “continuing resolution” if his job depended on it. So, he has proposed a hybrid resolution that amounts to “kicking two cans down the road” at the same time. Let’s take a look at the possible options to see where Mike Johnson’s hybrid solution fits in:

1. Congress passes a budget on time (which requires twelve appropriations bills to pass). That is a good outcome but nothing to write home about. Passing a budget on time is, after all, one of the primary duties assigned to Congress in the Constitution. Republicans gave up on this option about six months ago.

2. Congress passes some appropriation bills but not all twelve. A partial shutdown results. This happened in 2018-19. Republicans gave up on this option about three months ago.

3. Congress passes no appropriations bills but agrees to a “clean” continuing resolution that funds the government at current levels for a set period. Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy agreed to such a continuing resolution in September and lost his job as a result. Mike Johnson floated this idea last week in a Republican conference meeting, but it was shot down before ever making it out of the GOP conference closed-door meeting.

4. Congress proposes a “laddered” continuing resolution that funds parts of the government for different time periods (here, through January 19 and February 2, 2024) at current levels.  This is what Johnson has proposed. The “laddered” continuing resolution does not include funding for Israel or Ukraine. Nor does it include cuts from current spending levels—a demand made by the most radical members of the House Freedom Caucus. See below.

5. Congress can’t pass a regular continuing resolution or a laddered CR, so it proposes a continuing resolution that cuts spending from current levels. This proposal was championed by the Freedom Caucus under McCarthy (but ultimately rejected). The proposal for “continuing resolution with cuts” may make a return under Johnson if he can’t get support for his “laddered CR.”

          The relative calm (and silence) over the weekend is disquieting. Either the chaos is so bad that no one knows what to do or everyone is confident that Congress will pass a “clean” continuing resolution. After all, what politician wants to be responsible for US troops not being paid during the Thanksgiving holiday?

          This story will dominate the news next week. Apart from the drama of “Will there be shut down or not,” the real story is that Republicans are simply incapable of governing. We need to get that story out to friends, family, neighbors, acquaintances, and complete strangers.

Trump's statements on Veteran’s Day weekend echo Hitler and Mussolini.

          This next story may be upsetting for some readers, so let’s start with a shortened version, followed by a more detailed version. In short, Trump's unhinged statements over Veteran’s Day weekend became even more unhinged as he began to use epithets reminiscent of the hate speech of Hitler and Mussolini. Bottom line: Defeating Trump is a matter of national urgency and human decency. Do not relent in your efforts.

          The longer story is this: In statements at a campaign rally and on his vanity social media platform, Trump used words and phrases favored by Hitler and Mussolini as they attacked their enemies in the run-up to World War II. He said, in part,

We pledge to you that we will root out the communists, Marxists, fascists and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country that lie and steal and cheat on elections. They’ll do anything, whether legally or illegally, to destroy America and to destroy the American Dream.

[T] he threat from outside forces is far less sinister, dangerous and grave than the threat from within. Our threat is from within.

          See Washington Post, Trump calls political enemies ‘vermin,’ echoing dictators Hitler, Mussolini. (This article is accessible to all.) The headline writers at The New York Times did not see the need to raise alarm about the historical antecedent to Trump's speech, writing blandly, “In Veterans Day Speech, Trump Promises to ‘Root Out’ the Left | New York Times.

          As usual, the rest of the Republican Party pretended not to notice that Trump had descended into Hitlerisms in his speech. Republican National Chair Ronna McDaniel dodged questions about Trump's speech by saying (a) she hadn’t read the speech and (b) wouldn’t comment on a Republican candidate involved in a presidential primary for the GOP nomination. See The Hill, RNC chairwoman dodges questions over Trump’s Veterans Day post. Coward!

          Comparisons to Hitler and Mussolini should not be made lightly, but they are appropriate here. For a superb (and unsettling) historical comparison, read Lucian Truscott’s Newsletter, This is how it begins - by Lucian K. Truscott.

          For those whose parents, grandparents, and family members suffered and died under Hitler and Mussolini, Trump's deliberate effort to model his language on theirs is unsettling, even traumatizing. Every American should be alarmed and concerned by this dark turn in the hate speech of a man known for his hate speech.

          Trump must not be normalized. He is not merely a candidate for the GOP presidential nomination—as he is frequently portrayed by major media. His plans are anti-democratic, unconstitutional, and despotic. Despite that fact, in a series of polls over the last three weeks, he has been presented as merely “another horse in the race” to become president—a characterization that is morally and intellectually dishonest. For Jennifer Rubin’s take on the normalization of Trump through polling, read on!

The threat to democracy posed by “normalization of Trump through polling.”

          Jennifer Rubin hits the nail on the head as she takes down the NYTimes poll last week that dominated three days of front-page coverage by the Times. See Jennifer Rubin in WaPo, Opinion  A wasteland: Political coverage ignores the threat to democracy. (Accessible to all.)

          Although Rubin covers themes I addressed last week, she brings her own style and clarity to the problem of normalizing Trump by reducing everything to the “lowest common denominator” in polling.

          Rubin writes,

Last week demonstrated the sorry state of political coverage in this country. The fixation on early, non-predictive polling and endless speculation that President Biden might step away from the 2024 race (contrary to all evidence) created an endless cycle of frenzied coverage, none of it informative about democracy, the issues or the threat of an authoritarian regime in a second Trump presidency.

          After discussing the yawning deficiencies in the Times’ poll (which are substantial) and reviewing the true state of the race, she indicts her colleagues in the news media for ignoring the threat to democracy and focusing on the horse race:

Many media outlets after Jan. 6, 2021, vowed to focus more on threats to democracy. (Occasionally, they do; but it doesn’t dominate coverage, as polling does). However, most are stuck in overhyped horse-race coverage and endless chatter over meaningless Republican debates.

Americans deserve better. Our democracy needs better.

Gifting Heather Cox Richardson’s new book, “Democracy Awakening.”

          In correspondence with a reader over the weekend, the reader noted her interest in reading Heather Cox Richardson’s important new book, Democracy Awakening. However, the reader also noted her inability to purchase the book because she is retired and lives on a fixed income. So, I am sending the reader my personal copy of Democracy Awakening (and I will purchase a replacement copy for my bookshelf—a happy outcome for everyone!).

          If other readers would like a copy of HCR’s book but cannot afford to purchase one, fill out this form: Book Request Form. I will then ask readers of this newsletter to volunteer to purchase and send a copy of Democracy Awakening to readers who would not otherwise be able to purchase the book. I will share your address information with one reader only who volunteers to send a copy of HCR’s book to you.

          For those interested in volunteering to send a copy of HCR’s book to another reader, hold off on contacting me until I know how many books we need to supply. And when we do move to the step of sending HCR’s book to other readers, let’s try to purchase the books from independent bookstores. See the Independent Bookstore locator here: Bookshop.org: Store Locator.

          But—no need to wait! There are people in your life who would enjoy and benefit from receiving a copy of HCR’s important book—they just may not know it!

Quick update on the Grassroots Leaders Forum on Burnout.

          The response to the Grassroots Leaders Forum on Burnout has been amazing! Responses quickly exceeded the 300-person limit on my Zoom account so I temporarily closed the RSVP list. But I took the leap and purchased a much larger license to increase the number of attendees allowed on my account, so I have opened the list to additional attendees. If you tried to sign up but got a “List Closed” message, you can still sign up here: Grassroots Leaders Forum Signup. The Forum will be held on November 30, 2023 at Noon Pacific / 3:00 PM Eastern.

          If you signed up already, I sent you an email on Sunday with important details. Please look for the email in your inbox with the subject line, “Grassroots Leaders Forum on Burnout.”

A request for help in Franklin County, Maine.

          I received a request over the weekend from Vicky Cohen for help (and ideas) to expand the base of committed volunteers in Franklin County, Maine. Vicky’s plea for assistance is important and informative on many levels. If you live in or near Franklin, County, please consider pitching in. But even if you don’t live near Franklin County, the plea by Vicky is revealing on the need for everyone to share in the burden of defending democracy at the local level. If you are moved by Vicky’s plea for help, you can write to her at jcohen@gwi.net.

Here is her comment, in full:

Here goes: I'm the secretary for the Franklin County Democratic Committee (FCDC) in Maine, and I'm also the go-to person for our outreach efforts. Our rural county is sparsely populated, with pockets of poverty, and pockets of prosperity. The former areas have turned Republican, and the latter areas tend towards voting Democrat.

Being a Democrat can feel lonely here, which is why I'm determined to make FCDC a home where people feel invited and empowered. I'm also determined to increase our group of volunteers so that we have a bevy of people throughout the county who are ready to canvass or be part of our candidates' support teams next spring. This means starting now to brainstorm ways to create events that draw in people in a fun, joyful way.  

Along with all my hopes and passion is the recognition that it's simply exhausting to do this work. So, I hope to learn—from this community—ways of lifting up others into leadership positions so that the responsibilities are shared. And I need guidance as to how to create this "home" for Franklin County Democrats—a place of social identity, where we actively work together to elect Democrats at every level of government who share our values for human rights and community prosperity.

All the best, Vicky.

Concluding Thoughts.

          It will be an eventful week. I have not addressed three of the stories that will dominate the news—Israel’s war on Hamas, the tensions in the US over support for Israel and civilian casualties in Gaza, and Trump's presentation of his defense in the New York civil fraud trial. And whatever happens with the budget likely won’t happen until the last minute on Friday evening.

          That’s a lot. But during weeks like the one we are about to experience, the best thing we can do is to be steadfast in the pursuit of our goals. We can’t control much of what is occurring around us. Let’s control what we can. Sooner or later, we become the story, we control the narrative, and we decide the outcome—because we have been disciplined and focused in the pursuit of our goals while others have lurched from crisis to crisis. Stay strong, remain steady, and keep your gaze fixed on the horizon. If we can do that, we will win—it is just a matter of time.

          Talk to you tomorrow!