We have to keep winning the presidency forever, they only have to win it one more time.

[Frank D. Lincoln]

We Democrats have to keep winning the presidency every four years to keep our democracy, Republicans only have to win the presidency one more time to take our democracy away.

(DU: This is a long read. If you don't have enough time at the moment, please bookmark this thread and come back to it when you have more time. Thanks.)

If we can't win the presidency in 2024, 2028, 2032, 2036, etc., then when we eventually lose, Republicans will implement a brutal dictatorship in America with a future version of Project 2025 that might make the current version look like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. And by then, they could unleash on us a future Republican dictator so fierce and ruthless in character, that person might make Donald Trump and J.D. Vance look like choirboys by comparison. The Heritage Foundation has consolidated their control of the Republican Party such that every future Republican presidential candidate will be beholden to them to some degree. This is what our elected democratic leadership needs to be thinking about and formulating a workable plan to counter.

We can't live our lives knowing that every four years our backs are going to be against the wall with our democracy once again on the line. With that approach, it's a mathematical certainty that eventually we're going to lose our democracy.

The simplest way to correct this situation is for our democratic elected officials, once they have control of the presidency and both chambers of Congress, to outlaw the Heritage Foundation, the Federalist Society, and every other subversive rightwing think tank, rightwing society, etc., that poses an ongoing threat to our democracy. Of course, Republicans will challenge the constitutionality of this action and fight it to the U.S. Supreme Court. Keep reading. There's a remedy for this.

In conjunction with the above, Democrats need to pass the Freedom to Vote Act, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, and expand the SCOTUS bench with four PROGRESSIVE justices to give our side control of SCOTUS.

Expanding SCOTUS can be accomplished by passing the Judiciary Act of 2023:

[https://www.markey.senate.gov/news/press-releases/05/16/2023/sen-markey-rep-johnson-announce-legislation-to-expand-supreme-court-restore-its-legitimacy-alongside-sen-smith-reps-bush-and-schiff|

Lastly, and admittedly the most difficult, our Democratic leadership needs to formulate and then implement on an ongoing basis a strategy designed to steadily increase the number of Democratic seats in U.S. Congress and state legislatures culminating in someday Democrats being able to amend the U.S. Constitution to make their policies permanent as well as permanently keeping the Heritage Foundation, the Federalist Society, and other subversive rightwing organizations outlawed at the constitutional level. These constitutional changes can also include reversing the SCOTUS ruling on presidential immunity, reversing the SCOTUS ruling legalizing after-the-fact bribery, abolishing the electoral college, ending Citizens United, restoring Chevron deference, removing the Senate filibuster, and many other things to strengthen and protect our democracy.

Requirements to amend the Constitution:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/our-government/the-constitution/#:~:text=An%20amendment%20may%20be%20proposed,in%20each%20State%20for%20ratification.

An amendment may be proposed by a two-thirds vote of both Houses of Congress, or, if two-thirds of the States request one, by a convention called for that purpose. The amendment must then be ratified by three-fourths of the State legislatures, or three-fourths of conventions called in each State for ratification.

Currently, Republicans control the majority of state legislatures. See information at this link:

https://documents.ncsl.org/wwwncsl/About-State-Legislatures/Legis-Control-2024-8-1-24.pdf

Now, I understand if your initial reaction to the notion of Democrats amending the Constitution is to be dismissive, thinking it's unrealistic, that it can't be done. Warning: if we think like that, Republicans will someday own us. Here's why.

Our Democratic leaders coming up with a workable plan to amend the Constitution is vitally important to counter something that Republicans have been working on since 2013: the Convention of States in which they plan to make their extremist far-right policies permanent by enshrining them in the U.S. Constitution. If I remember correctly, I think it was Thom Hartmann who wrote that some Republicans, possibly not directly connected with the Convention of States, are even advocating rewriting the whole Constitution from scratch. This would basically allow them to enshrine Project 2025 (or something much worse) in the U.S. Constitution.

That latter point is important because the next Republican president will implement Project 2025 (if Trump wins but I don't think he will) or a future version of Project 2025 if Trump loses. If Republicans can then find a way to control election results at all levels of government, then that would enable them to expedite getting control of the number of state legislatures (38) to amend the U.S. Constitution and enshrine their toxic policies in it.

I think what I just stated is enough motivation to get our Democratic elected officials to get busy on doing what they need to do to amend the Constitution before Republicans do. DU, regarding the Convention of States, please click on the link below, scroll down, and really look at it. You'll see how serious, organized, methodical, and determined Republicans are to amend the U.S. Constitution and they've been making progress (look at their Progress Map). They're halfway there. But as I indicated before, the next Republican presidency and changes to the executive branch might enable them to get the rest of the way faster. We Democrats must get there first. But we'll never beat them at this if our Democratic elected officials are not even aware that they're in this particular race.

[https://conventionofstates.com/|

DU, Republicans are working diligently on ending our democracy and completely controlling every aspect of our daily lives. On the front end, they're trying to destroy us with Project 2025. On the back end, they're trying to destroy us with the Convention of States. They're patient, they think long-term. Eventually, they're going to win if we don't stop them. To stop them, we have to outsmart them. We need to get our Democratic elected officials working on these things.

You can use the link below to contact your elected officials and get them working on this:

https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials

But as they say, DU, Rome wasn't built in a day. Our current task is to decisively beat Republicans at the ballot box in November, elect Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, keep the U.S. Senate, regain the U.S. House, and increase the number of state legislatures under Democratic control.

[Think. Again.]

1. Yes, Step One: Win the Presidency, Win the House, and Hold the Senate...

....and when we have finally regained control of this currently out-of-control trainwreck, we can't let our guard down.

Hopefully the excitement of these few short months of the Harris/Walz campaign will settle into a more determined political engagement from our younger Americans, and the work we are doing now will pay off with a progressive, positive, and productive political culture for our future.

[Lonestarblue]

4. I'm hoping for a Senate majority so Harris can get things done instead of suffering constant Republican obstruction.

If Republicans retake the Senate majority, her cabinet appointments and other nominations will be held up indefinitely. No judges will be confirmed.

The good news is that 2026 will offer a better opportunity for Democrats, with (as of now) 13 Democrats up for re-election versus 20 Republicans.

[BlueWavePsych]

8. Yup!

[rainin]

2. We'll lose if we don't address the propaganda that passes as news. Perhaps start with allowing public figures

a mechanism to fight back when large media companies repeat lies about them. There should be some obligation to tell the truth.

[gordianot]

3. It is a ticking time bomb.

No matter what happens to Trump something as deviant is waiting for a chance.

[DeepWinter]

5. I differ

The political pendulum always swings. This is a good ting. It keeps everyone on their toes for the next fight. "Always winning" sounds like a single party autocratic government, which would slide into a nightmare. We really don't want that. Or, I don't. Be careful what you wish for.

[Think. Again.]

9. I disagree...

...there's nothing that implies we must always slide into an autocracy.

I think it's perfectly reasonable to continually work on improving a positive situation, without having to flip around between positive and negative on a swinging pendulum for eternity. We can make political goodness the default if we want to.

[DeepWinter]

11. All I'm saying is

a single party having all control all the time is not democratic Nirvana. I prefer the political pendulum. It points out where you need to improve, albeit, in an uncomfortable way. There is value there in this function of Democracy.

[TheKentuckian]

13. There is no pendulum. This is a mental construct.

Even if there were some magical swinging thingy in the sky there is no simple "swing back" from fascism.

Kansas went bye-bye years ago and it isn't set to return anytime soon so we must play the hand we have not one we think should have been dealt rather than hoping for some mystical device to do whatever its thing is whenever it decides to do so.

[kcr]

26. In an uncomfortable way, hmm?

"Uncomfortable" means women dying because they can't get access to healthcare. "Uncomfortable" means children starving. "Uncomfortable" means more homeless. "Uncomforable" means the end of public schools. More wars. More deaths from deregulation. More poverty. More income inequality. Uncomfortable means they win and destroy our democracy and there is no more pendulum. Not with them in charge.

The pendulum doesn't have to swing between all the uncomfortables above. The Democratic party is big enough that the pendulum can keep on swinging without all those uncomfortables. We can never give in. Not once.

[dsc]

6. This is what Pelosi meant when she said she wants a strong GOP

the current GOP is a complete danger to the Republic and always has a coin flip chance of controlling government (in the case of the Senate a better than coin flip). We need a GOP than can be trusted with the government even if we won't love what they do with it.

[DeepWinter]

7. Thank you

Perhaps better said than I in post 5.

[Frank D. Lincoln]

16. Agreed.

I don't have a problem with a strong GOP, with the current two-party system, with bilateral solutions to our nation's problems, such as Democrats and Republicans reaching across the aisle and coming up with that bilateral solution on immigration (which, unfortunately, Trump had shut down).

But as you rightly point out, the current GOP is a complete danger to the Republic. In my opinion, that is due to the influence (some would argue control) of the Heritage Foundation over the GOP. The whole point of Project 2025 is to end our democracy and turn it into a permanent autocracy. That's why both Biden and Harris have warned us in no uncertain terms that our democracy is in peril if Trump wins. But even if we defeat Trump in November, the Heritage Foundation would still be there to influence (or control) the next Republican presidential candidate such that our democracy would once again be threatened with autocracy with a future version of Project 2025. Countering that situation is what my OP is about.

[valleyrogue]

23. It is the theocrats that continue to be a problem.

The "Christian Reconstructionists" are out to destroy our democracy, by hook or by crook, and the body politic has to be rid of these theocrats once and for all, starting with Mike Johnson. They have got to be voted out and marginalized.

[Frank D. Lincoln]

25. You're definitely right about that.

The more I learn about what's really going on, the more it confirms what you stated. This is especially true regarding what I've learned about Leonard Leo and his theocratic agenda. Also, Project 2025 is chock full of Christian nationalism.

And back when the U.S. House was in turmoil with all the Kevin McCarthy drama, I was shocked when House Democrats helped install Mike Johnson as House Speaker. Bad though Kevin was (and he was awful), I would have preferred him to Mike Johnson.

If Kamala wins and Dems keep the Senate and regain the House, that'll provide a great opportunity for us to start getting out of the mess we're in regarding the theocrats.

[Cosmocat]

10. 100%

Since DU's inception, we have seen the high of BHO getting elected twice, but otherwise Republican's have had a clear majority in state assemblies and governorships and had control of the House and Senate more often than not.

And, along with that they have severely damaged the institutional norms that always existed at the heart of American democracy. The honor, the integrity, the belief in free and fettered elections and the transfer of power.

As much as we were up in arms over Bush II, Iraq and everything else, this country is in a MUCH worse place today.
They attack in SO MANY ways, through the churches, through well established and funded propoganda media, through nonprofits, through the countless think tanks.

This is NOT a knock on democrats, but the best way to describe what we have been dealing with for going on a half century would be:

Some local Ds get together and after talking about it, spend a Saturday going out and planting trees to help address climate change, then having a few beers afterwards, while a group of "conservatives" go to a high end retreat and spend the day figuring out how to make it harder for minorities to vote.

They are like cockroaches, they survive the blockback from their lunacy, and get on with doing their thing. Even if Trump loses this election they will keep going and going and going.

[DownriverDem]

12. What's wrong

with white people? Do we have to wait for them to die? (I'm white)

[TheKentuckian]

14. The only possible plans for Democrats or anyone is

Two-thirds of both houses of Congress can propose an amendment, or two-thirds of state legislatures can ask Congress to call a national convention.

Three-fourths of state legislatures must approve an amendment, or three-fourths of state ratifying conventions must approve it.

That or a Constitutional Convention.

The numbers to reach threshold are what they are so what "workable plan" are you tasking Democrats with?

There are no work arounds that evade the need to get a lot of Republicans or Republican controlled states onboard.

[Frank D. Lincoln]

15. Convention of States.

If you haven't read that part of my OP yet, please scroll down to where I discuss the Convention of States. I also included a link to their website.

One of my ideas is for Democrats to beat them to the punch.

[TheKentuckian]

18. 3/4 is still 3/4, that means a whole lot of Republican buy in.

Beating them to the punch doesn't change much that I am seeing or have ever learned other than we would be the ones crashing the Constitutional order with no plan to put it back other than hoping the right turns over a new leaf.

[Frank D. Lincoln]

19. How is abolishing the electoral college "crashing" the Constitutional order?

That's quite a way to spin it.

If we didn't have the electoral college, Hillary would have won and we wouldn't even be still dealing with Trump and his threat to end our democracy.

Keeping the status quo is how eventually Republicans will impose their fascism on us.

I didn't think it was a radical idea that the person with the most votes should win the presidential election, be that a Democrat or a Republican. What was I thinking?

[TheKentuckian]

21. Because it opens up everything not just the piece we don't want.

You are just missing or ignoring my point in favor of one you'd prefer to argue.

I do not support the Electoral College but that doesn't mean I am required to golf clap your non solution because you are adamant about it.

Democrats alone cannot fix this. There is no such math.

[Frank D. Lincoln]

22. I don't mind people disagreeing with me but now you're becoming rude.

Some people can't disagree without becoming disagreeable. You're that type of person.

I just put you on full ignore.

[Elessar Zappa]

17. We can't ban those organizations, nor should we.

Right wing speech is free speech. Even the liberal justices would throw out a law that banned those things.

[Frank D. Lincoln]

20. Free speech is one thing. Conspiring to end our democracy is quite another. nt

[valleyrogue]

24. What these theocrats propose isn't "free speech." It is literally overthrowing the country.

Understand what the theocrats ARE. They are for mass genocide of groups they hate (gays, feminists, adulterers, etc.) plus they want to bring back slavery because they consider Black people as inferior.

"Free speech" is a myth. There is no such thing as unfettered "free speech."

[Aristus]

27. I'm not sure I agree 100%.

I think once Trump dies, the feverish, animalistic devotion to him among the below-averages will melt away.

They’ll go back to their tractor pulls and pointless, decades-long blood feuds. And more mainstream Republicans like Adam Kinzinger will head the party again.

Maybe we’ll see the day when the Republican Party sees the Democratic Party as the opposition again, instead of Newt Gingrich’s mandated “enemy”.

Trump is the unifying factor for millions of substandard people. He won’t live forever.