Two days after the 2020 election, Donald Trump fired Mark Esper. That told me Trump was not quitting his effort to become POTUS for life. Normally, when a candidate loses, they stop doing new appointees and go into transfer of power mode. But Trump knew the full extent of his crimes vs democracy and was rightly afraid that once out of power he could be found guilty for treason.
So Trump’s 2022-2024 political rallies are back on. He needs to make sure his base still has his back, because he knows that relationship is the sole source of political power as a private citizen.
Joe Biden should be doing the same thing right now. As a seated POTUS he has huge advantages over Trump in this strategy, but he must recognize the opportunity and not be a “low energy” campaigner. Look at this diagram:
It’s clear Congress is broken by design. They don’t even vote for what their constituents want because their constituents can’t pay them as well as the big donors and corporations. That is corruption, but it’s been going on a long time.
The 6:3 Supreme Court is broken as well. Further, the public does not connect to the Supreme Court. The SCOTUS is an isolated chamber by design.
However, the voting public is aware who is the president and they are generally aware that the US Constitution outlines and protects their rights. That is why you will hear the GOP base cite the first and second amendments to protect their freedom of speech and their right to bear arms. The relationship between the public, the constitution, and the president is tweakable.
FDR had to deal with a divided public in the WW2 era. In 1933, he began to campaign to Americans in what was known as “fireside chats”. Radio was the media employed. It was a hugely effective tool . The fireside chats were a series of evening radio addresses given by Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd President of the United States, between 1933 and 1944. … On radio, he was able to quell rumors, counter conservative-dominated newspapers and explain his policies directly to the American people.
Trump is banned from Twitter and Facebook. Biden is not. Biden has the internet, social media, TV, radio, and the bully pulpit as tools to begin a new series of public awareness campaigns. This stacks up as a huge advantage for Biden but only if he uses these tools with great energy.
His current 33% polls disclose he is not garnering confidence from the public. He needs to fix this just the way FDR did, but with today’s technology. He can do better than FDR if he just sees the opportunity. Trump clearly sees the importance of campaigning to his base. Biden must do the same, better, and to all Americans with special attention given to Trump voters.
Biden can open a two-way channel between the voting public and his office. A simple email form can be created asking the public how they want their government to address the top ten issues* of our times. (*List is my own.)
- Voting Rights -Who should vote? How do we count votes to makes sure they are accurate? Should Gerrymandering be a thing? etc.
- Healthcare – How do we want to treat pre-existing conditions? Do we want Medicare for all or a combination of two systems? How do we rein in prescription drug prices? What do we do when people don’t want healthcare?
- Taxation and Income Inequality – Income inequality is a world-wide issue. Should there be a cap on what SEO’s can make? Should the tax breaks given to big corps by the Trump administration continue, expand or be scaled back? Do we need a more progressive tax system the way it was in the 1950’s? etc.
- Gun Laws – Do the majority of Americans want background checks? Checks on automatic weapons? Better protection in schools? etc.
- Border Security – What do the majority of Americans really want here?
- Infrastructure – American infrastructure is falling behind the pace set in modern countries like Japan. Where and when do we start catching up?
- Money In Politics – Do the majority of Americans like Citizens United and lobbying? Should government reps not be able to serve unless they show their taxes? Should dark money be legal in the USA? Should Congressmen be above legal reproach?
- Internet and Social Media Regulations – What does the majority want?
- Climate Science, Environment Protection and R & D – The planet’s #1 issues need to be addressed by our collective and focused energies.
- Education – We are falling behind in all age levels when it comes to education. How do we turn this around? What are the public’s ideas. Do they support free college for anyone? etc.
Joe Biden can create a form and ask the voting public to weigh in on these top ten issues. He should start campaigning more heavily in Trump country. A simple email address can be advertised. [email protected] Ask people to weigh in with their solutions and ideas on these top ten issues. And yes, ask them what party they identify with. Multiple choice. Democratic. Republican. Other. None. Not eligible to vote. Knowledge is power.
On the first Tuesday ( create good civics habits ) of every month Biden can update the results of the survey. He should make a special point of highlighting what GOP voters really want. This is crucial because this writer is pretty sure both sides pretty much want the same things on all of these issues. He can also make sure the voters in WV and AZ get special attention.
This is how he heals the divide – and fast. This is what FDR did in the 30s with his fireside chats. FDR unified the country over the things we all wanted.
Biden should immediately start quoting the 14th Amendment, section 3, to the voting public. The 14th sec 3 states people who took part in insurrection, or even “comforted” those who did – cannot be in our government. Joe! People on both sides respect the Constitution. You know that. But the only amendments most people know on both sodes are the first, second and the fifth. LOL.
The 14th Amendment, sec 3, – verbatim:
No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any state, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any state legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any state, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof.
But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability. …………….
Please note: Congress cannot vote to “remove such disabilities” if they are not already seated in Congress. Though this add-on sentence at the end of the 14th sec 3 seems to run counter to the spirit of the amendment, it does not apply at all to Trump, who is not in Congress.
The 14th says the many Secretary of State candidates the GOP are supporting because they back the Big Lie, which is part and parcel of the Jan 6 insurrection, cannot be in office. Hence they cannot even run and neither can Trump. But no one says this. Even if this amendment lacks teeth (as heard from lawyers ) , if the public gets behind the 14th, it can grow teeth. Biden needs to learn the power of active populism and fast.
Unifying the public over what they really want from their government will expose Trump’s and the GOP’s election lies for what they really are: an attempt to keep the US citizenry divided so that none of what Americans really want and need to succeed in the 21st century will come to pass.
Prior Post: Urgent Advice for Joe Biden from His Largely Ignored Democratic Base
Source link
Author: josephsword