I remain engrossed by columns, mostly printed or re-printed in the liberal-leaning NYT, assessing the Trump II administration.   Most of these are written by Trump critics:  more so by progressives, but a few by the “true” conservatives like George Will, Brett Stephens and David French.  As someone equally distressed and confounded by Trump’s election and subsequent actions, I am nearly as distressed by the reaction of the Progressives, which is to lament with a despairing and desperate “we told you so” what Trump is now doing re DEI, transgender, and the border/deportation.   No matter how good expressing such outrage makes the Progressives feel, they can’t conceivably believe that their passionate pleas will slow much stop or prevent Trump from pursuing his objectives.  That is because Trump’s supporters also desire these outcomes, of at least material movement toward them.  The Progressives cannot or will not recognize that their views on these issues have been rejected by the U.S. electorate.  If anything, were the Democrats to continue to focus on these issues will cement if not increase, rather than diminish, Trump’s support.

The Conservative critics of Trump, on the other hand, have a much better handle on how the Democrats can defeat Trump and his acolytes:

A few Conservative Trump critics urge the Democrats to clearly and loudly reject the Progressives’ position on at least one of their favored issues, such as transgender rights.  More of the Conservative Trumps suggest only that the Democrats not press the Progressive position on these issues.   I side with the latter approach.    

The Conservative Trump critics uniformly urge that Democrats focus on the impact on Trump’s policies on the U.S. working class, especially prices.  I would go further and establish a group of PR folk, economists, and political consultants to prepare and issue comprehensible statements explaining the ramifications to the working class of the measures Trump has taken that will hurt them by raising prices, cutting services and cutting benefits, with no corresponding benefit for them.  

The Conservative Trump Critics do not as often mention that the beneficiaries of Trump’s policies are nearly always businesses and rich folk. ( I attribute this reticence to fear of being associated with Socialism or Marxism, and a belief that Socialist-sounding rhetoric will drive voters toward rather than away from Trump.)  This is unfortunate, because now the only source of messaging on this important and valid point are the discredited Progressive Trump critics, at least some of whom are Socialists.

It is disappointing that both Conservative and Progressive Trump critics pay no attention to the measures that will surely strip consumers of the little protection they now enjoy from the one-sided nature of the seller-buyer relationship in consumer transactions.

Conservative Trump critics emphasize how U.S. interests are directly harmed by Trump’s conversion of U.S. foreign policy, which has been to protect Democracy and trade, to  empowering and enriching the U.S. by bullying Democracies, cozying up to Autocracies, and embarking on a new era of colonial expansion.  By contrast, the Progressive Trump critics emphasize the harm of Trump’s foreign policies to impoverished people in third-world countries, and to the freedoms of the Ukrainian people.   The Trumpsters are indifferent to these concerns, however.