Now Is No Time To Play Dead

No one is coming to save us - but we can save ourselves.

“Don’t wait for anyone to save us. If our Constitution and our democracy are to be saved, it will be the people to the rescue. That means all of us. Why us? Because we can not lose faith in our own power. And you have plenty of power.”

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Perhaps the most tragic mistake made since Donald Trump won the Presidency in 2016 was the failure and inaction to prosecute the case against him immediately after his failed January 6th coup attempt when he was at his weakest. The Gallup Poll in January 2021 showed clearly that Trump’s approval had collapsed to a mere 35% favorable rating as he was voted out of office and then staged his failed and traitorous attempt to remain in power. Instead of launching a concerted all-out attack both legally and politically to define and disqualify him as the dangerous threat to our nation that he is, he was allowed and enabled to launch the big lie and continue his assault. Silence and inaction from too many in that moment was a massive mistake.

Today, too many of our leaders are making that same mistake again. We, the people, can not and must not make that mistake too. We cannot stay silent or play dead.

Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut gets it:

“The idea that we should sit back and let them collapse is ridiculous.” He told Ben Rhodes in a NY Times piece.”They are going to define their project as something legitimate if we don’t define them as something corrupt.”

Once again the battle of definition is now. Not six months from now and not in 2026. Yes, 77 million Americans voted for Donald Trump. Some voted for him hoping he would burn it all down — but many did not.

Trump is at a very weak moment again. His overall approval has fallen 11 points just since January 20th. That is actually a big fall and the opposite of what historically happens in the early weeks of a new administration. But a deeper look at the numbers shows just how weak and fragile his coalition is after just weeks in office. Among Hispanics, his approval has swung 25 points in the wrong direction. Down to 31% approval and his disapproval with Hispanics is 61%. Stuart Stevens pointed out the fragile nature of Trump’s coalition back in November when he pointed out that Trump needed to make a show of arresting and brutally deporting people to satisfy his MAGA base, but how could he do that and not lose the gains he had made with Hispanics? Turns out he can’t.

The weakness continues with Independent voters. Since January 20th Trump’s approval rating with Independents has swung 13 points to the downside. Independents give Trump just a 37% approval rating and fully 54% of Independents now disapprove of him. The swings are even worse on Trump’s job approval on how he is handling the economy. Overall his job approval has swung 16 points and he is now underwater with all voters, including a 32 point swing among Hispanics, a 27-point swing with young voters 18-29, and 24-points swing with Independents.

And for those who say you can’t trust the polls, the Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index has fallen to a 45-year low. Consumer sentiment is confirming what these poll numbers are saying. Tariffs on and off and on, deporting people many of whom harvest our crops, bird flu, DOGE, and chaos are not helping the economy or helping people with the cost of living.

Donald Trump is vulnerable and weak, and his enablers are starting to feel the pressure on the other side — from the people. As our good friend Simon Rosenberg has been saying for months, now is the time “to get loud and strong.”

So what can you do? Plenty.

First, call out anyone who wants people to stay quiet. I hear people worrying about Bernie or Liz Cheney. I don’t want to hear it. This is not about ideology or party. A coalition that runs the spectrum from Liz Cheney to Bernie Sanders is an American coalition against a coup. That is the only purity test. That should and must unite all of us, and we should stand strong and support every leader with the courage to be loud at this moment, no matter our previous political differences. I battled against Stuart Steven and Rick Wilson for decades in campaigns across the country. We are all on the same side now.

Don’t wait for anyone to save us. If our Constitution and our democracy are to be saved, it will be the people to the rescue. That means all of us. Why us? Because we can not lose faith in our own power. And you have plenty of power.

Get active and get loud. There is a national day of action on April 5th; find an action near you and join it. If you can’t find one - stand up and start one in your area. Be civil and peaceful, but be visibly patriotic.

Call your House and Senate representatives and demand that they hold town halls. Tell them that if they won’t, you will find someone who will, and the town hall will happen without them. People are waking up to what is happening, and thousands are going to town halls and pressuring their representatives to stand up. Join them. Pour the pressure on - now.

Prepare for the rapid economic hit Trump’s agenda will inevitably cause. Spend less and save more. Single-day or brand boycotts are not as powerful as millions of us spending only on what we need, and instead increasing our savings to be prepared to weather the economic chaos of Trump. You have economic power — use it to sustain you, your family, and our community.

Support burgeoning pro-democracy media outlets like you are doing here at Lincoln Square. Billionaires will not jump in to begin building pro-democracy media to fight this. All we have is you. You can amplify what we do here by becoming a paid subscriber so we can produce more shows and content and fuel the pro-democracy movement.

One of the things I have said repeatedly is that the monsters who are doing this to our country own and we rent. They own FOX News, X, Sinclair Broadcasting, and Breitbart and are buying up more and more media outlets that they then use to divide and conquer. We rent by buying ads on FOX and Sinclair and X, and Facebook, putting our money in their pockets. We have to create and own social networks and media. I have started a pro-democracy social network called Sez Us. It’s in your Google and Apple app stores. You can join us and grow a pro-democracy information hub to fight their propaganda here.

But above all else, the most important thing you can do is get local and grow the pro-democracy movement. Our mistake has been to view every two years as an election while what we were facing was a growing movement determined to end democracy for their own power. It will take a pro-democracy movement to defeat them, and you alone can build it: One friend, one family member, one co-worker, and yes, one former Trump supporter at a time. If you do only one thing this week, get one more person to join the pro-democracy movement. Get one more person to understand the stakes. Get one more person to get loud and stand with you and all of us.

There are ways to do that. Get them to join us here at Lincoln Square. Or go with you on April 5th to a National Hands-Off Event or the town hall in your area. Democracy is hard work. Saving it will not be easy - but you can not lose faith in your power to save our country. Now is the time to fight.

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COMING UP THIS WEEK:

Tuesday at 5:45 PM ET - The Lincoln Project Town Hall Event

A Message From The Lincoln Project: We’re officially two months in, and Elon and Trump are still wreaking havoc. Like we’ve always said, in times of darkness, we’re stronger together. That’s why we want everybody to show up to our online town hall this Tuesday, March 25th, at 5:45 PM ET. We’ll answer your questions, lay out our plans, and give you our take on where we see the world right now. RSVP to submit your question in advance and join the live event!

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Tuesday at 7 PM ET - Our Paid Subscribers Only Weekly LIVE

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Wednesday - Maya May is joined by Sen. Mallory McMorrow!