“The nearer your destination, the more you are slip slidin’ away”. Paul Simon’s words were prescient as if he were singing about the Democrats’ politics.
The rights of common people were respected and protected. Social support was in place. The world was moving toward Democracy. Even diehard communist countries had turned democratic. Russia, the cradle of Communism had tentatively tried Democracy. The world was coming near the Utopia of a happy world society with open borders in Europe and liberal immigration policies in America.
With Professor Francis Fukuyama rhapsodizing Democracy as the end of history, Democrats had prematurely celebrated their illusionary victory, embarrassingly claiming, “We have arrived”. They lost their vigilance and Democracy’s opponents have seized the day and now are on top.
Since Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, the opponents of emancipation and racial equality have never ceased trying with a grim face to undo his revolutionary achievement. Over centuries, such effort was limited to the South until now, with MAGA being the latest wave of White Supremacism, which is no longer localized or pocketed but nationwide.
What makes the difference? -The participation and the support of the billionaires, the Mercers, the Kochs, and their brethren. Unlike previous efforts by White Extremists such as Black Codes, the KKK, Jim Crow laws, “Segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever” George Wallace, the modern day extremists don’t just have money, they have powerful brain.
They formed brain trust, did deep research, designed plans, organized and coordinated their executions. They have set out to undo Democracy and Equality of Men (big and smaller) and Women like planning and executing the Manhattan Project. It’s not a coincidence that the Republican Senate secured a 6/9 (not 5/4) majority in the Supreme Court. And it is not out of a sense of civic duty to obey the law that MAGA has not violated any law in deporting immigrants (even citizens), arresting an elected mayor, prosecuting judges and a U.S. Representative, wresting a U.S. Senator to the ground in public. It is MAGA’s well-executed discipline, so as to achieve the ultimate goal without side effects affecting or sidelining the outcome. If any inadvertent or even willful violation of the law happens, here comes the Supreme Court, whose saying IS the law.
In other words, MAGA has tried to stay within the law as much as necessary to subvert the law and ultimately the Constitution. Their march to obliterate Democracy has been relentless, well thought out, and seemingly unstoppable.
The Democrats, heretofore happy go lucky fellows, must now look for ways not just to be relevant but to survive.
Two alternatives come to mind.
First recourse: the help of Democratic billionaires. The two blockbuster billionaires, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg, seem to be out of reach. For a man who could only find happiness by turning his wedding into the most expensive one in the history of mankind, in a place where no one welcomes his wedding, is way out of touch with ordinary people. The MAGA phenomenon is, first and foremost, an ordinary people’s problem. For them, happiness can be found easily and simply by holding hands with their beloved walking down the cobblestoned Bank Street in the West Village or watching the sun setting on the beach in Isla Vista, Santa Barbara. So, there is no connection there.
Mr. Zuckerberg once said that he wanted to wear casual clothes instead of formal attire, to reduce “decision fatigue” so that he could focus his energy on more important decisions. Now, Mr. Zuckerberg has turned about-faced and has been paying excessive attention to upgrading his stylish wardrobe, timepieces and jewelry. The Democrats may be wary of his long-termed commitment to their cause. These two billionaires don’t have the priorities or passion of a Democracy’s defender.
Theoretically, Elon Musk could be a nice recruitment as he has fallen out with the MAGA crowd. But ideologically, the Democrats don’t feel comfortable with him. Besides, the President has warned Mr. Musk not to support the Democrats. Chutzpah and unpredictable as he is, Mr. Musk nevertheless will certainly pay particular heed to the warning as no matter how rich he is, “serious consequences” are not something he should ignore.
So, the task lies with the billionaires who feel that Democracy’s stake is theirs as well, a Bill Gates or a Steven Spielberg for example. Or some cool billionaires still unnoticed by the public or by MAGA.
If no capable rescuer comes along, the Democrats still have a Second Recourse, not in a human but an idea: “Truth, Goodness, and Beauty”, which is in fact not just mere idea but a central triad in classical philosophy and Christian beliefs that these transcendentals are built into the fabric of existence of mankind.
MAGA has gone against the Truth for so long and not reaped any consequences. Now they simultaneously violate the other Two: Goodness and Beauty.
Remember “America First”? It has turned out, to MAGA, that America means billionaires not common folks. Sky high tariffs, tremendous tax cuts for the rich leading inexorably to an expected $4.2 TRILLION Deficit, a national debt of 150% of the U.S.’s GDP, DOGE’s federal employee “massacre”, Medicaid huge cut, does any of them serve common folks first? So, not just the Truth but the Goodness has clearly been trampled on.
Now, MAGA has defamed Beauty, the third leg of the interconnected Transcendentals. It kicked a lonely man out of the country who has pushed his ice cream cart in Los Aneles for 20 years, like kicking a dog while MAGA is promenading along the same street, for no reason other than its being ugly and rude. His existence in America would not increase criminality in the streets but definitely provide happiness to children – or even corporate executives coming down from their high towers for a break. It deported a seamstress with a child. How does that serve the declared policy of “Take the Country Back” or “America First” or clearing the street of criminal elements?
Symbolic of the Ugliness is the Secretary of Homeland Security showing off her honcho image and, for lack of a better word, macho personality posing in front of a prison with shaved and tattooed prisoners in the background, rolling up her sleeves to show her slender arms wearing a Rolex, her brunette hair flying in the wind. Then, the incidents of MAGA treating its Democratic opponents as described above, probably legal or should be legal if the case goes to the Supreme Court, are clear evidence of a serious violation of Beauty.
The lack of all these Transcendentals should be cause for MAGA to be indicted by Christianity unless Americans don’t call themselves Christians anymore.
It sounds unrealistic. But Democrats are desperate. They should grasp anything and try everything to survive.
JOHN P. LE PHONG (This article is posted in Facebook, X, and thelephongjournal.com)
