Whaddya mean “we,” old white man?
First of all, I should define who “we” are: not just the Democratic Party, or Progressives, or the Left, or Never Trumpers, or all the miscellaneous ragers here on Substack, but everyone who has taken up the fight against tyranny – left, center, right, up, down, and whatever dimension you can think of.
I should also define what “win” means: not just edging out the Trump-infected GOP in the next midterms, returning us to the dreary business-as-usual status quo, waiting for that so-called “pendulum” to swing, wondering if the next election will be a narrow one or another “wave” election.
What counts as a W?
My definition of “winning” here means something that the beltway pros can’t imagine – the permanent disgrace and humiliation of Trump and all of his fellow parasites, followed by an infestation-proofing of our system for once and for all.
Is this a fantasy? Maybe. But if we can’t conceive of it and make appropriate plans, then we are just generating gales of hot air. Before even thinking of progressive policy dreams, there are deep defects in our system that must be changed, and when the next opportunity comes, we had better not blow it.
My Agenda
So here is my agenda for things to fix on the Day After, not necessarily in order of priority, but just in the order of how much they irritate me.
Corruption of the Pardon Power: this has been an orgy of Trumpian abuse since 2017, and has been turbocharged in 2025. The pinnacle was the pardon of the January 6 insurrectionists, creating a fanatically loyal paramilitary force he can call on when needed. Congress must legislate clear constraints on this power.
Corruption of the SCOTUS: despite occasions of reasonableness from Roberts and Coney Barrett, these instances pale in comparison to the way they 86’d Trump’s just indictments, culminating in the despicable immunity decision in June 2024. Court reform legislation must be enacted by Congress.
Gerrymandering: we have been tiptoeing around this for decades, but it must be slain and buried once and for all.1 It was bad enough when both parties still kept within the bounds of normal politics, but now that the GOP has been Trumpified, it cannot be allowed to continue rigging districts. Again, Congress can fix this.
Campaign Money: following the awful Citizens United decision, the oligarchy now has full control of the information ecosystem. PACs and phony “educational” 501(c)3 organizations have overwhelmed regular campaigns. The media are powerless and/or unwilling to confront this because they are part of the problem.2
Electoral College: Our Founders had a notion that a “college” of educated gentlemen, motivated by honor, could be relied on to reject “a man unprincipled in private life” who will “mount the hobby horse of popularity”3 to destroy all they worked for. This is undoubtedly the most difficult reform of all because completely changing it would require a Constitutional amendment, which is almost impossible. There are other workarounds, but they would require collaboration among states.
I can see the worried looks on the party apparatchiks and their consultants upon hearing a proposal like mine. No, they will say, we must focus on Kitchen Table-Pocketbook issues! Voters don’t care about all that ‘democracy’ stuff – Kamala’s loss proves it!
I can also hear the objections of traditional progressives. No, they will say, once we have the power, we have to pass Medicare for All, the Green New Deal, raise the minimum wage, protect reproductive rights, etc.
I reject both of these approaches4 because, as we are seeing right now, policies enacted by an ethical, reality-based administration can be thrown right into the trash by a hostile successor. The only way for enlightened policies to endure is to correct the structural flaws.
If my five reforms were to be put in place (along with others I’m sure I’ve missed), we would have a solid foundation upon which to build a more just nation – and world.
Perhaps even with a wooden stake through its heart.
Most of the campaign spending ends up as ad revenue for media companies or fees for services of PR firms. No wonder they have no incentive to help reduce it!
I’m referring to the political approaches, not necessarily the policies.
Thank you for this deep thinking, Rick! This helps get the conversation going and focuses priorities.
Your last point on the electoral college brings up the topic of sweeping electoral reform. If you do away with the electoral college, would we choose presidents by national popular vote? That would be great, as we'd see presidential candidates pay attention to more than the six or seven swing states that currently determine presidential elections! Another major hindrance to progress is our two-party duopoly. It causes us to lose all nuance in our politics, because people are forced to get behind whichever of the R or D candidates best reflect their policy preferences. In contrast, a ranked-choice type of election system would open the door to political pluralism, where people can actually vote for what they most want and believe in, without the unintended consequence of causing their most despised candidate to win (by depriving the major party candidates of their vote). The electoral outcomes would be nudged towards the middle, because candidates would be motivated compete for people's 2nd or lower choices.