It’s easy to be depressed, discouraged, dumbfounded by the cruelty and brainlessness of Trump and the people around him.
But today I want to celebrate what may be a turn in the Trump tide.
Elon Musk had to exit Trump world not because he couldn’t continue as a special government employee (there are a hundred ways around this), but because most Americans have become infuriated with Musk’s attacks on things they value, like veterans benefits and Social Security. Musk had become a huge political liability.
I call this progress.
Musk also had to leave because Tesla was tanking, partly thanks to you and so many others who wouldn’t be caught dead in a Tesla after what Musk has done.
I call this progress, too.
The nation’s major trade court has found that Trump doesn’t have authority to impose tariffs (i.e. taxes) on American consumers. Although a court of appeals has temporarily paused the ruling, it makes mincemeat out of Trump’s attempts to “negotiate” tariffs with other nations. Why negotiate when Trump may well lose his authority?
More progress.
And Trump’s so-called “Big Beautiful Bill” — which, if enacted, would be the largest redistribution of income in American history, from the poor and working class to the rich and ruling class — is bogged down in the Senate.
Republican senators are finding it impossible to accomplish three things simultaneously: protect Medicaid, deliver a huge tax cut mainly to the rich, and prevent the budget deficit and national debt from exploding. Two of the three are possible, but not all three. (Even Musk understands this.)
Which means the bill’s chances of survival are plummeting. And its poison pill to render the courts powerless to enforce orders may never see the light of day.
Even more progress. .
Trump’s polls are plummeting. The vast majority of Americans are rejecting him.
When I say the tide is turning, I don’t mean we’re out of danger. As we know only too well, Trump gets even wilder and crueler when he feels cornered — and he’s capable of just about anything.
And his main henchmen — Stephen Miller, Russell Vought, and JD Vance — are as ruthless and authoritarian as he is.
We still have our work cut out for us. We must continue to be vigilant and courageous. We must stand up to his neofascism and call out those who are unwilling to do so.
We must continue to protect the vulnerable — including people in our community exposed to Trump’s dragnet, and judges whose lives are being threatened because of Trump’s vicious rhetoric.
We cannot relax.
But at least we can breathe a bit easier today. The forces of sanity, decency and the rule of law are pushing back.
Be safe. Be careful. Hug your loved ones. We will prevail.
Robert Reich is a professor of public policy at Berkeley and former secretary of labor. His writings can be found at https://robertreich.substack.com/