A few days ago, I was at work and a co-worker, as they are wont to do, started talking about Trump. A manager said “Don’t talk politics at work.” Fair enough, right?
Since I often think before I speak, I didn’t come up with a response until just this morning, when I realized that talking about Trump was, in fact, not talking about politics at all.
Because Trump is no longer a president. He is no longer a political representative of the people, and, in fact, he conned many of these people who voted for him into thinking that he actually was their public servant who would represent their interests (until he turned on them, too).
This is not an opinion. This is not a matter of semantics or word play or “fake news”.
It is an unequivocal fact.
Donald Trump is a militarized tyrant who is waging war against the Constitution he swore to uphold, he is waging a complete and total war against our (yes, OUR!) government, he is waging a complete and total war against the people who reside in this country, both citizens and noncitizens alike, and he is committing multiple acts of war (war crimes) on the international stage as well.
He has broken his oath of office multiple times. He is not upholding the Constitution, he is blatantly defying Congress and the myriad of other checks and balances on his power.
Likewise, his so-called administration is no longer a presidential administration. They, like Trump, are acting solely in their own (financial) self-interests and they are also swept up in this vicious cycle created by Trump in that they have to continue to maximize their power in complete disregard of the government, the Constitution, and the will of the people. Because if they don’t, if they lose control of their power at this point, they will have to face prosecution for their crimes.
I will stress this again. Donald Trump, J.D. Vance, Katherine Leavitt, Pam Bondi, Kristi Noem, Pete Hegseth, Stephen Miller, Tom Homan, Kash Patel, Mike Johnson, and many more have lost the right to be called duly elected representatives of the people of the United States. They are this nation’s–this nation’s era of–war criminals.
Our (actual) elected representatives like Illinois Governor JB Pritzker are holding fast to their sworn oath to uphold the Constitution and to protect and serve the people who live in the United States, while not violating the structure and operation of the government like Trump and his corrupt cronies are.
We, though, are the people. We are the ones who aren’t politicians. We are the ones with the power and the freedom to fight back against Trump who has crowned himself king, and surrounded himself with a court of greedy sycophants who want a piece of King Trump’s golden cake.
I’ll remind you again. Trump doesn’t just want to be king–he already is.
He is the one that is the “clear and present danger” to the United States.
It is our duty to stand up to kings, no matter which side of the political spectrum you fall on.
Furthermore, this war against our constitution, against the residents of this country, against Congress, our government, and our system of checks and balances, is all being conducted under the guise of the Republican Party, as a way to mislead the people of this country that they are actually voting for their representatives that reflect and support their Republican values. Trump and his royal court have hijacked, and continue to control, the Republican Party and many of the Republican politicians in order to put themselves as kings, hell bent on ruling with the full, and often lethal/unchecked, power of an authoritarian regime.
Make phone calls to your representatives, continue to educate yourself on the deplorable actions of Trump and his cronies by listening to podcasts like the DAM Digest, The Left Hook, The Meidas Touch, and many more, attend nonviolent peaceful protests, and, above all, keep exercising your right to free speech, and vote these tyrants out of the power they’ve seized over the past nine or so months.
And, lastly, talk. Talk to your neighbors, talk to the members of your community, talk with your representatives, talk with your elders, your friends, your families, and your coworkers, even if you’re scared, even if you feel disempowered, even if you feel inexperienced in the world of politics (like me!).
Because it is our silence that makes us complicit to Trump’s destruction of our democracy, and it is by building community at the grassroots level that we can help defeat this depraved authoritarian regime.
#NoKings
#AntifaWasHere
https://daniellemoodie.substack.com/
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/
https://thelefthook.substack.com/
Willow Croft 
This is a powerful and impassioned piece — a true call to conscience and civic responsibility. 💬✨
Your writing pulses with urgency and conviction, carrying the unmistakable voice of someone who refuses to look away from injustice. The clarity with which you separate opinion from fact, and passion from recklessness, gives your message both moral weight and intellectual strength.
What stands out most is how you remind readers that democracy is not self-sustaining — it depends on awareness, dialogue, and courage. Your insistence on peaceful action, informed engagement, and community-building grounds your argument in hope rather than despair. That balance between outrage and optimism is what makes this so compelling.
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While I agree that people should not sit quietly, we should be talking about what’s happening with our government and the complete corruption of everything we hold dear. We should be acting as we can to resist that corruption.
But that is IF you feel safe to do so. IF your workplace wouldn’t retaliate for disfavored views, and IF the people around you can be trusted to remain civil. For some of us, those are a lot of IFs.
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Bravo! Silence does equal complicity. It is scary to talk about, and especially when having a conversation with a Trumpster, who can argue anything in their favor by absolutely refusing to listen to reason. That’s the scariest part to me.
HOWEVER, now it’ll be interesting to see how many stay loyal to him now that they have to deal with loss of benefits, increase in healthcare, increase in food costs, travel disruption, etc.
I love watching the videos of Chicago residents confronting ICE goons. We all need to have that level of ferocity!
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