Almost immediately upon becoming president for a second time, Donald Trump launched his promised “shock and awe” campaign to great effect. The country’s political and social institutions, democracy, the rule of law and the American people’s collective sense of normal and routine have been overwhelmed. So much has happened so quickly that it is difficult to process it all.
The Democratic Party, which should be strongly resisting Trump and the MAGA Republican’s assaults on democracy and the country’s governing institutions and laws, appears to be shellshocked. The Democrats have been in such a state since they lost the presidential election (and complete control of Congress) in November. These first few weeks of Trump’s shock and awe campaign have left the Democrats even more confused and inert.
