For the last seven years or so, the American people have been on an emotional and political rollercoaster. The ride has been terrifying. They elected Joe Biden president in 2020 in an effort to escape the thuggery, violence and pathological lies of the Trump era, but Donald Trump and the Republican fascist movement made that impossible. America's democracy crisis as epitomized by Trump's coup attempt and the Capitol attack of Jan. 6, 2021, has not ended.
More recently, the American people again attempted to get off the rollercoaster by turning back the Republican "red wave" during the midterm elections. But this too is just a brief reprieve; the Republican-fascist movement is in no way deterred. Only days after the midterm elections, Donald Trump formally announced his 2024 presidential campaign. Too many political observers responded to Trump's renewed threat with mockery and derision, which is in an example of what psychologists call "defensive contempt." This is a phenomenon where laughter is actually an expression of denial mixed with deep-rooted fear.
