This is how we puncture the media narrative about Democrats being powerless

Major media outlets (ie, New York Times, Washington Post, LA Times) have been critiqued for normalizing the anti-democratic agenda of Donald Trump and then kowtowing to his threats once he was re-elected. But after the president unleashed his "shock and awe" chaos, I noticed an additional pattern emerge. For example, we've seen lots of headlines like this:

"Democrats confront their powerlessness as Trump flexes authority" at CNN

"Powerless, Democrats debate how deep in the wilderness they are" at NYT

"More Democrats fear the party’s image isn’t just damaged – it’s broken" at Politico

There are also some on the extreme left (who make a habit of always criticizing Democrats) that keep telling us the party's leadership is failing us. 

If you focus on that kind of news, you'd have reason to be completely demoralized and not notice that things like this are happening:

WATCH: “When will you stand up to them and say that is enough?” WISCONSIN Republicans Grothman & Fitzgerald run into tough town hall crowds also 👇🏽👀

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— The Tennessee Holler (@thetnholler.bsky.social) February 21, 2025 at 11:43 PM

As I write, Josh Marshall has documented that constituents have disrupted at least five Republican town halls in the past week. There is enough of a pattern that even the New York Times noticed today.

But it's not just regular voters who are exercising their power. The web site "Just Security" has documented 89 court cases filed against the illegal actions taken by the Trump administration - even as Minority Leader Jeffries is doing his job in the House.

Jeffries: "This budget is a betrayal of working-class Americans... We only need 3 House Republicans -- there are 215 Democrats in the House - we only need 3 to stand up on behalf of their constituents, and that is going to be an ongoing effort over these next few days, to identify those individuals"

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— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) February 23, 2025 at 8:36 AM

Perhaps one of the most important things we can all learn from this moment is that it is time to stop looking for a leader to save us. The truth is that it's going to take all of us.

If you need some inspiration along those lines, please watch/listen to the speech Kamala Harris gave Saturday while accepting the NAACP Image Award. 

These are some powerful words from our former vice president (emphasis mine).

This organization came into being at a moment when our country struggled with greed, bitterness and hatred. And those who forged the NAACP, those who carried its legacy forward, had no illusions about the forces they were up against — no illusions about how stony the road would be. But some look at this moment and rightly feel the weight of history. Some see the flames on our horizons, the rising waters in our cities, the shadows gathering over our democracy, and ask, ‘What do we do now?’ But we know exactly what to do, because we have done it before, and we will do it again.

We use our power; we organize, mobilize, we educate and we advocate. Because, you see, our power has never come from having an easy path. Our strength flows from our faith — faith in God, faith in each other, and our refusal to surrender to cynicism and destruction. Not because it is easy, but because it is necessary. Not because victory is guaranteed, but because the fight is worth it.

While we have no illusions about what we are up against in this chapter of our American story, this chapter will be written not simply by whoever occupies the Oval Office — nor by the wealthiest among us. The American story will be written by you, written by us — by we the people.

As we approach the 60th anniversary of the Selma march, her words echo those of President Obama ten years ago.

Selma shows us that America is not the project of any one person. Because the single-most powerful word in our democracy is the word “We.” “We The People.” “We Shall Overcome.” “Yes We Can.” That word is owned by no one. It belongs to everyone.