The Democrats Need To Stop Tearing Up Speeches

Published in Aftonbladet
(Sweden) on 6 February 2020
by Lotta Ilona Häyrynen (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Daniel Buller. Edited by Helaine Schweitzer.
The Trump spectacle turned into a massive defeat.

Nancy Pelosi, who is now the most powerful Democratic Party representative, was right all along: An impeachment proceeding against Donald Trump would be a mistake.

She resisted impeachment for a long time while the voices in her party who argued that they needed to do everything they could to hold Trump accountable grew stronger. Domestic pressure combined with the revelation of Trump’s pressure tactics against Ukraine finally forced Pelosi to abandon her previous position.

In the end, the impeachment was never about objectivity or justice. Did Trump abuse his power? Probably. Is he a president with any sort of moral code or genuine concern for the future of American citizens? Absolutely not. But that doesn’t matter. Except for Mitt Romney, the Senate is dominated by people who are either scared of Trump or who are toadying Republicans. As expected, they voted to acquit Trump.

Combined with the voting chaos during the Democratic Iowa caucuses, one can conclude that these spectacles have contributed to strengthening Trump’s corrupt hold on power – rather than weakening it.

The Democrats must now leave this behind and move on.

Meaningless Gestures

The same day the Senate was deliberating on impeachment charges, Trump delivered his annual State of the Union speech in the House of Representatives.* House Speaker Pelosi sat directly behind him, and after the speech she ostentatiously ripped up a copy of the address speech before live TV cameras. It should be added that this took place after Trump had just as ostentatiously refused to shake her hand.

Regardless of Trump’s behavior, similar gestures will not take the Democrats any closer to the White House. In the end it is just a move directed at party activists and more radical voices, and even if you sympathize with the sentiment, Democrats can only win back the presidency by turning to the voters.
Need To Talk Politics

Despite a strong American economy, something Trump is more than happy to boast about, there are many problems in the United States. Mass shootings are increasing and have become deadlier. Opioid abuse has become an epidemic that is crushing life after life. The smallest of hospital bills can cause households to fall apart. The inequality is enormous. Poverty, which hits the African American population the hardest, is ripping whole neighborhoods apart.

Here, only the Democrats have the answers, through policies for free public health care, increased equality in education, lower prescription costs, stricter gun control as well as a decent living wage.

To get this message across, they need to stop ripping up speeches.

To win against Trump you must simply back away from him.

*Editor’s note: Donald Trump delivered the State of the Union Address on Feb. 4. The Senate voted on impeachment charges on Feb. 5.


Demokraterna måste sluta riva sönder tal

Trump-spektaklet blev en dunderförlust

Demokraternas just nu högsta representant Nancy Pelosi hade rätt hela tiden: Riksrätt mot Trump vore ett misstag för Demokraterna.

Länge stretade hon emot processen, samtidigt som rösterna i det egna partiet blev allt starkare för att göra vad man kan för att ens lite ställa Trump mot väggen. Det interna trycket i kombination med avslöjandet om Trumps påtryckningar mot Ukraina pressade till sist Pelosi att överge sin tidigare linje.
I slutändan kunde riksrätten nämligen aldrig handla om objektivitet eller rättvisa. Har Trump utnyttjat sin position? Antagligen. Är han en president med någon som helst moral eller verklig omsorg om amerikanska invånares framtid? Absolut inte. Men det spelade ingen roll. Med undantag från Mitt Romney domineras senaten som fällde avgörandet av Trump-rädda eller lismande republikaner. De röstade, som väntat, för att fria Trump.

I kombination med röstningskaoset under Demokraternas primärval i Iowa kan man konstatera att samtliga spektakel mest bidragit till att Trumps korrupta tag om makten har stärkts – inte minskat.
Nu måste Demokraterna lämna detta bakom sig.

Resultatlösa gester

Under samma dygn som senaten röstade om riksrätten höll Trump sitt årliga State of the Union-tal inför representanthuset. Bakom honom satt Nancy Pelosi som representanthusets talman, och efter talet rev hon demonstrativt sönder Trumps tal inför rullande tv-kameror. Detta efter att Trump lika demonstrativt vägrat att skaka hennes hand, ska tilläggas.

Men oavsett Trumps trumpenhet kommer liknande gester inte ta Demokraterna närmare Vita Huset. I slutändan blir det bara utspel för partinära aktivistiska och radikalare röster, men hur mycket man än sympatiserar med känslorna kan Demokraterna bara vinna tillbaka presidentposten genom att vända sig till väljarna.

Måste prata politik

Trots en stark amerikansk ekonomi, vilket Trump mer än gärna självgott skryter om, är mycket fel i nationen. Masskjutningarna ökar och har blivit dödligare. Opiat-missbruk har blivit en epidemi som krossar liv efter liv. Minsta sjukhusräkning kan få hem att braka samman. Ojämlikheten är enorm. Fattigdom, som slår allra hårdast mot den afro-amerikanska delen av befolkningen, sliter sönder hela bostadsområden.

Här kan bara Demokraterna ge svar. Genom politik för allmän hälso- och sjukvård. Genom jämlikare skolor, genom att sänka medicinpriserna och införa striktare vapenlagar samt mer levnadsbara löner.

För att nå fram med det budskapet måste man sluta riva sönder tal. För att vinna mot Trump måste man helt enkelt backa undan från honom.
This post appeared on the front page as a direct link to the original article with the above link .

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