How Did We Get Here?

By Victor Tiffany

Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this column are those of author Victor Tiffany and are not representative of the thoughts or opinions of Tompkins Weekly.  

We have a criminal, authoritarian President who’s recklessly creating economic uncertainty, disappearing people without due process, deporting U.S. citizens without a hearing, deporting foreign students for protesting US-backed genocide in Gaza, ignoring the Constitution and Supreme Court findings, threatening the general welfare including Social Security, etc, 

Trump did not win the election because voters are stupid; he won because the “Democratic” Party abandoned the working class forty-eight years ago when it embraced an uber-corporate, pro-privatization, “free trade,” and deregulatory ideology commonly called neo-liberalism. Remember that Congress, including the Squad, and President Biden foreclosed the possibility of a legal strike by railroad workers.

The establishment of both major parties practice some degree of this pro-corporate, market-centric philosophy of political economics. Reactionary Trump strays outside of this ideology with his idiotic and chaotic imposition of tariffs on allies and adversaries alike, but he is the king of deregulation. 

The Democratic Party ran their primary season in 2024 in order to protect an incumbent in cognitive decline; they held no debates, lied about Biden’s mental health and, when it became obvious to the most casual observer that he was in cognitive decline, forced the establishment’s candidate on the Party. The nominee was simply appointed instead of allowing rank and file party members to have any voice the nominee decision.  

The “Democratic” Party is the only American party with superdelegates. These are party elites who serve as a check against populism. They render this party the least democratic party in the United States. 

VP Harris lost because she ran a campaign of “joy” that basically said, “everything is great, and I’m going to keep doing more of the same.” Everything wasn’t great, and voters knew it and showed it by voting for Trump or, more of them, staying home.

The Biden administration sabotaged early peace talks between Russia and Ukraine and dangerously kept escalating the proxy war against nuclear-armed Russia, and the Vice President would continue increasing this severe threat.  

Like the Biden administration, Trump is waging war in Yemen without congressional authorization. Like the Biden Justice Department, Trump is using the federal government to punish his opponents.  Like the Biden administration, Trump is supplying weapons used for the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza. 

And how has the Party responded to Trump’s attempts to impose authoritarian rule to date?  

* Senator Schumer caved and supported the Republican budget

* Governor Hochul is open to renaming Penn Station after Trump

* Democrats, including Senator Sanders, have continued supporting the Gaza genocide

* Democrats have agreed to repressive laws like the Laken Riley Act dealing with immigration 

We have grievances against both major parties of course.  While the Biden administration censored posts across social media using various agencies such as Center for Internet Safety, the Trump regime is censoring visiting foreign students for having the audacity to criticize Israel’s war crimes in Gaza. 

We hear Democrats complaining about Trump’s weaponization of the Justice Department, but the Biden Justice Department did exactly that to charge Trump with various crimes. 

Most significant is the relentless support for Israel’s criminal assault on Palestinians by both parties. Sadly, for too many people, this isn’t significant at all. 

A Road Forward

The people of the United States need a peaceful, democratic revolution. There is an opposition party that is pro-peace, pro-environment, pro-regulation, pro-democracy, pro-justice, pro-human rights, anti-genocide and opposed to corporate globalization. It’s a party without the undemocratic superdelegates and with fair primaries. The next time you have an opportunity to register to vote or to change your party affiliation, consider joining the largest, progressive third party in the United States.  

The Green Party supports abolition of the electoral college, electoral reform, proportional representation, ranked choice voting, DC statehood, open-sourced voting equipment, free speech and media reform, repeal of the Patriot Act, the restoration of habeas corpus, congressional  authorization for use of military force, demilitarization of space, environmental justice, an end to the use of warrantless wiretaps, consumer protection, a commitment to end poverty, workplace democracy, reproductive rights, human rights, religious freedom and gender equality.  Won’t you join us soon? The world, the Earth, your country and your children are counting on you to step up now! Register Green Party this year. 

Victor Tiffany, while currently writing a quantum mechanics physics paper, is an activist who has been a blogger, worked to freeze nuclear weapons production, amend the Constitution to overturn corporation-appropriated rights and was a cofounder of Bernie or Bust. He lives in Danby.