We have to face a sobering fact: Our country is permanently broken (at least in our lifetime)

[Coventina]

Even after Trump is gone, there is no going back to normal.

I see no way forward, because the current fascists will never be held to account.

Without accountability, they will continue to destroy the country from the inside.

Trump has permanently stacked the justice system with "his" judges, who will carry on his lawlessness long after he's in the dirt.

He's weaponized all forms of national law enforcement.

We might be able to hold the line, but no progress will be made for many decades to come.

I hope I'm proved wrong, but I just don't see it.

[Bread and Circuses]

1. You're not wrong, I've said the same

We’ve learned that our trust and love of the constitution was wasted. It could not stand up to a Republican Party and their voters who ignore what they don’t like.

We need to Democracy 2.0
We need to deal with all the seditious traitors somehow . There are thousands .
Finally, Republican Voters may flip Blue occasionally but they are permanently attached to the lies, hate, retribution and cruelty because of their OWN racism, jealousy, craziness, fears, or Fake Christianity

I don’t have a comfortable answer.

[Ninga]

2. There is nothing on the horizon to point to otherwise. Because we don't know what we don't know, we do not have

a historic perspective to turn to….yes there have been challenging times…..but nothing close to the collapse to institutions, norms, and constitutional safeguards at this moment.

[Nictuku]

3. Trying to stay positive and have faith in America

I agree that things won't get better in my lifetime (I'm 64, not a lot of time left)

I have hope that you are proved wrong. I have faith in our Judicial System (as slow as it is), I know there are some of his own nominated and appointed judges in the system. What gives me hope is that even some of the Trump appointed Judges are ruling against him. (It really gets iffy when dealing with Supreme Court).

I worked (in Automation) for the Federal Judiciary for 21 years. I think our last best hope will be the Judiciary. Politics are NEVER allowed or condoned in the Judiciary as I saw it. None of my co-workers EVER discussed partisan politics during their daily duties. And if a Judge showed Partisan Politics, he would be shunned by the others.

There are CANONS of acceptable behavior that exist in the Federal Judiciary (EXCEPT for the Supreme Court, which exempt themselves from those CANONS... I always wondered WHY they are exempt). Judges who break these canons in the lower courts (below the Supreme Court) can be held accountable and brought to justice (they usually retire before it gets to that point). Here are the rules they agree to abide by:

https://www.uscourts.gov/administration-policies/judiciary-policies/ethics-policies/code-conduct-united-states-judges

We must do EVERYTHING we can to SUPPORT the INDEPENDENCE of the Federal Judiciary. I know that at least 80% of the Federal Judges do. I know that we are all upset by what is going on, and especially by the Supreme Court. But I still have faith in the Federal Judiciary (at least those I served in the 9th Circuit) to do the right thing (unless a total MAGA judge).

That is all. Have Faith in our Fellow Americans, Have Faith in our Institutions and Have Faith in the Judiciary (it is all we have right now)

Love to All
Nictuku

[doc03]

4. I am almost 78, I know it will be long after I am dead and gone if

we ever come back.

[creon]

5. I am 80.

This has been building for a long time.

It is hard to regain it.

I think thatt Trump and the GOP want to wreck the country.

[ColoringFool]

32. Trumps Seeks Actively To "MONETIZE"---aka, SELL---The US!..

National parks. Alaskan oil fields.Public schools. Social Security.

[creon]

39. Money

To el gringo loco, everything is about money.
Greed is a feature for him.

[J_William_Ryan]

33. "Our country looked pretty damn broken after W. And then came Obama."

And then came Trump.

Twice.

Unlike President Obama, the next Democratic president can’t fix the irreparable damage caused by Trump and the Trump Court.

[ms liberty]

6. Yea, it's hard to have much real optimism right now.

[PeaceWave]

7. I don't buy it. Our country looked pretty damn broken after W. And then came Obama.

[electric_blue68]

14. Oh, it's Way Worse, imho. But; sometimes things, events, a person, etc could come out of left field...

Last edited Mon Jan 12, 2026, 10:39 PM - Edit history (1)

and jumpstart changing things back to a better USA.
(Obviously we had ways to go pre-trump, and we were making progress)

It's probably going to be quite a slog with setbacks. Lot's of fear, etc. Injuries, more death? Hope not, but definitely possible.

I think actual violent Magats, the other groups we know are maybe
5% - ?10% within the 35+/- ish % of US citizens who've identified as Republicans.There are way more of us still.

Idk how the military will respond to potential directives by drumphf to attack the US population.

[ I had sooo much trouble trying to get to sleep last night afte being on here. Not quite to panic attack level (thank goodness).] Better tonight.

[Gore1FL]

8. I suspect similar things were said during the civil war.

We got the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments out of that.

We are a resilient people who, when awake, know the difference between right and wrong.

[ImmigrantsWGTJD]

9. Coming from a country that was in chaos for 20+ years (Uganda)

It takes hard work and the commitment of many to bring things back around. We also have to mend fences and find the common ground that we all know that we have. That common ground is what built this country and its progress for the past 50 years.

Take a look at Italy after Mussolini - they made sure the fascists couldn't easily come back to power. We need to have truth and reconciliation sessions that recognize tragedies like Jan 6th as being beyond the pale. Get bipartisan laws against the fascist agendas like ICE and DHS running wild. Anyone who is against these things will struggle like the supporters of McCarthy did after his downfall.

We also have to make it possible for all politicians who do the wrong things to be censured and leave power.

[paulkienitz]

10. We have a very poor track record at accountability for right wing coup attempts and fascist politicians.

[NoMoreRepugs]

11. I'm of the same opinion, primarily because I see very little happening on college campuses across

the nation in opposition to Trumpism. Heck, I’m not so certain there isn’t growing support for it.

[mr715]

12. Depends on the lifetime I think.

I think a lot of good can be done.

[2na fisherman]

13. Constitutional Convention

It seems like we need to make some amendments to our Constitution. But that will require a lot of political cooperation which we won't have for a long time. There are things in The Constitution which in hindsight seem like mistakes because the framers assumed a certain level of human decency and there are technologies which they never imagined now used for great evils. Gun control was in an age of muskets and our Constitution needs an updated version for the digital age. Is this a naive hope to repair the damage done by Trump?

[SharonAnn]

18. The Right-Wing wants a Constitutional Convention. They want to completely rewrite it. Project 2025+?

Do not agree to a constitutional convention. The lobbyists and bought and paid for politicians will write a "Capital Rules!" type of document saying "Oligarchs are great", "cronyism is patriotic", "Monopolies are great", "We need a king/emperor!", "No voting needed anymore"

[Trueblue Texan]

20. An amendment that prohibits anyone convicted of a felony from being president or from running for office...

...would have eliminated a lot of the pain we are now experiencing.

[bsiebs]

15. I see it as a curtain that was lifted...

Too many of us held on to the false belief of the “American dream” that was a sham, at least since Reagan (for whites) and forever (for all others)… we believed we could count on “justice for all” and “no one is above the law”…. We believed that the execution of our elections were nonpartisan and safe from abuse.. that our judges were nonpartisan and followed the constitution… the supreme court called the shots fairly and maybe got it wrong on some occasions, but overall they were focused on the constitution…. that our constitution created those checks and balances to control each branch of government and no single branch would ever hand their power to another branch.. and so on…. This was the perspective of a lot of white people for decades..

I think this horror show we are watching is opening a lot of eyes that it has been a joke on all of us and we need to make major changes to make it better…. Hopefully that will happen..

[Jarqui]

16. Republicans could impeach and remove Trump in short order

They have had that ability since 2016
It obviously has not happened and there is not a hint of it around the corner.

But even if Trump were impeached and removed tomorrow ... President JD 'Project 2025' Vance ... what will materially change with Vance?

Trump has been and is still being enabled.
He could not have been elected without that.
He could not have remained as party leader without that.
He still has that oligarch money and support.
That support - the enablers - owns most of the US media and social media.
Remove Trump and Vance or whoever they want is their new puppet.

The enablers love people thinking the problem is Trump.
Trump is not the real problem. He never has been.

[Initech]

25. The real problem is, was, and has always been the propagandists.

Yes, as long as the Rush Limbaugh, Alex Jones, Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly, Glenn Beck, Nick Fuentes, Tim Pool, Benny Johnson, Megyn Kelly, Erika Kirk, Bari Weiss, and so on, are selling republican bullshit to the masses, there will always be a Donald Trump or someone worse around.

But what can we do? We can't police free speech, and I'm not touching that one with a 100,000 foot pole.

[Jarqui]

36. A lot of those people worked for Rupert Murdoch

They wouldn't do it for free.
Those people had to have a forum. The oligarchs funded it.

Elon Musk has turned X into a massive social media propaganda site
Purchase of CBS, etc. etc

Citizen's United played a role.
Corruption of Supreme Court played a role.
etc

There's a lot more to this than the propagandists.

[highplainsdem]

17. I refuse to be so despairing. Don't underestimate our country's ability to react against Trump and

his enablers.

Please see this:

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100220931971

Your gloomy prediction that "no progress will be made for many decades to come" completely ignores all the changes we've seen over our lifetime, and not just in our country but others.

It's unrealistic. Worse, it's disempowering. It'll make you feel worse, physically as well as psychologically. The more you focus on it, the more discouraged you'll feel.

It's a bad idea to discourage yourself or others.

[Trueblue Texan]

21. I agree.

It ain't over till it's over. And honey, it ain't over!

[MorbidButterflyTat]

29. I agree, too.

[Jack Valentino]

19. NOTHING is permanent but 'CHANGE'!

I understand your pain and despair, but posting this kind of thing
is demoralizing to those of us who remain resolved to fight against them!


We are closer to the beginning of the fight than we are to the end of it---

on the other hand, we could be closer to the END of it than to the beginning,
because the son-of-a-bitch could DIE at any time,
and the crazies enabling him are less crazy than the demented-in-chief...

Maybe 'take a break from the news',
and sister, try to regain all the strength
which I recognize by your username
that you formerly had!

Things are ugly, they may get uglier---
but do not lose faith that WE WILL WIN in the END!

If you give that up, it only helps to allow the kind of conclusion
which we all rightly dread...

[Initech]

22. Well, the organizations responsible for breaking this country are Fox and Heritage.

They must be tried for treason. Every single employee.

[H2O Man]

23. Recommended.

You are definitely one of the people I have the most respect for, but I will respectfully disagree with you here. If we think of democracy as an automobile, then there are numerous flashing lights on the dashboard, warning of serious problems. So right now, we have some friendly mechanics working on it. We will be taking it through some dangerous places on our way, but we will arrive. And in our lifetime.

[Coventina]

27. Oh my goodness! H2O man!

I am so humbled by your compliment, as I consider you to be one of the truly great sages of DU, and I respect you tremendously!

I will try to hold on to hope.

I have to, for the sake of my students.

It's just been really difficult, this last year......

[H2O Man]

28. It has been

a brutal year. I've always used 1968 as the measuring stick for madness in this country. But this past year has been something very different in its intensity.

And thank you! However, I am fully aware that I am merely an old woodchuck with the good fortune of having outstanding mentors, great teachers, and the opportunity to read some fantastic books. And have listened to the Beatles since they were on Ed Sullivan.

[FascismIsDeath]

24. I am 46 years old. If I live a typical life span, I imagine I might live to see another Obama.

Or FDR or JFK. But if the USA survives, we will seek another leader in that vein.

[questionseverything]

26. We can fix it if we can get them out and prosecute those that deserve it

If we show we don’t agree with how he is acting 🎭 they will forgive us, but we don’t have long

[delisen]

30. Germany and Japan came back from worse, also Vietnam

We are going to be pushed by circumstances to move forward.because we will be dealing with massive climate change.
We will crash and burn,first, but MAGA will be totally discredited and then .
we will be moving forward.

[J_William_Ryan]

31. "I hope I'm proved wrong, but I just don't see it."

You’re not wrong.

The next Republican president will be at the same liberty as Trump to abuse power, ignore the courts, and defy the Constitution – with the help of the Supreme Court we now have an Imperial Presidency where the executive is above the law and beyond being held accountable for his crimes.

The damage can only be fixed with constitutional amendments – which won’t happen as any amendment will be opposed by Republicans in Congress and at the state level.

[BoycottTwitter]

34. Stay laser focused on the midterms. We will take back our country!

We don't need to wait that long. If we fight hard to win the midterms we can start taking back our country this year. No need to wait decades, no need to wait a lifetime. Flip both the house and senate blue and it will make a huge difference. I'm not saying it will be like flipping a light switch. Democrats will have tons of work to do but we can make things better.

I really highly recommend volunteering for your local Democrats. Find a candidate you like and volunteer for them. Knock on doors, phone bank. Remember roughly 30% of people don't usually vote. If we can turn more of those people out and get them to vote blue we can flip seats everywhere and we can win big but it will take you and lots of people like you all making a difference to make it happen.

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

35. amen!!!!

[Buckeyeblue]

37. It's really humanity that's broken

As far back as you can go, humans have treated other humans like shit. We see it play out in real time now. But this is nothing new. As a country, if you are white and somewhat middle class, you've been able to avoid, easily ignore, what non-white, poor, non-Americans have known their entire lives.

This is America's white middle class coming of age story. This is when we realize that maybe things aren't so good, when we realize the adults in our life have lied. This is when we start deciding what's important.

[Tribetime]

38. Yes, there's long.Is there's places like Fox News It will never heal

[Aristus]

40. Long Live Cascadia!!!