All the Hands-Off demonstrations on Saturday were powerful events, filled with energy and most importantly, hope.
So where do we go from here? Yes, there is another Hands-Off event planned for the coming weeks.
I don’t think we have that much time left, to fend off full-blown authoritarianism and the ruination of our government and Constitution. I think we need to step up our game to oppose and defy the Trump administration, DOGE and the pimply Musketeers, not to mention Elon Musk’s security staff that have been deputized as armed U.S. Marshalls.
What we need is for every fired federal employee to go back to the office, back to work as if it were October 2024 and not April 2025. See what you can do to repair and undo the damage done by Trump and Musk. Provide the services you were doing just months ago and don’t worry about locked doors and computers and no paychecks. All those people who participated in Hands-Off have your back, and will get you reinstated with back pay.
We’ll bring sandwiches and cookies and used office furniture. We’ll stand guard at your office doors and defy any MAGA heads or Musketeers that show up demanding entrance. We’ll demand signed, court orders and engage in what Rep. John Lewis called “good trouble,” locking ourselves to your office doors.
We will give you, our friends, kin and neighbors, time to fix some of the damage and restore services. But you need to be disciplined and unyielding in your defiance. Get security on your side and lawyers to demand legal orders and defy the nonsense coming from the Oval Office.
On the whole, I recommend the non-violent resistance practiced by Ghandi, MLK Jr. and Mandela. I hope that events won’t deteriorate into physical or armed confrontations, but they might. I hope the Republicans will start backing off from Trump’s temper-tantrum tariffs and bullying and recognize that Trump is spiraling down the drain of dementia and needs to be removed, that Vance favors a techno-monarchy, and that Social Security has always been known as the “third rail,” for good reason.
Trump derives his power from the Constitution — the WHOLE Constitution. He doesn’t get to pick and choose. He violates the Constitution on a daily basis. What that means is he cannot demand obedience under the Constitution. Federal employees, the military and citizens are called upon to defend and restore the Constitution against all enemies, foreign (Putin) and domestic (oligarchs).
I hope that doesn’t require blood to be spilled as it was at Omaha Beach, Little Round Top, or Lexington, but it may. Let’s hope that the examples of Ghandi, MLK Jr. and Mandela will carry the day.
