“The next conservative President must make the institutions of American civil society hard targets for woke culture warriors. This starts with deleting the terms sexual orientation and gender identity (‘SOGI’), diversity, equity, and inclusion (‘DEI’), gender, gender equality, gender equity, gender awareness, gender-sensitive, abortion, reproductive health, reproductive rights… out of every federal rule, agency regulation, contract, grant, regulation, and piece of legislation that exists.”
These haunting and hateful phrases come from just the first few pages of “Project 2025,” a comprehensive agenda designed by Trump-aligned extremists on how to deliver the “Second American Revolution.” Normally, Democrats avoid scare tactics, but this time the fear is palpable and warranted. With the recent Trump-friendly Supreme Court ruling that gives criminal immunity to the President of the United States, there is credible reason to fear for our fundamental freedoms. Furthermore, this extremist agenda imperils the ability of everyday voters to make their voices heard–the bedrock of our Constitutional Republic–if they do not understand and reject it in November.
Fights that we thought were over, rights we thought were inalienable, and laws we believed were established are now up for grabs under the guise of making America “pure again,” to borrow their words.
In reading Project 2025, I found that across the 922-page document there were many actions that would specifically challenge law, policy, and funding in Washington, including:
- Withdrawing Medicaid funds for any state that requires abortion to be covered under private insurance (which would include Washington);
- Repealing Inflation Reduction Act programs that provide grants for environmental science activities (across Washington, people are in the process of applying for these fund);
- Gutting the National Labor Relations Board’s enforcement capacity (the Region 19 Office in Seattle just won an unlawful discrimination case for workers in May this year);
- Using the Department of Justice to increase federal law enforcement presence in jurisdictions (like Seattle) they find to not be enforcing laws as they see fit, and pursuing political opponents.
…and that’s just the tip of their heinous iceberg.
That’s why we need leaders who are prepared to act on Day 1 to protect the freedom to access reproductive health care, protect the right to vote, and ensure our economy works for everyone.
During the last Trump presidency, we saw leaders at all levels of government step up. Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson took on the Trump administration, filing 97 lawsuits and securing 39 legal victories. The Seattle City Council passed seven pieces of legislation to protect abortion access and allocated $1.75 million to the Northwest Abortion Access Fund.
But right now, I worry if our city council will be up to the task. Instead of pursuing policies to protect our freedoms, balance the budget, reduce gun violence, and address overdose deaths, this year the council has instead focused on how to roll back minimum wage legislation for gig workers, scrutinized programs serving Black, brown, and frontline communities, and remained frustratingly silent as a corrupted US Supreme Court makes it easier to modify guns into deadlier weapons and erase legal protections for uhhoused neighbors.
Trust me, in the face of overwhelming national challenges and a deflating presidential debate, I felt the same way as many other Democrats and progressives felt: an overwhelming sense of helplessness and the feeling in my stomach that comes with stress-eating an entire pack of Oreos.
But, plot twist! You don’t get to move to Canada yet. We must redouble our efforts to make a difference at the local level, provide a safe haven for our diverse communities, and set a precedent for progressive, actionable policies across our country.
Unlike the first Trump presidency, which was full of chaos and uncertainty, they’ve gone full James Bond villain and told us their evil plan. The good news is we can be proactive and act now:
- Protect immigrants and refugees from threatened mass deportations through scaling legal resources and programming;
- Ensure state and local abortion access, clinic safety, and safe travel for women in states that deny bodily autonomy;
- Further codify and protect rights for LGBTQ+ community members and safeguard gender-affirming care and legal protections;
- Increase our local investment into affordable housing development, preservation, and programs serving people experiencing homelessness;
- Fight for stronger gun laws, community violence intervention, and other state-based solutions that counteract any federal rollbacks in gun violence prevention;
- Maintain our state and local efforts to reduce the public health impacts of air and water pollution in the face of attacks on federal laws and rulemaking;
- Advance climate action on the local level, and organize city and state responses to try and meet targets even if the US withdraws from international responsibilities;
- Partner with judicial branch leaders to discern and plan for legal action to safeguard rights;
- Increase revenue by ensuring the wealthiest residents and corporations pay what they owe to proactively plan for the potential (and likely) loss of federal funding.
If elected to city council, I will work to unite our city and fight for our constitutional rights, working in coalition with other leaders at all levels of government. I’ll demand more from the institutions that we can and must maintain in the face of unprecedented attack. This moment calls for a change at city hall and action from everyday voters to make it happen. Our future depends on it.
Alexis Mercedes Rinck is a candidate for Seattle City Council Position 8 (citywide). A renter in the Central District, she used to wait tables by the Space Needle and now works on policy from the UW Tower.
I stopped reading at “Normally, Democrats avoid scare tactics…”
Prepare to impeach Trump “On Day One”.
“Increase our local investment into … programs serving people experiencing homelessness;”
Those programs have failed so catastrophically, record numbers of local homeless persons have now died of overdoses. Throwing more money at those programs has indeed become the very definition of insanity.
IOW, in the event the country goes insane and elects Trump, let’s make sure the local middle class goes broke trying to cover all the refugee costs.
“woke culture warriors” = anyone not a white supremacist (and most often, anyone not born with a penis who identifies as a heterosexual male). fuck these assholes. white supremacists want the world that they used to inhabit, where everyone else exists solely to serve their needs. white supremacy has survived because of its savagery – it’s acolytes will slaughter anyone and everyone who gets in their way. the global majority is not cis/het/white/male and they will not succeed in returning us back to the stone age. they are going to fuck around and find out.
The reason Democrats are losing and Trump’s coming in, is because Democrats, including the progressive fraudsters, got behind Biden on the war in Ukraine, which also opened the doorways to Oct 7th and everything that’s since happened between Israel and Gaza — and that wouldn’t have happened if Biden hadn’t decided to fulfill his (apparently) lifelong psychopathic quest for a 3rd WW with Russia – and by turning Ukraine into a NATO launch pad for nuclear missiles aimed at Moscow.
Democrats don’t want to hear the truth: and this is why Trump is going to win. Russiagate was an election hoax started by their heroine Clinton (who, btw, turned Libya, with Obama, into a slave market – remember?). We’re not exactly talking about sane people with a sane track record if you’ve been paying attention to the rest of the world – which has, btw, been paying attention.
Democrats also turned out to be total hypocrites on the pandemic, which isn’t a plug for Trump, but it’s not exactly going to do Democrats any good in Nov, either, when the 40 million Americans who are still masking because they know we’re still in a pandemic, may not be voting for Trump, but they’re not going to be voting for Biden either. They’ll just be staying home or writing in their favorite physician who didn’t lie to them like the White House and the CDC has been doing. And all this – and no guaranteed health care either. Remember when that was still a thing?
Meanwhile, as Democrats ignore all that good advice along with Biden’s slaughter abroad to the tune of well over 100 billion in U.S. tax money, Americans are in serious economic pain and instability that has nothing to do with the endless blah-blah-blabbing about identity politic.s It’s become nothing more than an excuse and diversion from the economic issues people are facing. The cost of food in the grocery store, the lack of guaranteed health care like other developed nations, the ever-rising rents (and different ways to do that in Seattle!) while people’s incomes are not going up.
I find it a total joke on another board here, where comments are now closed, that the city can’t find mental health workers for youths. There are so many people with bachelors or masters in psychology or sociology or education who could easily work with teenagers. But they build a mountain of bureaucracy and secret exclusive networks between the human beings and the jobs. And eventually they hire people from outside the country, through other corrupt networks, and while increasing numbers of Americans (who are very well qualified) go without stable employment. And mental health workers for cops? (Same closed discussion board) Are you kidding me? Cops have great health benefits including mental health. They can easily see a psychologist any time they want. The question is whether they want. And I guess not!
@6 “serious economic pain and instability” – CHRONIC, which Williamson, interestingly, has been the ONLY candidate – including all noticeable 3rd party and independent candidates – to not only address, but substantively – and in terms of the greater majority of Americans, 60%, that is.
Like the pandemic, this isn’t a plug for Trump, but it’s not going to get Biden past the gate, and as he continues to cognitively deteriorate in public, further diminishing any view that the president is even in charge.
As Democrats continue to engage in excuses and denials, this country is headed for disaster.
@7 “disaster” – it’s not a matter of IF – it’s a matter of when.
@3 It would be far more effective to simply give all Americans a livable basic income tailored to the cost of living. It would cut through the flak of a lot of issues, including homelessness – and since the homeless could then just go and get housing. Others could use it to pay down debt, start a business, pay for childcare – or allow them to stay home and take care of their children themselves- or care for other family members — and there are going to be increasing numbers of Americans who are disabled (due to covid) … the list of remedies a UBI would serve is endless … but of course the Democrats and GOP would never do this. Our government is entirely dysfunctional – and at all levels, it seems.
Sounds like Alexis has the same progressive policies that Sawant and Morales believe in that have resulted in skyrocketing homelessness, crime, overdoses, human trafficking, and cost-of-living.
These policies were tried for the last 10 years in Seattle and failed badly.
Alexis’ backward thinking is exactly what Seattle needs to avoid.