Who will stop Musk and Trump?
A Letter From Iowan David R. Russell
Letters From Iowans is a part of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative. We encourage you, our subscribers, to share your perspective in this column. To make your voice heard, use this form to send us your essay:
Dear Iowans,
So now Elon Musk/Donald Trump have illegally gained access to my – and everyone’s – Social Security account, Medicare account, IRS account, and any other personal information the US government has access to. What’s to keep them from stopping my SS checks? Canceling my Medicare coverage? Auditing my taxes? Seizing money from my bank account? This may sound like Henny Penny, but every day the news is full of instances where Musk/Trump have flouted the law to go after their enemies and reward their cronies.
Theoretically, the courts could stop them. But Musk and Trump can ignore the courts, as JD Vance has suggested, and as Musk/Trump have already done. So now apparently the only way to keep Musk/Trump from riding roughshod over our Constitution, trashing the rule of law and our democracy, is for Congress to impeach and convict him–highly unlikely with the current Senate.
And even then Musk/Trump could simply ignore Congress, because he has the U.S. Marshals, Border Patrol, and the entire military under his command. Does anyone really think that Trump would go quietly even if the Senate convicts him in an impeachment trial? He would be crying “Witchhunt!”, “Rigged!” and threatening the Democrats and RINOs who voted for impeachment with shouts of “Lock ‘em up!” And he could make good on that threat, with prison or worse for his opponents, as dictators have done for ages.
Yes, this is a worst-case scenario. But this scenario has started to play out already in the U.S., as it has done in so many other countries that slipped from democracy into dictatorship. We must be prepared psychologically, so we aren’t shocked into numb submission if and when it happens.
So then who would stop Trump, Musk, and his rogue party? Fortunately, there have been countries that have regained their democracy after a dictator gained control, in Brazil, Poland, Argentina, Tunisia, and many others – though the path is never smooth and demands sacrifice, at times even of lives. If the U.S. continues down the path toward dictatorship, history shows that best chance the American people have to rid themselves of this lawless president, backed by the police and military, is for public opinion to turn so deeply against Musk/Trump that all their bluster and all their guns are swamped in a tidal wave of the people’s justified anger. This means, unfortunately, civil disobedience — refusing to obey a dictator — on a massive scale, in street demonstrations, workplace strikes, and anywhere resistance is possible.
And unfortunately, now is the time for those who care for liberty and law to begin not only resisting but also preparing for the worst-case scenarios that so many other countries have played out to regain their freedom from a dictator.
David R. Russell
Ames, Iowa
Note: The original submission included a link to the United States Institute of Peace, which was taken over by the Department of Government Efficiency on March 17.
Letters From Iowans is a part of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative. We encourage you, our subscribers, to share your perspective in this column. To make your voice heard, use this form to send us your essay:
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Thank you for your heartfelt and important letter, David. I share your fears, but I'll play PollyAnna to your Henny Penny for a bit.
1) Don't discount the power of the judicial branch just yet, or the ability of our military leaders to distinquish lawful from unlawful orders.
2) The pendulum is beginning to swing against these insurrectionists/nihilists/reactionaries/oligarchs.
3) Listen to dramatic, heartfelt opposition voiced by people like Senator Cory Booker.
4) The opposition party can coalesce and listen to its most thoughtful such as Raskin, Murphy, Klobuchar, and Slotkin. AOC and Crockett and Sanders are stirring people up in their ways also. It's good to see the mix.
5) Fear of the removal of the safety net weighs heavily on Americans. Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are very basic for the stability of the people. If those are ripped away, citizens may well come out and vote out the idiots.
6) A huge segment of non-party citizens will not like the fiscal irresponsibility and tariff madness and business uncertainty that the Republicans are causing.
7) Town halls and street protests and civil disobedience and letter writing, so long as non-violent, are incredibly powerful tools.
A bald eagle came into our calving pen this morning. He was cleaning up afterbirth. This is a sign of re-birth and spring. We may just see an American Spring which will surprise Trump and Musk.
I'm not normally a cheerleader, but I believe the turn-around is coming. It will take everyone with any common sense.
Josiah C. Wearin
Sir: what proof do you have that the access DOGE gained in the Social Security Department was illegal? And, you then you write one of dozens of “what ifs”. All of which are ridiculous if not downright stupid (the “what ifs”, not you). No one wants a dictator and the examples you cite around the world of this happening are so far removed from the Constitutional Republic we are so lucky to have here in America. Take a breath, sit back and stop with the “what ifs”. What if 45/47 turns out to be a transformative president making every citizen’s life better? What if?