The Battle for American Democracy and the Indictment of Donald Trump

<p>Over the&nbsp;<a href="https://medium.com/eudaimonia-co/why-the-indictment-of-donald-trump-matters-62deef453a4b" rel="noopener">last couple</a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href="https://medium.com/eudaimonia-co/the-first-indictment-of-donald-trump-is-a-milestone-for-american-democracy-eef2f7fbc983" rel="noopener">days</a>, we&rsquo;ve been talking about the indictment of Donald Trump. I want to offer a few closing thoughts &mdash; for now, anyways. How much does this matter? A great, great deal. To understand why, really, though, consider the context, which goes like this. America&rsquo;s in a pitched battle &mdash; still &mdash; for the survival of its democracy.</p> <p>In an irony that would&rsquo;ve made Marx proud, America&rsquo;s fanatics have learned to seize control of the means of democracy itself. They&rsquo;re taking control of the basic workings of democracy from the bottom up. Fanatics&nbsp;<a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&amp;rct=j&amp;q=&amp;esrc=s&amp;cd=&amp;cad=rja&amp;uact=8&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjh27WH1ov-AhVJhP0HHfYEBacQFnoECAwQAQ&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.newyorker.com%2Fmagazine%2F2022%2F11%2F07%2Fthe-right-wing-mothers-fuelling-the-school-board-wars&amp;usg=AOvVaw0Rpd2i8LlbIEd_694axLC0" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">contest school board seats</a>, shouting&nbsp;<a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&amp;rct=j&amp;q=&amp;esrc=s&amp;cd=&amp;cad=rja&amp;uact=8&amp;ved=2ahUKEwiZqqqO1ov-AhV8_7sIHSyvDugQFnoECA8QAQ&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Finvestigates%2Fspecial-report%2Fusa-education-threats%2F&amp;usg=AOvVaw0NtPgNkunPVcyBEuM4lMty" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">death threats</a>&nbsp;at teachers. In Wisconsin, a figure who was&nbsp;<a href="https://wisconsinwatch.org/2023/03/did-a-wisconsin-supreme-court-candidate-advise-on-a-plan-to-have-fake-electors-vote-for-donald-trump-in-the-2020-presidential-election/" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">involved in putting forth fake slates of electors</a>&nbsp;is now&hellip;in a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&amp;rct=j&amp;q=&amp;esrc=s&amp;cd=&amp;cad=rja&amp;uact=8&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjr6d2Z1ov-AhXvgv0HHbqOD58QxfQBKAB6BAgMEAE&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.washingtonpost.com%2Fpolitics%2F2023%2F04%2F02%2Fwisconsin-supreme-court-election%2F&amp;usg=AOvVaw2s7jw2AA7r8CmKtVrj8Exs" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">heated race</a>&nbsp;for sitting on the state Supreme Court. In Florida, of course, the laboratory of American extremism, Ron DeSantis has become an&nbsp;<a href="https://medium.com/eudaimonia-co/american-fascism-is-becoming-more-delusional-and-more-dangerous-9aebce913bbc" rel="noopener">expert in decentralizing power</a>, and handing it to fanatics, who are then able to ban books, words.</p> <p><strong>What was once a battle for American democracy from the top down has become one from the&nbsp;</strong><a href="https://medium.com/eudaimonia-co/american-fascism-is-becoming-more-delusional-and-more-dangerous-9aebce913bbc" rel="noopener"><strong>bottom up</strong></a><strong>.&nbsp;</strong>State after Red State is turning dystopian, at light speed &mdash; banning everything from womens&rsquo; rights to LGTBQ rights. Parents and kids are scared. Teachers and classes are criminalized. There seems to be no end or bottom to this race.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&amp;rct=j&amp;q=&amp;esrc=s&amp;cd=&amp;cad=rja&amp;uact=8&amp;ved=2ahUKEwj7rJHi24v-AhVeh_0HHbBYA6YQxfQBKAB6BAgIEAE&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hrw.org%2Fnews%2F2023%2F03%2F29%2Fus-texas-attack-migrants-reaches-new-extremes&amp;usg=AOvVaw0zYyXBz1oG0v9Sdi1ttI3q" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">Vigilante paramilitaries</a>.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&amp;rct=j&amp;q=&amp;esrc=s&amp;cd=&amp;cad=rja&amp;uact=8&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjqt9vo24v-AhUXgP0HHULYCVkQFnoECAsQAQ&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.usatoday.com%2Fstory%2Fnews%2Feducation%2F2022%2F11%2F03%2Fyoungkins-critical-race-theory-tip-line-virginia-parents%2F10655007002%2F&amp;usg=AOvVaw2gE2LS_TgVKdyDqYDev6h6" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">Tip lines</a>. Shadow institutions, reminiscent of&nbsp;<a href="https://medium.com/eudaimonia-co/american-fascism-is-becoming-more-delusional-and-more-dangerous-9aebce913bbc" rel="noopener">Gestapos and SS&rsquo;s</a>. And this contest is about taking inalienable rights &mdash; which belong to everyone &mdash; away.</p> <p><a href="https://eand.co/the-indictment-of-donald-trump-and-the-battle-for-american-democracy-7d9c68a702a5"><strong>Website</strong></a></p>