Why We Will Win

By Jim P. Shafer, Contributing Writer

Image Source - U. Sayyam - Bridges Not Walls

As with many of us, prior to the current political meltdown, public advocacy was not high on my list of priorities. I voted in every presidential election, most midterms, and tried to stay informed.

Everyday life—family, friends, bills—took precedence over distant rumblings from Washington. This was especially true when the candidates from both major parties were decent and honorable people who genuinely tried to do what they thought was best for America. I often questioned politicians’ judgment but not their motives.

That was then - this is NOW: Our democracy is in crisis. We have a president more intent on enriching himself and his allies than defending our democracy. During his first term, Trump retained ownership of the Trump Organization while government agencies and foreign officials spent money at his properties, raising Emoluments Clause concerns. In his second term, similar questions have arisen over foreign arrangements such as the Qatari jet arrangement and cryptocurrency ventures.

Institutions created by the framers and strengthened over two centuries are being dismantled one-by-one, from Trump’s active efforts to alter the results of the 2020 election to the expansion of executive power far beyond the traditional checks and balances thus enabling his syndicate of grifters to achieve their corrupt aims with no fear of being held to account.

Global alliances built over decades based on the blood and sacrifice of earlier generations are being recklessly squandered so that the current occupant of the Oval Office can indulge his fantasies of becoming the world’s next omnipotent dictator.

In spite of this rising tide of terrible news, the day-to-day duties that I need to attend to have not abated one bit. It was in the performance of these duties that I recently realized a basic truth that I hope will encourage all of us who recognize the current threat facing our nation for what it is:

Donald Trump and his crime family are intent on obliterating the moral, legal, and ethical foundations upon which our republic has been built. They are doing so not because they seek to replace it with something that they think will be better, but solely for their own personal benefit—more power and profit for themselves and the country be damned!

The evidence of this crime spree is obvious and overwhelming. As of January 2026, Democratic staff on the House Oversight Committee found that President Trump and his family have used the presidency to generate at least $2.25 billion in realized profits from foreign payments, corrupt interests, and related schemes, and as much as $9.7 billion when unrealized value from digital assets is included, with hundreds of millions tied to foreign interests.

As this crisis unfolds, more citizens are feeling the consequences of a federal government with vast, unchecked authority in the hands of an amoral leader and his enablers.

From rising health care costs to growing encroachments on civil liberties, there is mounting evidence of damage to our economy and way of life. These trends echo Lord Acton’s warning that “power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

Arrayed against this awesome accumulation of criminally directed power, the forces of good faith and justice, which are only now beginning to gather steam and headway, may seem pitifully outnumbered and outmatched.

One basic and enduring principle, though, that Trump and his MAGA-ts may have failed to even consider, will, I believe, eventually prove to be the deciding factor in this struggle and the ultimate arbiter of their fate: People Yearn To Be Free.

All People / All the Time / Everywhere in the World / Throughout History!

No one has ever willingly donned the shackles of repression and injustice.

There have been innumerable instances throughout history, of course, where, through lies, brutality, and bloodshed, those who would deny that basic Truth have succeeded in subjugating some people for a relatively short period of time. History has just as often recorded the grim fate that inevitably befalls the perpetrators of such atrocities (a fact that Trump and the likes of Miller, Noem, Patel, and Bondi, et al., would be wise to consider).

But—from the ancient cities of Athens and Rome, through the hamlets of Medieval England, the cobblestone streets of Boston and Philadelphia, the blood-soaked battlefields of Gettysburg and Normandy, to the massive uprisings in our own lifetimes from Beijing to Teheran, to Kiev, and now even our own streets of Minneapolis (!), millions upon millions of “average” human beings have organized, fought, bled, and died to further the cause of liberty and secure its blessings for themselves, their families, and their nations.

No autocrat or dictator, no matter how fearsome his power or ruthless his minions, can hope to engender that measure of devotion or permanently triumph over those who possess it.

This is the basic truth that Franklin D. Roosevelt recognized and harnessed when he unified Americans of all political, social, and economic persuasions and marshaled their energies to defeat the dark forces of fascism in the defining struggle of the last century.

Though vastly outnumbered and outspent, the noble and stalwart souls of Ukraine have harnessed that truth as they have fought Putin’s barbarous hordes to a standstill for four bloody years.

Let all of us who wish our nation well take heart from the fact that our victory over the forces we are now confronting is ultimately grounded on that same unalterable Truth and that it is therefore just as certain.

This does not imply that the threats we now face will resolve themselves automatically and in our favor. On the contrary, it emphatically underscores that it is up to each of us to accept our individual responsibility and shoulder the burdens required to bring victory about, just as those who have come before us have had to do, before further damage can be done to our nation and its ideals.

When compared to the bloody struggles and sacrifices enumerated above, the tasks before us seem almost too benign in their cost and simplicity. They are no less effective, though, and if undertaken promptly and with determination they guarantee the survival of our cherished ideals without the need for more drastic measures.

First, organize: We all have responsibilities, and none of us has unlimited time or money. But most of us can contribute something to the defense of democracy. Now is the time to join like-minded citizens and combine our efforts. Together, those contributions can be decisive.

Next, unite: We will not agree on every issue, nor should we. America was built on respect for differing views. To succeed, we must temporarily set aside our differences to confront the common threat, knowing we can resume our vigorous (not vicious) debates once it has passed.

Lastly - DO IT NOW! Our window of opportunity is small and closing rapidly as Trump and his cohorts strive to extend their tentacles of treachery throughout more and more of our civil institutions.

Volunteer for and actively participate in a political campaign that you deem worthy of support; Contribute regularly (in time &/or money, whichever works best for you and in whatever amount you deem appropriate) to causes you deem to be just and worthwhile; Show-up for the protests in your area and Stand-up for the Rights and Freedoms that we have been fortunate enough to enjoy throughout our shared history.

As conclusively demonstrated by the examples enumerated above, the one implacable and undefeatable enemy of any authoritarian is an active and engaged opposition, drawn from “ordinary” citizens, that refuses to bend to his will.

Let each of us, therefore, rise to the moment and join together in defiance of those who think they can subjugate us.

About the Author

Jim P Shafer writes a blog called Bridges-Not-Walls and his posts “are my attempt to do what I can to ensure those benefits endure for the generations to follow.” As an American Citizen since birth, he also says “I consider myself to be one of the most fortunate humans to ever walk the planet. I have enjoyed more than 70 years of peace, prosperity, and essentially unlimited opportunity…. This project is my best effort to repay the considerable debt of gratitude owed to the Nation and that has been the source of my good fortune and now stands in dire need of support from all Americans who feel likewise indebted.”

The views and opinions expressed by volunteer contributors are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the positions of The Union, a single issue organization that welcomes all and is dedicated to protecting democracy.