The Damage Done by Business as Usual

When Our Actions/Inaction Undermine Our Message...

I’ve seen a lot of frustration in recent days about the damage being done when Democratic officials are too willing to vote for Trump nominees, or cozy up to Trump policies or people, or keep their disagreements to a polite and civil minimum….and when officials confront outlandish attacks on democracy with business as usual responses. As if what we’re seeing is within the normal bounds of political debate and behavior.

Let me say: I share the frustration.

Better yet…it pisses me off too.

I dedicated part of a chapter in “Saving Democracy” to this problem. Because the inconsistency between messages we verbally communicate every day, and the “meta messages” our actions or inactions communicate every day, and/or tone, can do great damage to the cause.

As I explain:

“For good and for bad, we project powerful messages way beyond the words we use. Drew Westen calls it our “meta-message”— what we communicate from our action or inaction, and the urgency with which we act. That meta-message becomes especially important as rhetoric heats up and the political battle becomes highly charged.

Think about it this way: less political or less engaged Americans are watching fierce back-and-forth rhetorical battles play out on issues as profound as democracy and the rule of law. The words are at a fever-pitch.

At some point, unsure of who to believe amid all that rancor, many may tune out the war of words— but they’re still making judgments based on other cues. That’s where meta-messaging comes in. And a meta-message that is inconsistent with a heated verbal message will often be the ultimate tiebreaker in who those watching believe.

Here’s an example: Many Democrats spent much of 2021 bemoaning state attacks on voting rights as a dire threat to democracy. (I was one of them—it’s why I wrote Laboratories of Autocracy in the first place.) But a Senate debate and a vote to protect voting rights didn’t occur until January 2022. When it finally came, it felt like the Senate was largely going through the motions. And after that vote failed to overcome the filibuster, no debate occurred for the rest of the term. Hardly earned a mention.

To many Americans, the meta-message from that long-delayed and half-hearted Senate effort spoke far more loudly than the fierce rhetoric about democracy and voting rights coming from some quarters: if you really think democracy is under attack, you’d do something about it. You’d fight hard! Since you’re not doing much about it, it must not be that bad.

Here’s another: We labelled January 6 an insurrection—an attack against democracy. Members of Congress were involved in its planning, and many voted against certifying the election early the next morning. But those members never faced accountability for their actions—for the most part, accountability wasn’t even attempted. Almost all of those involved got reelected, and now they enjoy the majority. As Westen put it to me, “Now we have a House run by coup attempters.”

To many Americans trying to make sense of it all, the meta- message from this sequence comes through loud and clear, and the response from many observers will be something like: if you really thought they were part of an illegal and criminal insurrection, you would at least try to do something about it. There would be accountability. Since you didn’t even try, it must not be that bad—especially when we see action taken immediately in other countries for similar attacks.

More broadly, we find ourselves in a time where increasingly disturbing tactics are threatening democracy. The violation of laws. Intimidation of voters. Extremism. Violence. Talk of a national “divorce.” Responding to all of this with a “politics as usual” meta-message normalizes it all.

Beyond the general role of meta-messages, certain audiences interpret those meta-messages in ways that drive their own future actions.

Whatever words you may use, if a bully never sees you do a thing to hold him accountable, the meta-message sent is clear. Westen, again: “When you appease, the message you send to a bully is that you’re weak, and they’ll go after you again.” That has been a consistent theme of the last decade. Bullies get more aggressive when they detect cowardice and no accountability. They don’t just keep going—they go further.

And if you cower to that bully, those watching that showdown also take note: “The message you send by cowardice is that you’re a coward, and no one votes for a coward. People vote for the people who show conviction in their firmest beliefs.”

Finally, think of the audience that tends to agree with you, but is unsure if it’s worth leaving their comfort zone to get in the fight. If they see cowardice, or hesitation, from leaders at the top, most will decide it’s not worth their own risk, or their sacrifice. If the champions of the cause aren’t going all in, why should they?

As a contrast, think about the meta-message sent by John Lewis. Or Rhoda Denison Bement, so incensed she was banished from her own church. [I tell this story earlier in the book]. And so many like them. Their lifetimes of action were consistent with their fierce rhetoric. They never stopped. They took risks. They never backed down. They clearly believed in what they were saying, and acted on this beliefs. That conviction and persistence and courage comprised a robust meta-message, and legions joined them in what began as impossible fights.

And in April 2023, look at how the nation responded to the “Tennessee Three” when they stood boldly against the gerrymandered Tennessee legislature that voted to oust them. They fought back fiercely, and woke up the country about how broken these legislatures are. The same thing happened after Michigan State Senator Mallory McMorrow spoke up so forcefully in 2022.

Democracy is under attack.

In tone and action, and in everything we do, our meta-message must be consistent with that growing threat, along with the words we use to describe it.”

___

The Opportunity Right Now

This week offers the perfect example. And opportunity.

Yesterday, the entire nation was thrown into chaos—and the continuation of critical programs and services thrown into jeopardy—because of the Adminstration’s “pause” on all federal funding assistance.

Tomorrow, the man at the heart of that budget chaos (Russel Vought, a key author of Project 2025) is up for a Senate Committee vote to be the next head of the Office of Management and Budget.

I can’t think of a better moment to align our actions with our verbal and social media messages.

Can you?

Time to step it up a notch. Fight like you mean it.

Or, think about it this way.

Ask yourself this question:

When’s the last time Democrats responded in a way that actually took the GOP or Trump by surprise?

So new and different and fierce and unexpected that it knocked them off their game?

Caught them off guard for once?

And in the process, woke everyday Americans up, and made them think: “This is different. This is really bad.”

Do that! It will definitely work better than business as usual.

(Dan Pfeiffer offers more ideas on how, here)

Day 59 — January 28, 2025

After nearly 24 hours of chaos due to a memo freezing federal assistance, along with the portal for Medicaid assistance being shut down in 50 states, a district court issued an order staying the freeze subject to a hearing next week. (This could set up a much larger battle over the Impoundment Act and separation of powers). The Trump Administration immediately tried to blame the media for the chaos and confusion their own wide-sweeping order and accompanying actions has caused.

To add further fuel to the fire, an email was sent to millions of federal employees offering 8 months severance pay for those who agree to resign by February 6:

Imagine spending years in public service, only to receive an email saying things were about to get more difficult in the workplace, but that you can end it all by replying with a single word—“resign”—within days.

Commentators on social media quickly pointed out that the tone, wording and even title (“Fork in the Road”) of the email mirrored an email Elon Musk sent to Twitter employees back when he took over that company.

Compare for yourself. Here’s Musk’s email:

Now compare it to yesterday’s email:

Run. Everywhere.

Finally, on the good news front: A Democrat won a Trump +21 state senate district last night in Iowa.

Bottom line: Gear up to run everywhere. From the bottom up.

That’s our path back.