“The Bad Days Keep Piling Up for Donald Trump”, a recent Substack column by Heather Delaney Reese, described the boos Donald Trump received at a New York Knicks playoff game he attended, suggesting that his chilly reception was evidence that the public has turned on him.
But after reflecting on this spectacle, Ms. Reese acknowledged that she found herself feeling a troubling numbness; troubling because, as she wrote: “We shouldn’t be used to any of this. We shouldn’t be rolling our eyes and moving on to the next story. We shouldn’t be treating any of it as normal. But that’s what happens when the chaos never stops. After a while, even the outrageous starts to feel routine.”
Ms. Reese’s observation hit me like a bucket of cold water, for I realized that I, too, was becoming numb and my numbness was leading me to accept the chaos of the Trump administration as “normal”. I, too, found this troubling.
Earlier in Trump’s term of office, I frequently called or emailed Representative Goodlander and Senators Hassan and Shaheen. I urged our delegation to push back against the President’s overly aggressive Executive Orders and urged the Senators to reject most of his Cabinet appointees. Sadly, of late I realized that I was not calling their office to share my opinions. I rationalized that because their responses to the President’s overreach and bad judgement reflected my thinking, my phone call wouldn’t matter. But it may be that I stopped calling because I am numb, and I find that troubling.
Earlier in Trump’s term of office, I looked forward to joining like-minded pro-democracy voters at No Kings rallies to express my opposition to the authoritarian actions of the President. But I needed to Google “No Kings IV” to confirm that the event was happening this weekend, albeit in a different format. I can rationalize my ignorance of the event because Trump’s “excursion” into Iran, details of the cage fight Trump scheduled on the lawn of the White House, Trump’s construction projects at the White House, and Trump’s physical and mental health dominate the daily news cycle. But it is also possible that I’m only dimly aware of No Kings IV because I have become numb, and I find that troubling.
Earlier in Trump’s term of office, I was writing Substack blog posts almost daily. But then in late April after several days of not writing regularly, I wrote a post titled “Can’t Keep Up With Crazy” that opened with this sentence: “I have not been posting regularly because my head is spinning.” My posts since then have diminished in frequency. But it may be that I’m writing less about the ongoing chaos in Washington because I have become numb, and I find that troubling.
A text I received on Tuesday from my younger daughter who lives in Maine assured me that SHE is not numb. Two years ago, she moved from New Jersey to Maine and the text she sent on Tuesday included a selfie of her smiling in her car as she left the polling place with a caption that read “Fun to vote in a State where there is a chance to flip the Senate”.
My daughter’s text made me realize there are two antidotes to the political numbness I am feeling.
First, our country needs more young, “unorthodox” candidates like Maine’s Democratic nominee to the Senate, Graham Platner. Unlike the candidates on offer in New Hampshire, who came up through the ranks in a traditional fashion, Platner is a bona fide outsider. Platner is telegenic, a good orator, and his personal struggles make him able to relate to those who feel left behind by the economy and under-appreciated by mainstream media and traditional politicians. As Platner said in his victory speech in the Democratic primary: “This is a movement about us, about the far too many, working far too hard, and struggling far too much.” Most crucially, Graham Platner is different from the President and traditional politicians in one significant way: he is not beholden to mega-dollar donors. Consequently, Platner can speak the unfiltered truth to power in a way that those who curry favor from large donors cannot. Mainer’s value straight talk and life experience over promises and political experience.
Secondly, my daughter’s enthusiasm for electing a Senator who will oppose Trump’s unilateralism made me remember that engagement is the best antidote to numbness, and the importance of participating in the forthcoming primary and general elections in New Hampshire. Even though New Hampshire lacks Senate candidates with Graham Platner’s populist charisma, voters cannot allow numbness to result in the election of candidates who favor the authoritarianism of Project 2025 over democracy. Any candidate who pledges to follow the rule of law is superior to any candidate who supports a President who deploys thousands of troops across the globe, spends billions of dollars on munitions, curries favor with illiberal leaders, who flouts court rulings that he finds disagreeable, and dismantles regulatory agencies in the name of efficiency.
In the final analysis, Ms. Reese’s ruminations and my daughter’s text reminded me that I cannot fall prey to numbness. This morning, I have picked up the phone and called my Senators and House member to share my thoughts on Iran, the budget, and the President nominees for vacant cabinet positions. I decided I need to figure out how to “show up” for No Kings IV. I dashed off two Substack posts. And, most importantly, I circled September 8 on my calendar to make sure I vote in the primary. Our current delegation to Washington has chosen democracy over Project 2025. We need to make sure that after the election in November our delegation remains on that side.