The top three targets in America's fight to halt Trump

ICE agents have kidnapped a five-year-old child to use him as “bait” to arrest his parents. The child and his father are now in a detention center in Texas, although no one knows their exact whereabouts. They were in America legally.

This is only the latest cruel outrage I’ve heard about. All this is being done in our name — the United States of America — with our authority, our tax dollars, and, seemingly, our acquiescence.

Recently I asked many of you what you believe to be the most important strategy for stopping Trump’s reign of terror. I offered several alternatives based on what I’ve heard from prominent people and organizations in the resistance, along with some skeptical responses to each.

So many of you responded and want to discuss these further that today I’m posting a revised version of my query — including the top three alternatives, as edited to reflect many of the responses sent to me.

The list is hardly exhaustive, so please feel free to offer other ideas.

1. Target a few Republican senators and House members to switch parties and thereby give Democrats a congressional majority in at least one chamber.

Several of the people I contacted said the single most important thing we can do now is target a few Republican senators and representatives to switch sides or become independents who caucus with the Democrats — giving Democrats a majority in at least one chamber. That will be stop or at least slow Trump.

Republican majorities are razor-thin in both chambers, but as long as they’re in the majority, it’s extremely difficult to stop Trump. Yet some Republicans represent purple districts and states and are struggling to keep their Republican supporters behind them. They’re also struggling with their own consciences in continuing to support Trump’s authoritarian fascism. They’re “gettable,” I’m told.

I recall in 2001 when Vermont Republican Senator Jim Jeffords became an independent and caucused with the Democrats — thereby giving Democrats control of the Senate. Jeffords was a principled man who thought George W. Bush and Dick Cheney were destroying the GOP. Trump is far worse than Bush and Cheney.

Skeptics tell me this won’t work because the forces holding Republican senators and representatives in place are way stronger than they were in 2001.

2. Undertake the largest demonstration against Trump in American history, aiming for at least 10 million marching in the streets, along with a national strike.

Some of the people I spoke with believe that the two No Kings demonstrations last year generated a powerful wave of solidarity and that a third, far larger, would shake the GOP and Trump to the core. They also cite research showing that when 3.5 percent of a population takes to the streets, even the most intransigent regimes begin to fold.

They also recommend that such a demonstration be coupled with a general strike, lasting perhaps several days or a week, during which no one goes to work (if necessary, they call in sick) and no one purchases anything (stocking up in advance).

The demonstration and general strike would be designed to reveal the depth and breadth of the opposition to Trump. (Several people and groups in the resistance are aiming for May 1.)

Skeptics say a giant demonstration will only cause Trump to dig in and send even more ICE and Border Patrol agents into places where the largest demonstrations are occurring in hopes of provoking violence, which he’d use to justify even more repression. And a general strike would mostly hurt workers who take part in it, who’d be docked sick days or potentially lose their jobs.

3. Let Trump overreach to the point where Americans are so disgusted they overwhelmingly repudiate him in the midterms — resulting in a Democratic takeover of both chambers of Congress by wide margins, which severely limits what he’s able to do after January 2027.

Others I contacted tell me nothing more can or should be done over the next year, beyond organizing and mobilizing for November’s midterms. They say we should aim for an overwhelming vote against Trump’s Republicans — so large as to constrain Trump’s every move from then on.

Skeptics tell me that if Trump senses a huge midterm wave election against congressional Republicans, he won’t allow a free and fair election in November. They also say that unless action is taken between now and then to stop Trump, irrevocable damage will be done to America, so by January 2027 our democracy will be in tatters.

What do you think? You can vote here.

• Robert Reich is an emeritus professor of public policy at Berkeley and former secretary of labor. His writings can be found at https://robertreich.substack.com/. His new memoir, Coming Up Short, can be found wherever you buy books. You can also support local bookstores nationally by ordering the book at bookshop.org