The Futility of "Norms"

Today, perhaps more than any day of the Trump administration, revealed the absolute futility of institutional norms in opposing him. Robert Mueller made his statement, which basically amounted to "I am signaling that the president is a criminal, but I can't actually say that because of norms and process, only Congress can." While institutionalists like Mueller follow the rules to a T, Trump just goes on burning down the house. His daily violation of what were once hard and fast rules of political life has become so common that nobody talks about it. This week he not only attacked Joe Biden with schoolyard insults, he took the side of Kim Jong Un against him.

"Politics ends at the water's edge" used to be one of the few evergreen behavioral standards for presidents, and now that's shredded. (Of course, if a Democrat gets elected president expect Republicans to resurrect that rule, and all the other ones Trump broke.) Presidents are also supposed to divest from their financial holdings, to not put their children in high positions, and to not declare emergencies just to have their way. I don't think there's much of a point raising objections over these, because Trump has clearly shown that the unwritten laws and norms don't matter. When he said that he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue and not get punished that was the truest thing he ever said.

That's why it's insanely frustrating to watch people root for Mueller on the sidelines instead of getting out there into the streets. Direct action gets the goods, as the IWW used to say. The airport protests pushed back against the Muslim ban. Massive protests last summer led to the end of the family separation policy. If the offices of every Democrat in Congress and every Republican of the Amash stripe (there are a few) were picketed by protestors I would bet you that Pelosi's impeachment reluctance would fade.

Anyone waiting for process, institutions, or democratic norms to sort out this mess on their own without mass action is not just naive, they are actively doing harm. Way too many middle class liberals believe way too much in the system's benevolence, and are far too meek to raise the hell necessary to fight this lawless regime. It's time for more direct action, and for those people lobotomized by watching The West Wing to pick a side.