Stephen Miller's Ascendancy Ushers in a New and Dangerous Moment for the US

Well that was an awesome 48 hours of joy and relief.

While no surprise, the ascent of Stephen Miller to chief of staff, sitting sidesaddle with Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought, ushers in a new and dangerous moment for America. At this point, President Donald Trump is simply their useful idiot.

My take: Miller saw the numbers—the writing on the wall for the midterms. The margins were too wide, too significant to try to overturn or fight.

The American public must see strength and “fight” from the leaders they elected to put down this fascist threat once and for all.

So time to shift strategy—and just ignore the outcome altogether.

A smart person once told me that power in America is not given, it’s taken.

If I were Stephen Miller, this would be my plan:

1. Hope that that fear, laziness, and incompetence from both the Democrats and the defeated, beaten-down Republicans (who hate him!) could pave the way for a great escalation of fascism in America.
2. Make a deal with the tech oligarchs and corporate media that they can’t refuse—from a money and assured pardon point of view. In doing so, shore up the surveillance state and control information flow to the public.
3. Bet the rest of the business community and most institutions would go along to protect themselves, even if they are holding their noses. Essentially a continuation of the capitulation of powerful institutions across the board that we have witnessed over the last two years.
4. Finally, double down on stamping out dissent. Erase the elation and replace it with FEAR. Create real costs for those leading dissent.

While I realize this doesn’t paint a rosy picture and we have barely recovered from our champagne-induced hangovers—to be honest, what other play does Mr. Miller have?

So how do we fight back?

1. Time to stop celebrating. Sorry. Celebration is complacency. Miller is counting on us to lie in our feather beds of self-satisfaction while he doubles down. Remember: evil, not stupid.
2. The newly elected Congress needs to demonstrate its absolute strength—zero appeasement. The American public must see strength and “fight” from the leaders they elected to put down this fascist threat once and for all. If they don’t, Americans will get scared, and they will fall silent.
3. The legislative branch can and must *create cost for capitulation*. Only when the cost of working with Trump outweighs the benefit will business and institutional behavior change.
4. Fear is Miller’s sharpest weapon. Leaders of the opposition must double down on visual, public, fearless opposition to whatever comes next. We must continue to be brave to spread courage.

The next two years will either be the last, desperate gasp of fascism in America or the pivot to the point of no return. And that outcome is going to be dependent on what we do now—together—as moral, patriotic, and clear-eyed Americans.

Put down the champagne and buckle up.