How Democrats can counter Trump's dangerous revenge tour

Hell has no fury like a politician scorned and convicted, only to return to power.

Donald Trump has been taking names for four years. Now it’s time for him to start the revenge tour, kick some liberal butt and rerun the classic Star Wars movie, “The Empire Strikes Back.” Democrats must respond vigorously to stop the carnage with the limited tools they have at hand.

The soon-to-be 47th president really means business this time. He is weaponized with a compliant Congress, a friendly Supreme Court, a knowledge of where the bodies are buried within the executive branch and an agenda compliments of the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025. He won’t be able to run for reelection in 2028 so he can settle old scores without any worry about political repercussions. What more could a dictator wannabe ask for?

The tyrannical Roman emperor Caligula wanted to appoint his horse to the Senate to express his disdain for the political establishment. Trump couldn’t find a suitable horse, so in the grand imperial tradition, he nominated former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) to be the chief legal officer of the land.

Gaetz has withdrawn from consideration as attorney general, but with that injudicious appointment, Trump demonstrated his contempt for the criminal justice system that had prosecuted him. The attorney general should be a figure whom Americans can look up to. But people needed to look way down to see Gaetz, since only one out of five people have a favorable opinion of him.

According to ABC News, two women told the House Ethics Committee that Gaetz had paid them to have sex with him. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) objected to the release of the committee report, fearing that the disclosure could jeopardize Gaetz’s opportunity to mislead the Department of Justice.

The Gaetz announcement wasn’t the only Trump middle figure for the establishment and for Democrats in particular. The choice of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the eldest son of a Democratic icon, is an obvious insult to the people who idolize his father, Bobby Kennedy. The selection of the younger Kennedy, an anti-vaccine advocate, as secretary of Health and Human Services is another blow to the conventional wisdom and a shot at the powers that be. Unfortunately, Senate support for his nomination is more secure than Gaetz’s was. God help us if there’s another pandemic.

That’s just the beginning of Trump’s attempts to re-create bizarro world. He signaled his desire to eliminate the Department of Education with his nomination of former Small Business Administration Administrator Linda McMahon, who has no background in education. His choice to become the director of national intelligence, former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, has expressed sympathies for anti-American thugs such as Russian strongman Vladimir Putin and Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad.

Why has Trump gone out of his way to antagonize his enemies and create controversy with his first round of nominations. Because he can!

Trump has made these appointments, secure in the knowledge that three out of four voters thought that nation was heading in the wrong direction and are now willing to accept his unconventional and feeble efforts to solve the nation’s intractable problems. These nominations are impulsive and repulsive, but Americans enjoy the spectacle of 47 poking the bear of the status quo with a stick in the eye.

What can Democrats do to destroy the Trump death star before it destroys the planet and the universe? One worthwhile idea is for Democrats to create a shadow Cabinet in the British parliamentary tradition to directly challenge Trump in distinct issue areas. It should include anti-establishment politicians like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) who are not afraid of speaking truth to power and kicking up some dust to the established order.

My party needs to pick and choose their fights since the GOP controls the Senate and the confirmation process. But there are at least two Republican senators, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine, who will occasionally challenge him.

The first step is for Democrats to keep a close eye on Trump's subsequent nomination for attorney general. The Gaetz announcement may have been designed to draw fire at the front, to give cover for a less controversial choice who is just as repugnant to the rule of law.

The next Democratic target should be Russ Vought, the choice to become director of the Office of Management and Budget and one of the authors of the Heritage Foundation’s infamous Project 2025. The OMB director designate would have an outsized influence on federal budget and personnel decisions. On the stump, Trump claimed not to have any knowledge of the disastrous proposals in Project 2025. A fight against Vought would expose that lie and his plans to decimate programs such as Social Security and Medicare.

There is an urgent need to challenge Trump’s cavalier attitude towards naked Russian aggression and despots like Putin. That brings us to the selection of Gabbard. She is an armed forces veteran, but she lacks the intelligence and managerial background to run the sprawling global American espionage apparatus. She does have a soft spot for dictators and that’s reason enough for patriotic Democrats and Republicans to strike a blow for democracy, here and abroad and block her selection. Former GOP presidential aspirant and Trump’s ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley has blasted her nomination.

Many Democrats are shell-shocked in the wake of Trump’s victory. But the party must shake off its stupor and get ready to aggressively challenge the Trump choices and the first wave of draconian executive orders that will be issued. Wake up before it’s too late.

Brad Bannon is a Democratic pollster and CEO of Bannon Communications Research which polls for Democrats, labor unions and progressive issue groups. He hosts the popular progressive podcast on power, politics and policy, Deadline D.C. with Brad Bannon.