Trifecta state governments across the nation present an opportunity to exert strong pressure toward what you want — not just what you oppose!
It’s a chance to pressure those governments that are “on your side” — rather than focus on what you don’t want.
PRO-TRUMP? I know I have beloved friends and family — brothers in fact — who voted for Trump. If that’s you, you might want to skip this blog. Or not!
Trifecta states have the governor and majorities in both houses of the legislature in the hands of one or the other of the two dominant parties. (If we had a multi-party system like the 90-plus countries that have proportional representation, that system would increase the chances that some states would be Green! That could still happen within the existing system if enough people “Go Green.” )
In California, the Democratic Party has had trifectas since 2011, during eight years of Jerry Brown and six and a half years of Gavin Newsom.
Gavin Newsom has 18 more months in the governor’s seat, and he needs pressure to make use of his power! He has the huge advantage of a super-trifecta, which means veto-proof super-majorities in both houses of the legislature. Republican legislators cannot override any legislation that the Democratic Party majorities place on the Governor’s desk for him to sign. A lot could and should be accomplished.
What can one state do? Keep in mind that California is wealthy, with more than 180 billionaires, and an economy that has been the 5th largest in the world, and climbing to become the 4th largest economy.
So, let’s stop student debt in this state, and return to the tuition-free higher education along with well-funded public schools that California really enjoyed in the past. Let’s make sure everyone has a roof over their head — other nations are able to do that, and they are not as wealthy as California. Let’s establish an improved medicare-for-all system to make sure everyone in California has affordable and accessible healthcare. It’s amazing that England, soon after the devastation of World War II, implemented its National Health Service, which the most conservative leaders tried desperately to weaken, but never could get rid of it.
Why not carry signs asking for what we want from those who assert that they care about us? Write letters to the editor. Write your state representatives and visit their offices. My own feeling about Trump is that he views every postcard as a sign of victory, a sign that he’s winning. Every social media post, rally sign, and letter to the editor that focuses on him feeds his ego and motivates him to double down and press his foot on the accelerator even harder as he drives in the wrong direction for people and planet — a wrong direction that unfortunately was happening way before he took office.
We can turn it around. Let’s practice “hands on” not “hands off” our super-trifecta states.
That’s my piece for the month. Hope it’s useful.
In solidarity, for peace and love and all that good stuff.