These massive protests are starting to work.

[leftyladyfrommo]

Just saw the one for Cotton. People are really fired up over ACA and the environment. Red state. 2,000 people showed up and they were hot.

These assholes Republicans are on the run. They thought they could just run right over the top of everyone and just do as they please. They are finding out that was not such a great idea.
The women's March on Washington set a wonderful precedent. People haven't stopped protesting since day 1.

Keep it up guys!

[still_one]

1. I agree the protests and marches are getting on their nerves, but I doubt very much that the

republicans "are on the run"

They don't really care what their constituents think as long as they get their ideological agenda through

[leftyladyfrommo]

2. They will care when their lives get disrupted enough.

People are even outside their homes. Everywhere they go there are protesters.

[still_one]

4. I hope you are right, but I doubt it

[Sherman A1]

6. Agreed

I too hope for them to have some positive benefits, but doubt that they will do so.

[still_one]

8. The Civil rights movement formally started in the fifties, and it took until 1964 for the Civil

Rights Act to be passed. Similar with the Viet Nam protests.

We have to dig in for the long haul and be persistent

One of the signs that said everything for me during the Women's March said:

"I can’t believe I still have to protest this crap"

[Sherman A1]

10. You are correct

progress comes at an incredibly, sloooow pace. We must look to the long game.

[Silver Gaia]

15. The internet, Facebook, and Twitter did not exist in the 50s and 60s.

24-hour cable news also did not exist. Life moves at a faster pace. These are important things to keep in mind. Just because it took years to make changes over 50 years ago does not mean the same will hold true in 2017. I also advise caution, but I also think we need to be careful not to in turn caution into discouragement. Things are not the same as they once were. Much has changed.

[atreides1]

21. I don't care about disruption!

I would prefer that the vast majority of Republicans be voted out of office, and once that's achieved, for people to keep protesting outside of their homes...to make their lives miserable!!!

[Bernardo de La Paz]

11. They are worried about 2018 and 2020. And getting more worried the more protests PERSIST. . . nt

[still_one]

12. The question is, how many people will vote in 2018 or 2020

[Bernardo de La Paz]

13. The more the RepubliCONs are seen as unpopular, the more people will vote to vote them out. . . nt

[BumRushDaShow]

14. How about folks voting this year - 2017?

There are state-wide elections going on in every state this year for a myriad of offices. Folks need to make their voices heard through voting THIS YEAR. That will scare the hell out of them if we have turnouts more than the usual 10 - 30% in off-year elections.

[SammyWinstonJack]

19. +1000000!

[Historic NY]

17. ((((((THIS)))))))

or will people complain there isn't anything to vote for.

[Chemisse]

30. We could get great turnout in 2018, if today's passion persists.

And the Republican voters may be less motivated to get to the polls.

[workinclasszero]

33. When they see the republican party literally killing them and their loved ones

Which they will be doing shortly and then going after social security and medicare.

The miserable, pathetic and unnecessary suffering and death the republican party is bringing will cut through all the alt-reich lies and brainwashing by fox and hate radio, I believe.

Trumpcare is the beginning of the end for the death loving republican cult!

[Cosmocat]

24. All of this energy needs to translate to a blood letting in November

That is the bottom line, and we have to see the effects THIS year, too.

If we don't see some REAL, not a handful here and there, I mean REAL gains at the state/municipal level, it won't bear well.

And, even if literally everything is working against us and the country, 2018 has to be the most epic congressional turn over in history.

[Hortensis]

3. Wait until the one about defunding public schools gets out there.

[AgadorSparticus]

5. It has caught their attention as it should. Their jobs will depend on it.

2018 will be (hopefully) very different

[raccoon]

7. K&R. It appears to have scared some Republicans from having town hall meetings. nt

[Ilsa]

35. And a Democrat could ran against them using that. nt

[elmac]

9. They will just go into hiding

have their private dinners with their rich peeps. When its time for re-election they will just get Komey and Putin to help them out.

[vlyons]

16. don't think so nihilistic

No one promised that this would be easy. We need to buck each other up. I'm in Texas, a hopeless state with 2 asshole senators and my rep (TX-05) is a powerful Wall St sock puppet. My state gov is about as corrupt as it gets. I SHOULD feel hopeless, but I don't. One of the 6 perfections of a boddhisattva is enthusiastic perseverance.

I take great pleasure in seeing these awful congress people ducking out back doors, getting mobbed at town halls, having their party-line bullshit called out and contradicted at meetings. As more and more of us go to our local Dem club meetings and indivisible events, we are definitely having an impact. There will be a few special elections around the country, where people will show up to vote for Dems and progressives, and that will put these corrupt corporate ReThuglicans on notice. They may not give us what they want, but they will back off from building Traitor Trump's wall for example.

[Dustlawyer]

27. Ditto!!!

My soon to be 80 year old mom wants to buy an RV so she can attend protests everywhere!!!

[OldRedneck]

18. Here in VA-01 . . .

In Virginia's First Congressional District we are "represented" by Rob "Where Is Rob?" Wittman, a do-nothing "nice man."

Back in 2010 when the ACA was the hot topic, he held town halls that were overrun by Tea Partiers. Now that our local Tea Parties are defunct, he has not held a public town hall since 2012, preferring instead to hold "telephone town halls" and to slip into the district to meet with donors.

Our newly-formed Indivisible group is already making his life miserable:
-- daily calls to his local and DC offices, asking pointed questions
-- daily letters to editors asking "where is Rob?" then attacking his position on several issues
-- putting up yard signs "Where is Rob?"

And -- we already have an candidate who has announced to run against him in November 2018.

[SammyWinstonJack]

20. That's awesome!

[LittleGirl]

23. doing the same in Tucson eom

[cvoogt]

22. I think they already worked

The travel ban was stopped and I think it had a lot to do with the numerous sustained protests at airports. They got good media coverage and kept the spotlight on it. Can't prove it of course.. and I'd love to believe those judges would have taken the same steps even without the protests, but they're human and can see when something needs to be done, in part due to the tone set by people.. and one of the most concrete ways of doing that is protesting in a focused way on specific policies.

[Cosmocat]

25. Bottom line - it has to translate to big wins in November

MAYBE the protests can muck things up to stall out SOME of the bad shit they have in the chute to push through.

But, they HAVE to be punished in November, starting this year. It may "just" be a municipal election, but they have to see that the country has been activated to push back against them.

[vlyons]

37. Corruption has to end some time

Americans have long cherished that all citizens are equal before the law. This Republican love affair with privatizing everything that isn't nailed down, and turning prisons, schools, healthcare, roads and infrastructure into profit centers has got to stop. People are angry and fed up with the stupid Republican agenda that works only for Wall St and Exxon.

We see that Republicans are standing around with their thumbs up their butts to prevent a real, transparent, independent investigation into Russian meddling with our democracy. And we suspect that more than a few have colluded in treason with Putin.

[leftyladyfrommo]

38. I don't think these guys ever thought they could get caught.

Hey, they control Congress and the Presidency. Who was going to call them on it?

Surprise! The American people weren't as dumb and lazy as they thought. People had just gotten complacent. But they are awake now and fighting back.

By far the majority of Americans don't want what this Republican Congress wants. And they are pissed as hell that these crooked liars are out to destroy our Democracy.

I think the resistance has just begun. Power to the People!

[BeckyDem]

26. Encouraging, there are encouraging signs more and more.

The Republicans have no idea how to deal with the town hall meetings where they're being called out by their constituents.

[leftyladyfrommo]

28. I am more hopeful now, too.

I was really depressed at first but I am not anymore.

The sleeping giant is awake. People are realizing what they stand to lose and they care enough to fight.

People's lives are at stake here with the loss of their insurance. And no one wants to live in a completely polluted environment.

[BeckyDem]

29. It's good to feel hopeful or we'll burn out. But I should speak only for myself. I feel

hopeful when I see and hear the power of protests and town hall confrontations. I sometimes still feel shocked we are where we are with a Trump administration to fight. It goes back and forth for me but with 2018 on the horizon, I think we're going to do very well.

[leftyladyfrommo]

31. I was start8ng to get burned out

With the constant daily barrage of bad news.

Now I am getting interested again. I hope these racist, greedy assholes just get flattened. They are not who we are. Hillary was right about that.

[BeckyDem]

32. She was right and yes, its the latest news and his cabinet that can make me feel overwhelmed

at times. The latest town hall confrontations have been fantastic though, I love what the people are doing!

[Ohioblue22]

34. this is what the cons will do regarding the protests

Arizona Senate votes to seize assets of those who plan, participate in protests that turn violent

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10028696414

[Ohioblue22]

36. here is what the cons will do regarding protests

Louie Gohmert invokes Giffords shooting as reason not to hold town hall

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10028696552

[WhiteTara]

39. They still do. This is just a blip for them.

They have no intention of listening to the people. And if the past is an indication, by election time, the voters will be quiet and will have forgotten and they will re elect the asshole.