If you think the protests don't matter or you are discouraged, please read this:

[calimary]

34. I hope things don't fizzle.

We've got people in the streets, marching, working, avalanching their reps with calls, emails, in-person visits, I just hope people don't get discouraged by how uphill this battle is. Our professional Dems aren't used to fighting THIS hard, to the point where they're being pushed toward being the new Party of No.

I watched Sheldon Whitehouse be confronted by protesters one evening, I forget exactly where, but it looked like someplace outdoors. The crowd was peaceful but ADAMANT as all-get-out! Their signs said it. Their chanting said it. Their numbers said it. Their individual outbursts said it. These folks were taking no prisoners and accepting no substitutes. They wanted to hear him declare flat-out that he wasn't going to support any of trump's cabinet nominees. He waffled. That crowd was having NONE of that! NONE!!! It was startling! He'd decided against some of the nominees but not all. The crowd was having NONE of that! One of the upcoming nominees' names came up and he waffled some more, saying he needed to look it over more closely. The crowd was having ABSOLUTELY NONE of that! It was astonishing!

Whitehouse was verbally fumbling, and manually fumbling, with a list he'd just been handed, of all the nominees. He'd nixed a few at the top but stumbled on that one. Some guy in the crowd shouted "NO!" to the name he said he'd need to review more closely, and immediately added "Just Say No!" The rest of the crowd instantly joined in on that, and suddenly you had what looked and sounded like at least 40-50 people shouting "Just Say No! Just Say No!" And guess what? Whitehouse gave in! Declared himself a "no" on this nominee. The segment ended with him having gotten a steady hand on the list, reading down the names. Declaring a "no" for this one, "no" for that one," "no" for the next one, on and on and on down the list - and the video segment cut away at that point. I don't know if he said "no" to all of 'em, but there certainly was a strong trend developing there. Besides, that crowd wasn't having ANYTHING but total across-the-board "no".

Astounding. I've never seen a crowd manage a politician like that.