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iowa caucus
Trump Iowa Win Called a 'Stark Reminder' of Threat He Poses to Democracy
"Now is the time for the American people to stand up, mobilize, and vote like the survival of our democracy is in the balance—because it is."
Jan 16, 2024
Former President Donald Trump's victory in Iowa's Republican presidential caucuses on Monday should serve as a "stark reminder" of the threat he poses to U.S. democracy, progressive campaigners said after the GOP frontrunner finished 30 percentage points ahead of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the party's first primary contest of 2024.
That's a record margin for a contested Iowa Republican caucus, far surpassing Bob Dole's 13-percentage-point win in 1988, according toThe Associated Press, which called the low-turnout race for Trump just 30 minutes after caucus doors opened.
Sean Eldridge, president and founder of Stand Up America, said in a statement that the former president's win is another clear indication that "the 2024 election will be a referendum on the future of our democracy."
"Trump and his allies are laying the groundwork for a second administration that would be even more extreme than the last, from pledging to weaponize the Department of Justice to retaliate against his political opponents to pardoning himself and January 6th insurrectionists," said Eldridge. "Now is the time for the American people to stand up, mobilize, and vote like the survival of our democracy is in the balance—because it is."
The former president is facing more than 90 felony charges at the state and federal levels, some of which stem from his central role in the January 6, 2021 Capitol insurrection—an attack fueled by his false claims that the 2020 election was stolen.
Trump's voters in Iowa have imbibed that lie, with 90% of them telling entrance pollsters on Monday that they do not believe President Joe Biden—who is running for reelection this year—won the 2020 election legitimately.
Trump has been removed from primary ballots in Colorado and Maine over his actions on and in the lead-up to the January 6 insurrection. The former president has appealed both decisions, and the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to weigh in soon.
Trump's public statements and reporting on his allies' private machinations make clear that, if reelected, the former president intends to aggressively pursue a far-right agenda and attempt to weaponize government agencies against his political opponents, including those he has described as "radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country"—an echo of Nazi rhetoric.
Some of the Trump team's planning for a second term can be seen in the work of Project 2025, a coalition of right-wing advocacy organizations whose stated purpose is to "pave the way for an effective conservative administration."
As Rotimi Adeoye reported for The Daily Beast on Sunday, "Project 2025's goal is to recruit thousands of conservatives to Washington, D.C. to replace the existing government workers they believe are part of the 'deep state' to enact their radical Republican agenda."
"Their proposed agenda is comprehensive, advocating for the privatization of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the weakening of protections against foreign election interference, a reduction in visas for international students, and, notably, the dismantling of federal abortion protections," Adeoye wrote. "This encompasses aggressive measures such as restricting access to contraception, leveraging the Center for Disease Control (CDC) for heightened 'abortion surveillance' and data collection, and revoking a Department of Defense policy prohibiting abortion travel funding."
"The moment Trump takes the oath of office and utters, 'So help me, God,' the gears of the right-wing conservative movement could be set in motion, translating the ambitious Project 2025 document into action," Adeoye added. "The potential implications of a Trump administration could be detrimental to Americans. We must prevent this from happening."
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Trump Hits Haley on Social Security, But Critics Note He's No Better
"On Social Security, just as he does on so many other topics, Donald Trump is projecting his own desires onto his opponents," said one progressive defender of the program. "In this case, his accusations against Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis happen to be true, but they are equally true about Trump himself."
Jan 14, 2024
Whichever Republican emerges victorious in the party's Iowa caucus on Monday and ultimately becomes the GOP nominee, defenders of Social Security want the voting public to know that not a single one of them can be trusted to defend what is considered the greatest anti-poverty program ever enacted in the United States.
While former president and GOP primary frontrunner Donald Trump in recent weeks has attacked his top rivals for comments they've made about the program, progressive advocates warn he is no better.
Last week, Trump released a new ad against former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley in New Hampshire that states: "Americans were promised a secure retirement. Nikki Haley’s plan ends that."
During a mid-week debate between Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis—though Trump skipped the event—the two second-tier GOP hopefuls sparred over their plans for Social Security as each said the other could not be trusted on the issue. While DeSantis said a "promise made is a promise" kept, Haley pointed out the governor voted three times to increase the retirement age when was in Congress.
Meanwhile, Haley repeated her promise to push for an increase of the retirement age for people now in their twenties and thirties if elected. In a subsequent public warning, however, the advocacy group Social Security Works made clear that neither DeSantis nor Haley—or Trump for that matter—deserve the public's trust.
Nancy Altman, president of Social Security Works, told Common Dreams over the weekend that while Trump's ads and recent statements correctly pinpoint why Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis should never be trusted to protect Social Security, the former president has an expansive and consistent track record of attacking the program, including during his first term in office.
"On Social Security, just as he does on so many other topics," said Altman, "Donald Trump is projecting his own desires onto his opponents. In this case, his accusations against Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis happen to be true, but they are equally true about Trump himself."
"Trump proposed serious cuts to Social Security as part of his budget every single year he was in office," she continued. "He surrounded himself with men like Mick Mulvaney and Mike Pence, who have long histories of trying to cut and privatize Social Security."
As Common Dreams reported during his presidency, including as he eyed reelection in 2020, Trump made repeated comments hostile to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. In August of 2020, Trump bragged on national television that he would permanently halt the payroll tax that funds Social Security, comments that were seen by defenders of the program as a vow "to destroy" the program.
"Trump himself has supported privatization and raising the retirement age, along with slandering the program as a 'Ponzi scheme,'" warned Altman. "He can't be trusted to protect our earned benefits any more than DeSantis or Haley."
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