Trump’s Threat to Nonprofits
How the Government is Using Tax Law to Pressure Nonprofits and How Nonprofits Can Respond
The administration of President Trump is threatening nonprofits with the loss of tax-exempt status in an attempt to force them to conform their activities to policies favored by that administration. The threats are based on shaky legal grounds, and nonprofits have both constitutional and statutory bases for countering them. Nevertheless, these threats are significant, especially when combined with the administration’s efforts to cut government funding for many programs operated by nonprofits. And at the same time, the U.S. Congress is considering reducing the benefits of tax-exempt status in many ways, primarily to help pay for tax cuts benefitting individuals and corporations.
Chipping away at the benefits of tax exemption
In an apparent attempt to force nonprofits to conform to the current administration’s views relating to discrimination, antisemitism, and other topics, President Trump, his officials, and to a lesser extent the U.S. Congress are threatening to revoke or reduce the benefits of tax-exempt status for certain organizations. Besides the widely reported repeated threats by President Trump to take away Harvard’s exemption from federal income tax, President Trump and other officials in his administration have challenged the tax-exempt status of groups that include the Wikimedia Foundation, prominent medical journals, and the watchdog organization Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. And in an Executive Order relating to public service loan forgiveness, President Trump suggested that certain activities engaged in by many nonprofits relating to immigration, gender-affirming care, and other activities were illegal, which would be grounds for revoking tax-exempt status.
The U.S. Congress is also considering several measures that threaten or reduce the benefits of tax-exempt status for certain nonprofits. The provision that appears to have raised the most alarm among nonprofits was a proposal carried forward from the 2023-2024 Congress that would have given the Department of the Treasury broad discretion to strip tax-exempt status based on alleged support of terrorism, subject to certain procedural protections. While initially included in this year’s pending tax legislation, that provision did not make it out of the House of Representatives, possibly because it may have violated certain procedural rules.
But other provisions in that legislation, now under consideration by the Senate, chip away at the benefits of tax exemption for certain nonprofits, reportedly in part to help pay for extending expiring tax cuts for individuals and corporations. These provisions include proposals to sharply increase the tax on investment income of both the largest university endowments and the largest private foundations, as well as to tax certain fringe benefits provided by some nonprofits to employees and to expand the reach of an existing tax on highly compensated nonprofit employees. The bill also would reduce the benefits of the deductions available to donors to tax-exempt charities by placing a floor on that deduction for corporations and capping the deduction for certain high-income donors. At the same time, Congress is proposing temporarily restoring a modest charitable deduction that would be available to all individual donors.
Legal grounds for revoking tax-exempt status
The Trump administration appears to be relying on two legal arguments for its challenges to tax-exempt status. One argument is that the targeted nonprofits are engaging in illegal activity, including supporting illegal racial discrimination targeted by one of the administration’s first Executive Orders or terrorism. An U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) ruling from the 1970s that is still in effect establishes that promoting illegal activity is inconsistent with tax-exempt status for charities and certain other nonprofits. This ruling does not establish, however, how serious or pervasive the illegal activity has to be to justify revocation of tax-exempt status, leaving the door open for the administration to assert that even a small amount of allegedly illegal activity provides sufficient justification. At the same time, this argument is vulnerable to the counterargument that the challenged activity is not in fact illegal – a counterargument that some state attorneys general have already deployed in response to the administration implying that all diversity initiatives violate federal antidiscrimination laws.
The other argument is that the targeted nonprofits are acting contrary to public policy. For example, President Trump reportedly stated that his basis for questioning Harvard’s tax-exempt status is that it was not acting “in the PUBLIC INTEREST.” The IRS took the position starting in the 1970s that schools promoting racial discrimination were acting contrary to established or fundamental public policy and so should lose their tax-exempt status. The Supreme Court of the United States ultimately agreed with this position in the 1983 decision Bob Jones University v. United States. At the same time, the Court cautioned against the IRS interpreting what constitutes fundamental relevant public policy too broadly: “We are bound to approach these questions with full awareness that determinations of public benefit and public policy are sensitive matters with serious implications for the institutions affected; a declaration that a given institution is not ‘charitable’ should be made only where there can be no doubt that the activity involved is contrary to a fundamental public policy.” It nevertheless held that the federal government’s policy against racial discrimination in education was fundamental because it was reflected in the consistent, long-term positions of not only the executive branch but also Congress and the federal courts. A counterargument to the reliance by the administration on this contrary to fundamental public policy doctrine is therefore that the policies asserted by the administration as having been violated by targeted nonprofits have not been embraced, or not embraced for a long enough time, by all three branches of the federal government and so are not fundamental.
Legal defenses for nonprofits threatened with loss of tax-exempt status
Besides the potential counterarguments already noted, nonprofits facing threats to their tax-exempt status from the Trump administration have several constitutional and statutory grounds with which they can defend themselves. The most obvious constitutional ground is the First Amendment’s protection for freedom of speech. President Trump and other officials in his administration have repeatedly stated that they are questioning the tax-exempt status of certain nonprofits because those nonprofits have engaged in speech the administration disagrees with or is critical of the President.
It is a clear violation of the First Amendment for the government to target individuals or groups for prosecution or investigation based on their protected speech, as the Supreme Court recently confirmed in its 2024 National Rifle Association of America v. Vullo decision. In that case, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) represented the pro-gun rights National Rifle Association (NRA) in a lawsuit against a former New York state official who allegedly violated the NRA’s First Amendment rights by pressuring regulated entities not to do business with the NRA because of its pro-gun rights advocacy. In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court reversed a lower court’s dismissal of the lawsuit, holding that the NRA should have the opportunity to try to prove the truth of its allegations, as if they were true they established a violation of the First Amendment.
Another possible constitutional defense is if the administration acts to revoke tax-exempt status without granting the targeted nonprofits sufficient procedural protections. The Fifth Amendment guarantees due process, and stripping a nonprofit of tax benefits without providing adequate notice and opportunity to contest the government’s actions violates that guarantee. This is part of why the IRS provides detailed procedures relating to revocation of tax-exempt status.
There are also several statutory protections for nonprofits facing possible loss of tax-exempt status. The one that President Trump appears to most clearly be ignoring is 26 U.S. Code Section 7217, which prohibits any White House employee from directing the IRS to target a specific nonprofit’s tax-exempt status and any IRS employee from complying with such an order or request. While President Trump is likely immune from prosecution under this criminal statute given a recent Supreme Court decision on presidential immunity, and other government employees likely face little risk of prosecution while President Trump is in office, a future (Democratic) administration could pursue prosecutions of those employees if they violate this statute.
Nonprofits have access to the courts to challenge revocation of tax-exempt status
Any nonprofit facing an IRS threat to revoke tax-exempt status also has the right to challenge that proposed revocation before it takes effect. The primary way to do so, enacted by Congress in the wake of Bob Jones University running into procedural difficulty challenging the revocation of its tax-exempt status that led to the Supreme Court case mentioned earlier, is provided by 26 U.S. Code 7428. This statute gives a nonprofit the right to go to federal court to seek a declaratory judgment that the revocation is improper and so should not be allowed to go into effect, although the nonprofit has to wait until the IRS has finalized its decision to revoke (or deny initially) tax-exempt status and the nonprofit has exhausted its administrative options for challenging that decision. Nonprofits can therefore force the IRS to defend its revocation decision in court.
A federal appellate court endorsed another way in Z Street v. Koskinen, which involved a pro-Israel charity that alleged the Obama administration had a policy targeting applications by pro-Israel nonprofits for tax exemption. That court ruled that a nonprofit may challenge the failure to approve such an application even before the IRS makes a decision if the challenge is based on First Amendment free speech grounds. Since most if not all of the threatened challenges to tax-exempt status appear vulnerable to exactly this type of constitutional challenge, that precedent likely would permit nonprofits to go to court immediately, without having to wait for a final IRS decision or having to exhaust their administrative remedies, if they can plausibly allege the IRS is investigating their tax-exempt status because of their protected speech.
The bottom line
The bottom line is that nonprofits facing a threat to their tax-exempt status from the Trump administration have a variety of legal defenses at their disposal. However, they will of course face the disruption and cost of having to deploy those defenses, which may lead many of them to instead quietly adjust their activities to avoid the areas the administration has targeted even if the threat would ultimately fail legally. The speed and breadth of the Trump administration’s attacks not only on tax-exempt status but also government funding for nonprofits has reportedly left many nonprofit leaders reeling, unsure whether and how to combat those attacks given the limited resources available to their nonprofits.
And the proposals under consideration by Congress do not have these legal vulnerabilities. If Congress wants to reduce the scope of tax exemption or other tax benefits enjoyed by nonprofits, it can do so as long as it has a reasonable basis for its actions that does not target disfavored speech or otherwise violate the Constitution. And for a Congress interested in extending tax cuts projected to cost trillions of dollars over the next ten years, paying in part for those cuts provides such a basis.
Trump’s Threat to Nonprofits
The administration of President Trump is threatening nonprofits with the loss of tax-exempt status in an attempt to force them to conform their activities to policies favored by that administration. The threats are based on shaky legal grounds, and nonprofits have both constitutional and statutory bases for countering them. Nevertheless, these threats are significant, especially when combined with the administration’s efforts to cut government funding for many programs operated by nonprofits. And at the same time, the U.S. Congress is considering reducing the benefits of tax-exempt status in many ways, primarily to help pay for tax cuts benefitting wealthy individuals and corporations. Continue reading >>
A Blow to Our Constitutional System
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Whom Is Citizenship For?
On Thursday, May 15, the US Supreme Court heard oral arguments in “the birthright citizenship case.” Instead of deciding on the constitutionality of President Trump’s executive order (EO) banning birthright citizenship for certain classes of individuals, the Court is asked to decide whether lower courts exceeded their authority in placing a nation-wide injunction on the government’s order. But this doesn't make the decision any less significant. Continue reading >>
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Trump 2.0 as ‘Dual State’?
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Is the Supreme Court of the United States Getting Fed up with Donald Trump? Continue reading >>The U.S. President’s Electoral Power Play
On March 25, President Trump signed an executive order (EO) purporting to restructure American election administration. The ironically titled “Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections” EO sets out to, among other things, require those registering to vote in federal elections to present documentary proof of citizenship, and threatens to penalize states that accept late arriving ballots (i.e., mail ballots that are sent prior to, yet not received until after, Election Day). The EO has several legal deficiencies and much of it should be invalidated by the federal judiciary. Continue reading >>
Gaming Procedure, Gutting Due Process
The Trump administration has admitted that sending Abrego Garcia to a supermax prison in El Salvador known for human rights abuses was an “administrative error” but contends before the U.S. Supreme Court that there is nothing a federal court can do about that. As I shall explain, the Solicitor General’s argument ultimately rests on the claim that the president who frequently boasts about his abilities as a deal maker is a lousy negotiator. Continue reading >>
The Trump Administration’s Attack on Knowledge Institutions
Time for courage – and resistance Continue reading >>Stopping Autocratic Legalism in America – Before It Is Too Late
President Donald Trump’s recent speech to the Department of Justice was meant as a declaration of war against lawyers. His words made clear that the most effective way to consolidate autocracy is by systematically dismantling the independent centers of power that support a healthy democracy, including the independent public prosecutor. As the Executive Orders targeting law firms underscore: the entire legal profession is next. This is no coincidence. Continue reading >>A Constitutional Crisis? Maybe. A Constitutional Revolution? Likely.
Crisis rhetoric has become pervasive in the United States and Israel, although much of it is a hyperbolic response to the polarization currently dominating these nations’ politics. What seems clearer to us is that a process is underway in both countries that may very well culminate in a constitutional revolution. Such a development might or might not be deemed crisis-worthy, but it would mean that something profoundly significant had changed in the way the business of governing is conducted in each nation. Continue reading >>
The Death Knell for American Free Speech Tradition
In a case that has received global attention and reproach, Mahmoud Khalil, a lawful permanent resident of the United States and recent graduate of Columbia University (another target of the Trump administration’s ire), was arrested on 8 March by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in front of his apartment in New York and subsequently transferred to a detention facility in Louisiana. In this blog post, my aim is to show that the case of Mr. Khalil implicates perhaps the most sacrosanct of American constitutional rights: free speech. Continue reading >>
International Law Under Pressure
In this blog post, we document and analyse the numerous apparent breaches of international law that have occurred within the first six weeks of the 2025 Trump administration. What began as an informal discussion at the Lauterpacht Centre for International Law has evolved into this analytical overview. We believe this documentation serves both academic purposes and potentially supports future legal proceedings. While defenders of these actions will undoubtedly offer justifications for what we identify as clear breaches of international law, our analysis aims to provide an assessment based on established international legal principles. Continue reading >>Reading Project 2025 as a Manifesto
Manifestos have very often prefigured constitutional crisis, revolution, the overthrowing of legal orders, and set the terms of what follows. Project 2025, or the 2025 Presidential Transition Project, can be read as a manifesto, and one that is now well on its way to being implemented. Examining it through the lens of constitution (re)making sets out some of the terms in which it could be opposed, including by counter-manifesto. Continue reading >>
Trump’s Counter-Constitution
“He who saves his Country does not violate any Law.” Continue reading >>Trump and the Folklore of Capitalism
How can we make sense of the return of Donald Trump, who again convinced enough US voters of his populist bonafides? Populist authoritarianism has made inroads around the world. Only Trump’s version, however, probably brings together so much wealth and power, with super-rich business executives now at the helm. Here I tap a brilliant but neglected book, The Folklore of Capitalism (1937), by the legal scholar and New Deal trustbuster, Thurman Arnold (1891-1961), to understand this remarkable development. Folklore of Capitalism helps explain Trump’s wide appeal, despite the electorate’s disagreements with many of his policy preferences. Continue reading >>
Just one thought, not meant to question the validity of the text on a whole:
Women are not a minority. In fact, men are.
It’s not a minority of population, it’s a minority of power. The majority of the positions of power in our country are held by men. This is what the author means by calling women a minority.
Reading this in 2024 as well.
It’s eerie to read now… everything they said is happening
I was thinking that too. I want to protest or find groups to belong to. How do I do that?
To find ways to connect, look to your local Indivisible chapter or look to local protests and rallies. Almost every cause you care about has an organization that is political. I belong to Save Our Schools and we fight to fully fund public schools, but now we are fighting for our democracy. You can get connected! Please do!
VERY helpful information – in 2025 too.
Excellent point! 52-54 % at least in any human population usually for evolutionary reasons.
HI i love the points made. Where could I get a Spanish version?
But how do you survive once they are in control? It’s happening at slow, but steady pace in the US and we don’t learn or change course until the worst possible scenario happens..
Everything we said would protect us, hasn’t; everything we said would hold, is breaking; and everything we said wouldn’t happen, is slowly happening.
What do we do? What do people who cannot be silenced until they are silenced, do? What happens when they take over and we’re completely under their control?
It has all come true…we teeter on the edge. It’s now up to Nov elections…if they are have not been tampered with across the country.
Nov is not going to save us, even if the repubs allow a Dem congress or pres to be seated — which I dont think they will allow. Biden has all the power in the world right now, and he refuses to do ANYthing — and Harris is pledging the same. They are both saying they wont lift a finger; in fact they havent lifted a finger. They tell us to go elect 60 Senators and then they’ll do something. We are in dire trouble, and what we need is as you say, advice on how to live under authortiarianism.
It has happened. They have “won” in a supposedly fair election. Project 2025, the authoritarian handbook will be enacted on day one allegedly. Already they’ve corrupted the courts and oppressed women through denial of basic health care. We are quite far along this terrible path now.
So here we are. We have 2 months to prepare. What do we do? Our Economy is going to collapse and we will all likely be homeless or very close. I’m a single mom and need to know how I’m going to keep my kids alive, fed, and safe. I am starting a garden this weekend. There are vegetables you can start growing in the fall/winter. We are truly terrified.
Doomerism is giving up your power without a fight.
It’s going to get bad but it’s important to remember, they have hurdles to overcome to enact their agenda. Appointing unqualified rapists for AG and Defense Secretary is psychological warfare above all. It’s a flex, intended to shock you.
We are still in the pre-game warmup; don’t let the scare tactics get to you. We have an important job: to stymie their vision and promote our own.
Yup.
It’s all happening. I didn’t think it would happen so IMMEDIATELY after he was elected, but shit is going to be in place for him to rule with an iron fist on Day 1.
Update: it is literally happening, day one. Despite his claims that he knew nothing of project 25, Trump signed an overwhelming 200 executive orders today to push forth that very agenda. Anyone who knows their history knows where this is leading.
And now musk has breached the treasury. All of us are now under his control.
First they came for the Migrants
And I did not speak out Because I was not a Migrant
Then they came for the Trans
And I did not speak out Because I was not Trans
Then they came for the Gays
And I did not speak out Because I was not Gay
Then they came for the Legislators
And I did not speak out Because I was not a Legislator
Then they came for me
And there was no one left To speak out for me.
With apologies to Pastor Martin Niemöller
It’s been 8 weeks…. they’re starting to arrest people for their speech, investigating schools and lawyers, threatening private business, blocking out the media, calling people terrorists, dismantling the Dept of education… the list goes on. We’re protesting in my red state almost daily, but it doesn’t make it to the news. So many people here are still not paying attention, and many still support it. The world is watching in horror, but no one is coming to save us, I’m not even sure we can save ourselves at this point.
The recent arrests in Portland by DHS and the Feds have a strong odor of fascism.
Holding arsonists and criminals to account is not fascism. You have to have some rule of law to have a civilized society.
Poland here. I swear to god, our ruling party literally followed this list step by step. It’s scary…
It is happening in the US the same way. As I read this I just started checking the boxes. We are already there. Most people are just not awake enough to realize it. When they start going after individuals in mass without qualm, then they will realize. By then it will have long been too late.
It’s happening.
You are absolutely, right. Everything will be ready for the Dictator on Day One.
Yep it happened here too. Trump & Co. did exactly what Mussolini, Hitler, Orban etc did. They just got tossed out before they could finish destroying the republic. They have NOT stopped trying, and they might very well win/steal the House and Senate in Nov 2020 and elect/appoint Trump in 2024. At that point the Republic is dead.
My question is: will they create a Mussolini/ Putin/Orban style authoritarian regime, or full-blown Third Reich rule by terror?
There is no doubt, in my mind anyway, that Trump would soon move to ruling by fear rather than working to earn faith within the people. It is obvious his concerns are selfish and future actions will be vengeful towards his rivals and critics. That will be the beginning of what will soon be hell on earth for all. If he returns as President, our nation, as we know ( or knew ) it is doomed.
What has helped is knowledge of how dictators work to take over.
PBS in the US has 6 programs available called The Dictator’s Playbook.
One is on Hitler but the one I recommend is on Mussolini.
https://www.pbs.org/tpt/dictators-playbook/episodes/benito-mussolini/
And remember how Mussolini ended.
Thank you for the recommendation of the PBS documentaries. It does seem that there are several parallels between Trump and Mussolini.
Dang. All of the videos in this series have been removed from the website. I wonder when this happened and if there’s anywhere else these videos can be found.
UPDATE: Trump has won everything — the White House, the Senate, the House, and he will have complete control of SCOTUS. The “American Experiment” is done, and we have ushered in an era of America under authoritarian rule. Trump won’t last his term, but Commander JD Vance is waiting to step in.
With the prospect of another Trump presidency I am doing all that I am able to in order to make sure my family and I are safe. If that means leaving the country, then we are working toward a smooth exit. That checklist is pretty much entirely checked off at this point in American history and democracy is in its final stages. I would rather resist from a safe distance where my family doesn’t have to live in fear, abject poverty, or worse.
Karla, may you share what is your exit plan what is on your checklist? Thank you.
My husband and I both studied nonviolence in theology school (we’re religious humanists). I was glad to come across this. So many good people in the US are living in dread and I know Trump’s goal is to demoralize the public and convince us that resistance is useless. Total nonsense.
Nonviolent social action can and does work.
This is similar to what is happening in Indonesia now, where President Joko Widodo is trying to maintain his power by changing the law on the age limit for vice presidential candidates, so that his children who do not meet the requirements can qualify for the vice presidential nomination.
I’ve seen reduced participation in public demonstrations in the USA over the last few years. What are some other ways to “fight”, especially for secure elections, independent media, etc. I’ve been writing letters and making calls but that doesn’t seem very much like “fighting.”
Join the League of Women Voters. Join Mobilize. Join Sunrise Movement. All of these are nationwide with local chapters and/or meetings. Meet with like minded people IRL at libraries, parks, pubs. Utilizing public spaces helps keep those public spaces open to the public. Join a Community Garden. Growing food is an act of resistance. Find neighborhood groups on social media. Volunteer to plant trees, pull up invasive weeds, and clean up rivers and lakes. Do good things; you’ll meet good people. Give to ACLU and abortion rights groups to help fund their lawyers. Stopping authoritarian rule this time is going to take a lot of court cases.
Also, use the 5 calls app to reach your congress members and leave a comment. Very effective!
Thank you for citing these positive suggestions. So many of us are at a loss of what we can do to make positive changes. This really helps!
I applaud you for doing what you have. You may think that it is too little, but I don’t think so. I think every little bit. Look at all the millions in this country who didn’t bother to vote. Every vote counts even if they think it doesn’t. If they had all voted, then I’m pretty darn confident that this shit show would never have happened. So, you did good! Every little bit helps.
just found your site sitting and wondering what to do how to take action against the unbelievable scenarios I see unraveling around the world, definitely time for more action! while I still don’t see a clearly defined path for myself it’s really encouraging to find other’s who are feeling it too and I’m sure this will lead to a direction for me, thanks
After yesterday’s Scotus decision on Presidential immunity I am bracing for the worst. I share your concerns immensely and find myself thinking…what can I do? Can I do anything? It’s horribly frustrating…
Though I’m praying it doesn’t come to this, as a believer in risk management, I’ve begun to wonder what, as a 71 year old retired widow, I should be doing to prepare for a possible Trump win and authoritarian takeover. I’m sure they have plans in place for the hammer to fall on day one and I want to be prepared. Should I transfer my assets into my sons’ names? Just seeing that written down makes me feel like I’m overreacting but I’m really scared.
I fear it may be too late in the US to stop the Republicans from destroying the nation. The dumbing down of Americans may be too far along to stop. It seems that the party of Trump has started or completed a number of the steps listed above. Especially when it comes to the Judicial side of the government, i,e. the lack of ethics in the Federal Supreme Court.
The US Supreme Ct.’s immunity decision today has set us up for totalitarian rule. This is terrifying.
Anyone else here from after the corrupt US Supreme Court gave presidents absolute full immunity from what they do in office as official acts. And bribes are legal. And women can’t have abortions. This upcoming fourth might be our last true July 4. Scary stuff.
Scared to death. The masses are blind to the threat. So much has already been torn down. I fear we are not going to win this election.
1.Why do authoritarian regimes still have to be maintained and maintained in this modern era ?
2in Indonesia 2024, Jokowi’s anti-democratic regime faces resistance from students, public intellectuals…protracted demonstrations to overthrow Jokowi continue.
…and here we are, November 6th, about to enter a new era in the United States. Everything went down as expected.
I am so scared.
Alas, the U.S., warts and all, has begun its biggest fall yet. Thank you for these. #resistance
Thank you, while we sit in tears.
Its a day after election in the United states and I feel an uneasy feeling. Something told me to do research to prepare myself for the next 4 years and its crazy seeing people comment from 2 years ago warning how trump will use these tactics and fear to get the vote…hedid just that. Its crazy we are going through this but I do believe in the half the country that voted for the right side of history. Hopefully the United States will not fall for this..Hopefully I will grow old in my home country and be able to say we fought against this regime.
I am finding it hard to leave my small condo. I’m retired. Afraid I will start talking out loud to find people who want to fight this regime that will start in January but is already in the forming stages. Is Indivisible the only group?
Join the League of Women Voters. Join Mobilize. Join Sunrise Movement. All of these are nationwide with local chapters and/or meetings. Meet with like minded people IRL at libraries, parks, pubs. Utilizing public spaces helps keep those public spaces open to the public. Join a Community Garden. Growing food is an act of resistance. Find neighborhood groups on social media. Volunteer to plant trees, pull up invasive weeds, and clean up rivers and lakes. Do good things; you’ll meet good people. Give to ACLU and abortion rights groups to help fund their lawyers. Stopping authoritarian rule this time is going to take a lot of court cases.
Now every box is checked in the US
I’m a 72 year old woman who is very frightened by the results of our last election. I don’t have enough money to leave the country and I fear the last few years of my life will be unconscionable. My husband and I are trying to make some kind of a survival plan now. Thank you for helping with ideas.
I also am 72. I don’t have a husband. I am existing by myself on social security. That is my ONLY income. If that is taken away from me, I am screwed. I will be on the streets. I am diabetic so how will get my meds? But Trump and
Elon don’t care about that because they live in luxury and don’t have to worry about things like that. They don’t care about us Americans who can’t care for themselves because it doesn’t concern them. They are all so out of touch with the common man.
It’s Nov 2024, and here we are post-election staring down the worst scenario we could’ve imagined. He’s back. What is the first line of protection for our money and property we should be doing? We are fortunate to have dual citizenship (Canada/US) … will we be able to move out of the US or will they stop us at the border? It is HORRIFYING that we even have to think about this. What other things should we be taking care of before January 20th?
Thank you!
A Concerned American
God help us in the US
Step One: Get the fuck out. Pack up your shit and leave.
Unless you can’t. Or like most of us, you actually love this country and are willing to fight for it instead of just leaving.
I wish I could. We saw this coming in 2015 and 1/2 the country did nothing! Now it’s too late!
This is so important – thank you!
I, too searched and found this site due to fear of what is now happening. I’m wondering, will our internet be disrupted? I don’t have the means to leave. How do I resist without being arrested or worse? So many questions. I’m 62 and less apt to be hired. This is so frightening.
Okay. It’s too late to leave or fight. I have no money. Does anybody know what to do? Tips for survival? Please, I just want to live.
This article is a hopeful argument in the face of disaster. I want to think about these and share them with friends. I believe the best way to solve a crises is to have a small group of supportive friends and share the burdens and occasional joys. I am old and will likely never see the end of this, but that’s OK- history is long
I fear that the US is soon to be in this situation. I appreciate this guide. Thank you.
~Kathy Thompson, Kentucky, USA
Too late for us. In Argentina, Javier Milei’s government checks most all the points.
And this is just the beginning, Milei closely follows what Trump-Musk do, so…
Given the current reality of the United States of America I take umbrage with, “Women and minorities have to be ready to fight the hardest – reminding the majority what true democracy is about – and you must fight together with them.”
No, we do not have to [continue to] fight the hardest. We have been fighting the hardest, especially Black women, but you have not had our backs. 91% of us voted to save democracy.
Black people in the United States have been resisting authoritarian rule since 1619. We have violently intimate knowledge of the devil on the wall. We are tired. It is your fight now.
I know George , my sons says the same… But we must continue to fight, if we don’t , we will die… I’m over 50, and I’m fighting silently, stealthily, for my grandchildren, five of them are girls… I’m tired too, and quite frankly , I’m terrified everyday, but we must try , there is no survival if we don’t…
Be well…
I would love a guide for how to discuss with those who have been suckered into propaganda. Nearly my entire family and friends voted for Trump even as I got them politically engaged (watching debates) and showed them what really happened Jan 6. They ignore me or don’t take him seriously when I share something like US announcement to take over Gaza, or taking immigrants to Guantanamo, or threat to make Canada the 51st “state.” I want to protect myself (minority here) but also know I have a civic duty.
Excellent pocket book advice on dealing with autocracy, tyranny and, and kakistocracy .
Thank you.
It’s interesting that this travesty is coming to fruition just when most the WWII veterans have passed. I wonder how the people who fought fascism and saw its evil face in Europe would feel about the destruction of the American freedoms they sacrificed so much to protect. Al Gore, Hillary Clinton, and Kamala Harris would all been President had women, young people, and people of color not been the victims of voter suppression in every election since at least 2000. Which is not to say that it hasn’t been happening before, especially for people of color. Here we are in 2025, and as one who grew up in the 60s and 70s, so believed in the shining promise of the 21st century. But THIS Medusa just keeps on growing new heads, so it will be a longer battle to promote and nurture the best in human beings, and depose those who would promote the worst. Sometimes creating a better future is a longer haul than we expect.
My Mom is 101 years old and served in the Coast Guard during WWII while my Dad was in the army stationed in Manchester, England. My Dad and uncles have long passed, and they would be besides themselves if they knew what was occurring in our country now. You can imagine what my 101-year-old Mom is feeling right now. It’s downright frightening.
Reading comments spanning across years and sitting here today, in January 2025, and seeing it all unfold exactly as we feared.
Only ten days into Trump’s second term:
– Federal funding freeze causes chaos, confusion and total shutdown in all areas of the govt.
– Illegal firings of inspector generals and federal employees
– New federal employees must prove their loyalty to MAGA
– Transgender people banned from military service
– Across the board removal of any and all lgbt, racial minority, etc protections. Discrimination based on sex, sexuality, race, and religion is now legalized.
– Pressure on private companies to enact the same policies. Leading corporations like Amazon have caved, companies who refuse like Costco are threatened.
– Departure from WHO, shutdown of federal health organizations.
– An insane cabinet of sycophants
– This doesn’t even cover it all, and it’s been 10 days
This would be a very long comment to list citations of everything here, but researching these facts is easy. Potustracker.us is a useful resource.
It’s like Trump is using this as a To Do List. Horrifying. I hate this timeline. Let’s go back to 2016 and give Bernie the nomination that he earned. Ugh. Imagine the beautiful world we’d be living in rn if he was our president in 2016.
To the rest of the world: Please understand that Trump very narrowly won the 2024 US election; essentially half of the US is opposed to him — please continue to stand with those of us who opposed him and the republicans, those who are afraid of democracy and the rule of law
this is the best condensed articulation of what is happening. thank you.
How do we know this forum is safe?
I am 80 years old. I will do whatever I can, however I can to help our citizens and others here to remain safe. Our USA democracy and our Constitution are sacred and the land is sacred! All of our children and grandchildren, human, animal and spiritual are blessings of life and must be protected. from those who would steal from them or us!
About 20-25 years ago I had a dream that I was in Philadelphia PA on a beautiful sunny day where I saw our Founding Fathers, in spirit form. They were rushing to get to an older brick building, so I asked, “Where are you going?” One of our Founding Fathers answered that they were hurrying to a meeting because our Democracy is in danger! May we also hurry with them to save our Democracy “of, by and for the people” IT IS NOT FOR THE OLIGARCHS!!!
I hope all who have been helped, by democracy, and/or love democracy will help as best as they can. We must work together to get our democracy, our beloved land and country out of danger and working for the good of all sharing, kind and gracious beings.
I am horrified at the present state of events in our precious America. Our forefathers must be turning in their graves, if such a thing were possible. Aside from my depression over this political climate, I am so grateful and hopeful that this group of likeminded people exist. I feel that I am not alone here – I believe that goodness will prevail. To the people who think that our country is beyond the point of no return, we have to stick together. NEVER EVER GIVE UP! And to the millions of people who didn’t vote, look at how we ended up by your not voting. It is imperative that every person in this country votes. Every vote counts. There is no excuse not to.
Tim Snyder has written on tyranny. Keep it simple: Remain visible & indivisible. Don’t obey in advance. Never concede your power. Find time for yourself to refresh & recoup. Dig into your local community by volunteering. Look for the helpers. Keep your circle of friends & if possible, family. Stay grounded. I just wish the Democrats were more aggressive. They’re all talk & no action. They need to back up the People & shut down the Senate & realize GOP are anti-democracy. Realize they try to align our enemies & alienate our allies.
Excellent advice from Sunder, but unfortunately too many of our institutions are obeying in advance. The law firms, who are big enough and wealthy enough to resist more effectively than most, are just giving in to trump’s demands with barely a whiff of threat. I don’t have confidence in the American will to resist. It’s heartbreaking but I don’t realistically see much hope. I moved to Europe a few years ago and am hoping I can establish a bridgehead here to bring over some of my more vulnerable relatives when the need arises. I salute those who remain and wish you well in your fight, pessimistic as I am about your chances of success.
Thank You for now. Will be better able to contribute both verbally and monetarily once I ger through the next couple of weeks. And have a better idea where all necessaries are. Some are coming into focus now. Some later
I was a child in ww2 in England believe me I know what is happening in America and if the people don’t wake up and win back democracy
It will be or late ,
That is fair I will wait with a happy outcome
thank you for putting this up, there is much useful knowledge here. I’m gonna pass it along to some friends.
I’ve been feeling since the inauguration almost as if I had woken up behind the Iron Curtain in an earlier time. most Americans don’t have any relevant experience, and many don’t seem to be aware of where this is heading.
all we can do is keep marching, keep writing, keep supporting one another. there are far more of us than there are of them, at least those running this clown show.
onward thru the fog we go. wish us luck!!
I know all this is true. But how do I even try to help anyone who believes in Trump and Musk 100 understand what is happening is total takeover? They can’t even see it. It’s like living in two alternate realities.
UM, America here 7 years later… we’re here now kids….
I am afraid our European friends may not understand how brainwashed his base is. Inviting them over for a beer is not going to break into the 24/7 propaganda they addictively consume. We need to spend our time organizing, not trying to deprogram them, in my humble opinion.
This is almost exactly what has happened or is happening in the US, practically all of it.
I would add to the first one about elections, they’re also “winning” by cheating through voter suppression & vote manipulation (such as through algorithms placed in the tabulation of votes). They couldn’t win otherwise, even with all their divisive & disinformational propaganda.