Why Glinda Democrats Won’t Get On The Broom
We need to elect more Elphabas.
House Democratic leaders, in the most generous use of the term, are reportedly “unhappy” with the few Democrats who disrupted Donald Trump’s Klan rally address last week. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Minority Whip Katherine Clark, and Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar had what was described as a “come to Jesus” meeting with their unruly members, though “come to Caesar” might’ve been more appropriate.
A senior House Democrat told Axios, presumably with pride, that leadership was upset that barely a dozen or so Democrats out of 215 “went beyond traditional protest tactics like outfit coordination and refusal to clap.” Outfit coordination is not a protest tactic unless you believe bridesmaids at a wedding are making a bold stand against fascism.
The absolute bare minimum Democrats could’ve done is not applaud the deranged psychopath’s bigoted, lie-stuffed rant. This is like someone’s grandparents sheepishly saying, “Yes, that’s us in the crowd at the public lynching but we’re clearly not clapping. Our stoic looks of disapproval are worth a dozen protest marches.”
This is truly appalling. The Trump administration is an openly corrupt authoritarian regime that cozies up to dictators while attacking U.S. allies, and the Democratic Party’s official response is performative activism.
‘Why is it you’re always causing some sort of commotion?’
When Rep. Al Green stood up and shouted that Trump didn’t have a mandate, he was forcibly removed while Democrats sat and watched. It was like the scene in Wicked when Dr. Dillamond is arrested. (Watch below.)
Later, Dr. Dillamond’s fascist replacement boasts about how the regime plans to cage animals, specifically so they’ll never learn to speak and remain permanent second-class citizens. Elphaba doesn’t just sit there. She makes a scene, and she frees the caged lion cub. Of course, that’s not the polite, norms-embracing protest that Democratic leaders would prefer. Elphaba did more than just refuse to clap.
Wicked cleverly satirizes performative protest when Galinda announces that she’s changing her name to “Glinda” in honor of the imprisoned Dr. Dillamond. Her friends praise her “bravery,” but obviously, the gesture is empty and meaningless. It doesn’t jeopardize her privileged position nor does it challenge Oz’s growing fascism. However, later when the stakes are high and Glinda could make a difference, she doesn’t join Elphaba’s revolt against the Wizard. Instead, she chooses her own material comfort. (Watch below.)
“I hope you’re happy now that you’re choosing this,” Glinda says, and all the emphasis is on Elphaba’s defiant choice. She doesn’t even acknowledge that she’s making a choice, as well — to stay and collaborate with the fascist regime.
It’s interesting, though, that many Glinda defenders have argued that this was a smart decision or even a morally complex one. They claim that Glinda isn’t simply retreating into the safety of her own privilege and (and literally) embracing authoritarianism. No, it’s important that Glinda hold a position of power within the system. What good can Elphaba do anyone as a marginalized outcast? She’s the one engaging in self-indulgent performative activism.
Far too many elected Democrats embrace this shallow, self-serving philosophy. They insist that you can only do good if you maintain power, but they fear losing that very power if they even try to do anything good. Unfortunately, “good” no longer enjoys non-controversial bipartisan consensus. Preserving freedom and upholding democracy is now a revolutionary act, and this makes mainstream Democrats very uncomfortable.
Democratic leaders — and I’m stretching the hell out of that definition —chastised their caucus members who are actually worth a damn, including Reps. Jasmine Crockett, Maxwell Frost, Melanie Stansbury, and my own representative Maxine Dexter here in Portland, Oregon.
A source told Axios that the meeting was “a consultative process. We understand the pressure they are under.” This cynically suggests these Democrats aren’t bravely resisting Trump but merely buckling to political pressure (perhaps from those awful strawman activist “groups” who Democrats always blame when they lose elections). The Do Nothing Democrats seriously believe their “lie down and play dead” approach is the most effective, as if Trump is a large orange bear. (Just “lie down and play dead” also sounds more like the advice you’d get from a hungry bear.)
“They are not being talked to like they are children,” the source said, which means that’s exactly what happened. “We are helping them understand why their strategy is a bad idea.”
Glinda shows similar frustration in the song “Defying Gravity,” when she asks Elphaba, “Why couldn’t you have stayed calm for once, instead of flying off the handle?” Glinda sees Elphaba as someone who constantly gives in to her emotions, raging at oppressive systems, rather than thinking strategically. After all, it takes careful consideration to come up with the masterful plan of “matching pink jackets.”
The “disruptive” Democrats who opposed Trump’s fascism also disobeyed Jeffries’s direct order to just sit on their hands. Unlike Elon Musk’s trampling over the Constitution, that’s not something Jeffries could just ignore.
“Would they have done that to [former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi]?” a source asked. “You know the answer: Never. So you’ve got to put the hammer down.”
So, now Democrats have access to hammer technology instead of political Nerf weaponry. Democratic leadership apparently considers “country over party” just another empty slogan, suitable for the subject line in fundraising emails. It seems the true sin is defying party leadership, no matter how weak and timid.
‘Too late for second-guessing. Too late to go back to sleep.’
A key moment in Wicked is when Glinda tells Elphaba that if she just apologizes to the Wizard for her previous outburst — her lack of “decorum” — she can have everything, she’s “worked and waited for,” all she’s ever wanted. Elphaba replies, “I know. But I don’t want it. No, I can’t want it. Anymore.” Elphaba isn’t a fool. She knows what she’s worth, and she knows what she’s giving up. Earlier, she told Fiyero, “I know that my life would be much easier if I didn’t care,” but she still chooses to care. She understands that an easy or successful life isn’t necessarily a good one.
Rep. Al Green is 77 and uses a cane. He didn’t need to stand up. Jasmine Crockett, Maxwell Frost, Melanie Stansbury, and Maxine Dexter are all extremely talented and could easily ascend to positions of leadership in the party.
Ten Democrats voted with Republicans to censure Rep. Green. We shouldn’t forget their names, especially when they come around asking for money or dare talk about “protecting democracy” on Rachel Maddow. They are Ami Bera and Jim Costa from California, Ed Case from Hawaii, Marcy Kaptur of Ohio, Jared Moskowitz of Florida, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington, Tom Suozzi and Laura Gillen from New York, Jim Himes from Connecticut, and Chrissy Houlahan from Pennsylvania. Last I checked California, Hawaii, New York, Washington, and Connecticut weren’t “red states” or even swing states. Kamala Harris lost Pennsylvania, but she carried Houlahan’s district by 11 points.
We can safely assume that these 10 helped censure Green with Jeffries’s approval. Like him, they’ll grovel in submission to feed their own ambition. It’s a hollow pursuit that recalls the famous line from Citizen Kane: “Well, it’s no trick to make a lot of money if all you want is to make a lot of money.” Along those lines, it’s no trick to become a House Democratic Leader or even a committee chair, if that’s all you actually want.
Green’s outburst and ejection was a test moment for the caucus and as a group, they failed. They could have thought, at that moment, “Trump is lying in this speech, he’s an aspiring dictator, and if we all walk out now as a group with Green, it will not only show solidarity but this will dominate news coverage of the speech and set the stage for how we oppose this presidency.” Instead they sat there like gelded animals and some even blamed Green. This bodes poorly for the next four years. That there’s even a possibility of a single Democrats voting for a CR to keep the government open when we know Trump will illegally defy whatever appropriations Congress passes should be an outrage.
The only hope is a Dem Tea Party movement to replace or strike fear into these useless people. Without that, this is all just grease for the wheel of fascism.
"Look, when the Jews were rounded up and shipped off on train cars, we wrote a very strongly worded letter to Mr. Hitler about it... well, we considered writing the letter... we formed a committee to think about writing the letter... in the end, the committee decided we were better off letting Mr. Hitler make his mistakes and then we'd be in a much better position to retake power after the public tired of him..."