As someone who enjoys science fiction, I thought I would ponder a new genre, political fiction. This would be similar to sci-fi in that it would have foundations in the real world of the possible and fantasize a different future. The following would be just an outline of such a story.
You are about to enter another dimension. A dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind. A journey into a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination. That's the signpost up ahead—your next stop, the Trump-Free Zone!
A group of young citizens comes together with a common cause. I say young because youth in this instance is a requirement for motivation. Their future lives depend on the outcome of their efforts. They are just citizens, and while labels are not appropriate here, the term Just Citizens would be acceptable. They are inhabitants of a land now governed by a dictator in the remains of what was once a representative democracy.
In this group, are citizens of both the dominant former political parties and those who never identified themselves with either side. The core group has no defined leadership. They discuss plans, agree on a course of action, and announce that as their plan. The prime directive is that all such actions be legal and covered within the scope of the original Constitution. Toward that end they have among their group, legal scholars. They have also contracted with two large legal firms to assist when matters must go to court.
They have sought out and found financial support from wealthy individuals who have agreed to provide funding but not to be involved in the decision-making process. They have seen what tying financial sources to decisions has done to create the mess they are in.
This is to be a “think tank” that will develop their plan to oppose this dictator while some semblance of the former government still exists. The plan is simple in scope but requires a certain stealth if it is to be successful. With that in mind, this group has enlisted a cyber security team that has adopted a two-tiered communications network using Signal for the most secret directives and WhatsApp for other mass communications. Servers are air-gapped with no access from the outside. Unlike Project 2025, Project 2026 will remain unpublished.
Also within this group of Just Citizens are political analysts and former members of government who have held elected office. This specialty group was established to identify at least 20 Republican senators who would risk their political futures to save the remnants of democracy. The assumption here would be that all Democratic senators along with the two independents who caucus with Democrats would vote as a block. While only 17 Republican senators would be needed if this desired scenario came to be, the three “extras” would provide some insurance for success.
All of this would require the origination of impeachment proceedings with a simple majority in the House. While this is a lower threshold, it too will require planning and execution. Contacting House Republicans and Senate Republicans would be the final step in the process after all of the plan was in place. It would need to be swift and highly organized as the opposition is already positioned to resist with dire consequence if the effort is unsuccessful.
As a prelude to the final political steps, another section of Just Citizens would play a vital role, the communications branch. This section would include members of the media who are already covering the missteps of the current administration. It would also include members of the entertainment industry who would provide a multi-pronged media attack to amplify the existing outrage of those being fired, displaced, made homeless, and who have suffered under the meat axe dismantlement of all manners of government aid and support.
Impeachment, when successful, would also mean the acceptance of the vice president to fulfill the remainder of the term. It is a difficult pill to swallow but not unlike chemotherapy that is required after the removal of a cancer. It would be hoped that the new exile status of his predecessor would act as a moderating force to incentivize him to not continue with his same disregard for the law. With midterms fast approaching, a shift in the political winds would be probable.
As I opened this outline of political fiction with a tribute to The Twilight Zone, I will leave you once again with some poignant remarks from that source.
“Any state, any entity, any ideology which fails to recognize the worth, the dignity, the rights of Man...that state is obsolete. A case to be filed under "M" for "Mankind" (The Obsolete Man)
"No moral, no message, no prophetic tract, just a simple statement of fact: for civilization to survive, the human race has to remain civilized. Tonight's very small exercise in logic from the Twilight Zone." (The Shelter)
“The tools of conquest do not necessarily come with bombs and explosions and fallout. There are weapons that are simply thoughts, attitudes, prejudices to be found only in the minds of men. For the record, prejudices can kill, and suspicion can destroy, and a thoughtless frightened search for a scapegoat has a fallout all of its own for the children, and the children yet unborn. And the pity of it is that these things cannot be confined to the Twilight Zone.” (Monsters Are Due on Maple Street)
“A sickness known as hate. Not a virus, not a microbe, not a germ—but a sickness nonetheless, highly contagious, deadly in its effects. Don't look for it in the Twilight Zone—look for it in a mirror. Look for it before the light goes out altogether.” (Color Me Black)