Local View: Speak up to protect our American experiment

President Donald Trump picked up where he left off.

The Washington Post published 11 misleading or inaccurate claims in Trump’s inaugural speech, its fact-checking providing details to prove inaccuracies in Trump’s representations. ( The same newspaper found 30,573 untruths during Trump’s first term in office.)

The issuing of so many executive orders on his first day suggested that Trump believes there are no constraints on his power and that he can do whatever he wants, ignoring the constitutional balance between the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government. Previously, people who felt bound by the laws and the Constitution routinely opposed his illegal/nonconstitutional suggestions, such as shooting protesters or using the military within the U.S. Now, it seems, his apparent demand that all staff be loyal to him and only him removes safeguards for our democracy.

Case in point: the intimidation of members of Congress to support him or suffer primary opponents. Likewise, his attempt to force out impartial civil-service workers and his signalled directives to the Department of Justice about his perceived enemies show his desire to end the tradition of independence for the agencies within the executive branch, as well as the hypocrisy of his claim that he is not weaponizing government.

Certainly, most, if not all, of the orders on Jan. 20 did not reflect the will of the people. According to recent polling , 52% of U.S. adults oppose (with another 26% neutral) withdrawing from the Paris climate agreement, 64% oppose (with 16% neutral) deporting undocumented immigrants who have not been convicted of a crime, 60% oppose (with 20% neutral) pardoning those who participated in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, and 51% oppose (with 20% neutral) an end to birthright citizenship.

By pardoning and/or commuting the sentences of those convicted and sentenced in court for their part in the Jan. 6 attack on Congress, and dismissing all remaining indictments, the president showed his disdain for the rule of law. Even the new vice president disagreed, rejecting pardons for those who attacked police officers.

With his order to eliminate the federal recognition of birthright citizenship, the president reneged on his oath of office , to “preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution” of the United States. One cannot claim the sanctity of First Amendment rights in one moment or Second Amendment rights in another and then reject the 14th Amendment because it suits one’s goals and/or prejudices.

Without an effort on the part of everyone, I believe this new administration will destroy our democracy.

I challenge those who support Trump unilaterally to read others’ opinions and analyses about the problems and veracity of his positions and actions. Find unslanted news sources. Be open to considering critiques as valid, historically accurate, and based on fact and reality.

Local newspapers need to regularly present the fact-checking being done on Trump and his administration. This should not be difficult for the News Tribune, given the newspaper’s arrangements with other news sources, allowing the republication of their articles.

Those who disagree with the proposals from Trump, make your voices heard. Find the phone numbers for your U.S. representative and senators, and call them on a regular basis. Urge them to stand up and speak up for democracy. Praise them when they do. And have the difficult discussions with friends who admire Trump.

I do wonder how our Congressman Pete Stauber can fail to condemn the pardons for Jan. 6 participants, given his career in law enforcement.

This may be our last chance to protect the American experiment.

Eileen Zeitz Hudelson is a retired University of Minnesota Duluth professor and researcher, a former Duluth School Board member, and a member of the Minnesota DFL Senior Caucus.