The Case for Fighting Trump on Norms

Lee Drutman and Mark Schmitt wrote for Vox about fighting Trump on political norms:

As the 115th Congress opened, Democrats met with President Obama to devise a strategy to preserve the Affordable Care Act. They war-gamed ambitious efforts to fight against potential Republican efforts to cut Medicare and Social Security, two of the most popular government programs ever. In short, Democratic leaders are preparing to continue to do their version of “normal politics” as if Donald Trump were just the next incarnation of George W. Bush.

In contrast, elected Democrats have been more cautious in highlighting the incoming Trump administration’s violation of fundamental democratic norms and constitutional requirements. (Elizabeth Warren, however, is a notable exception here.) Most glaring is Trump’s brazen refusal to fully divest himself of his global web of financial assets and obligations, and the obvious conflicts of interests it brings.