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The handwringing is unprecedented. While Democrats have always expressed outsized fears about what Republicans will do when in power, their angst over the 2016 election has now lasted two months and shows no sign of waning. Meryl Streep (a great actress, contrary to Donald Trumps tweet) spoke and emoted for millions of still-suffering Democrats when she attacked Trump at the Golden Globe Awards last Sunday.

That a movie star would take the opportunity of a nationally televised Hollywood extravaganza to express her political views is not surprising.

But its not just the self-anointed policy experts of Hollywood who are anticipating the worst.

Two groups RISE When We Fall and Lawyers for Good Government are organizing a conference they are calling Rise Above for two days after Trumps inauguration.

Dozens of cities and universities have declared themselves sanctuaries from the expected constitutional abuses of the Trump administration.

It all seems a bit over-the-top and premature. Donald Trump is not yet the president, and the tea leaves of his ideologically varied nominations thus far are difficult to read. Yet millions of Americans are expecting the worst.

Worry about Trump is understandable. He has offered very few specifics of what he intends to do and his Twitter addiction is more than unorthodox. But anticipating a tidal wave of human suffering and rights violations presumes Trump to be truly evil and reflects an extreme lack of confidence in the constitutional structure that has served our nation reasonably well for over two centuries. Few presidents in the nations history have not been frustrated by the constraints of the Constitution. Why are so many convinced that Trump will avoid those same frustrations?

But perhaps progressives do have reason to be anxious. To the extent their concerns are legitimate, it has more to do with historic erosions of constitutional constraints than with the incoming occupant of the White House.

Since the New Deal, the powers of the federal government have steadily expanded, as have the powers of the president. Progressives who have relied on expansions of federal authority to achieve most of their policy goals should not be surprised that the vast regulatory regime they created might one day be employed to achieve ends they object to. Power is indifferent to the ambitions of those who wield it.

The greatest angst has been in response to the nominees for the departments of Education (Betsy DeVos), Health and Human Services (Tom Price), Labor (Andrew Puzder), Commerce (Wilbur Ross) and the Environmental Protection Agency (Scott Pruitt). These are the agencies that have been doing the progressives bidding for decades. Now there is a real risk they will be doing the bidding of those who think differently.

As good an explanation as any for Trumps surprising victory is that Democrats finally overreached. Now they worry that the powers they created will be used to achieve ends they reject.

To their credit, Democrats are discovering the merits of federalism and the separation of powers. Sanctuary cities and defiant blue states are asserting that popular sovereignty will protect them from Trump. But like Republicans before them who have embraced big government for their own purposes, Democrats may be too late to the party.

Over a century, the federal government has grown into a behemoth that even the master of the deal may not be able to undo. Draining the swamp may be a challenge beyond the capacities of mere mortals. If it turns out a lot of damage is done in the effort, progressives will have only themselves to blame. They set us on the path to federal dominance of just about everything.

We should all hope it is not a one-way path that the swamp can be drained.

(James Huffman (huffman@lclark.edu) is dean emeritus at Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland, Ore. He wrote this for InsideSources.com .)

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Handwringing among the progressives - Newnan Times-Herald

Buckle up, friends. Most Americans are about to be detoured onto a rough and rocky back road called Trump Way. The autocratic tycoon was unabashed on the campaign trail in promising that his victory would ensure millions of people a dire futurethat included mass deportations of immigrants, refugee bans and frontal assaults on women.

But theyre not the only ominous prospects. It will surprise many of the working stiffs who voted for the blustery billionaire to learn something that he didnt communicate in his hectoring, truth-telling speeches: His little-discussed economic agenda is filled with provisions that would permit 1 percenters to travel more luxuriously than ever in the smooth, fast lanes of life, while the middle class and the poor are flagged onto Trump Way for a hairy, four-year ride of even more downward mobility. The proposed package includes the following:

1. Immediately seizing control of the National Labor Relations Board, turning it into a corporate bulldozer to destroy workers rights, particularly the right to organize unions.

2. Yuuuuge new tax cuts for corporations and the superrich, busting the budget for addressing human needs.

3. Privatization of such basics as public education, Medicare and Social Security.

4. Deregulation of corporate profiteers from Wall Street banksters to Big Oil polluters.

5. Eliminating the federal minimum wage.

6. Freeing corporations from rules that prohibit discrimination in hiring, paying, promoting and firing workers.

Why were voters not aware of Trumps little secret agenda? Not justbecause he wasnt about to boast about such unpopular policies but also because mass media outlets were so dazzled by the bawdy spectacle of Trumps tweets, spats and onstage tirades that they ignored fundamentally important aspects of his presidential intentions. In fact, his entire career as a luxury property developer and brand-name marketer of himself has been built on broken promises to workers, routine scamming of suppliers and partners, blatant self-dealing, crony capitalism and lies. That con game alone tells us who our new president really is: an incorrigible swindler.

At 70 years old, he possessesa nuclear level of narcissism and a gluttonous sense of entitlement that are ingrained. Throughout his presidential run, we saw his pleasure in singling out and demeaning people as losers, including nasty women, black protestors, people with disabilities, unionists, Mexicans, Mexican-Americans, Muslims, poor people, environmental activists and anyone who criticized him. How he treats us commoners wont change because hes President Trump. (Gosh, its gonna take a long time before I can say that with a straight face.)

So, yes, buckle up. But more importantly, buck up!

Naturally, a triumphant Trump has left many of us baffled, disgusted and terrified. But, please, we have to shake off these immobilizing emotions ASAPbecause progressives everywhere have important work to do. The forces of oligarchy and repression are hoping well surrender to despair, withdraw in fear or even flee to Canada. But come on, the fiery democratic spirit of grassroots Americans has sustained and advanced our nations fundamental ideals of fairness and justice in even darker times.

Its time for us to double down on what can be seen as the progressive communitys shared campaign for populist justice. Essentially, its the integrative struggle for human dignity, combining our many separate fights for justice into a powerful and righteous whole, an all-for-one, one-for-all effort against the economic and political elites who are determined to subjugate us.

We can beat back the brutishness the reign of Trump promises if we seriously unite. That means acting on the reality that our various groups really are in this together. When the Muslim community is attacked, for example, all of us non-Muslims need to recognize thatthis an attack on all of us, from union members to climate change activists.

We need to recognize that racial and economic injustice are inseparable. Making this connection is especially important now, forthe corporate media outlets are simplistically declaring that Trump won because white working-class men rebelled against the rising swirl of multiculturalism.

Of course, the corporate powers (and those who prosper by serving them) have long divided working people by pitting the less powerful groups against one another. So its up to us to stop playing along. We now have an urgent need to organize and harmonize as members of one progressive family that can and will mobilize as a whole to defend and advance the interests of each and every part, rallying around respect for human dignity and the common good.

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Yes, America, you can resist the brutishness of the reign of Trump ... - Salon

Donald TrumpDonald TrumpMassive Women's March crowds swarm DC Metro How will President Trump handle violence against women in the US? This feminist stands against abortion rights captivity of women's rights MOREs inaugural speech was the most anticipated since President Obamas speech eight years ago. Given the unconventional and unpredictable nature of his candidacy and the mixed messages his campaign advisers were sending out in advance, Americans had little inkling of which Trump would show up today.

After delivering a full-throated populist speech with heavy doses of isolationism, protectionism, and nationalism, its clear that progressives have their work cut out for them in the coming months.

1. Trump is still being Trump

Given that Donald Trump is entering office with the lowest positive ratings of any president in modern history just 38 percent there was a lot of conjecture in recent days that his inaugural speech would strike a unifying note to rally more Americans behind his administration. That speculation was wrong.

NEW POLL: Trump enters White House with historically low approval rating https://t.co/biPSXlovoP pic.twitter.com/DXmeeJuffh

The Hill (@thehill) January 18, 2017

Unlike Trumps election-night speech, when he called on Americans who opposed his candidacy for (their) guidance and (their) help so that we can work together and unify our great country, todays speech featured no such conciliatory language.

Instead, Trump doubled down on some of his more controversial campaign rhetoric America First and pointedly attacked the politicians who are all talk and no actionconstantly complaining but never doing anything about it.

As we saw throughout the campaign, Donald Trump is unlikely to change his ways even as hes about to ascend to the highest office in the nation. Whether the office of the presidency will change him remains to be seen, but todays speech shows us that were in for a wild ride. Abnormal is the new normal. Expecting Trump to abide by political norms is wishful thinking.

Its an unpleasant truth for many progressives, but one with which well have to come to terms. Each day will bring a new outrage, a new falsehood, and a new low.

Its tempting to get caught up in the outrage machine and respond to each and every one of Trumps tweet provocations. But Democrats tried to play that game in 2016 and lost.

We will have to adapt to this new environment, remember to stay focused on the issues voters care about, and not let the national dialogue be dominated by Donald Trump and his antics.

2. There is a big difference between Trumps populist rhetoric and his policies Democrats should exploit it

Woven throughout Trumps speech today were a number of strong populist statements. He spoke of the forgotten men and women of America, how politicians prospered while jobs left and the factories closed, and how as president he would transfer power away from the elites and back to the American people.

This message was crucial to his victory in November. It resonated with Republicans, Independents, and Democrats many of whom had previously cast their ballots for President Obama. The great challenge for Trump now will be delivering on his lofty promises and making good on this rhetoric with his policies. So far, hes not off to a promising start.

In the weeks since the election, Trumps cabinet appointments and policy priorities have deviated frequently from this populist message. Hes pledged to repeal the Affordable Care Act, which has expanded healthcare to 20 million Americans including many Trump voters living in hard-hit towns across the Midwest and Appalachia.

Hes appointed as Treasury Secretary a Wall Street executive who engaged in predatory foreclosure practices, while making a pretty penny for himself.

Hes signaled his opposition to an overtime rule that will increase wages for over 4 million Americans, all while pledging to deliver large tax cuts to corporations and the wealthiest Americans.

These contradictions not Trumps over-the-top tweets provide the most fertile ground for Democrats looking to fight Trump and win back the voters we lost in 2016. It requires getting back to the basics of what Democrats stand for and not falling for every shiny object that Trump puts out there.

For starters, it means telling the stories of people whose lives and livelihoods would be imperiled without the Affordable Care Act and highlighting Trumps empty rhetoric about helping the forgotten men and women of America, while hes instead handing out tax cuts and corporate welfare to the people who need it least.

In the long term, for progressives to be successful against Trump, it will require vigilance, discipline, and a laser-like focus on bread and butter issues not just a lot of noise about the Trump controversy du jour.

3. Progressives arent the only ones feeling heartburn today

As disturbing as much of todays speech was for progressives, fear not we are not alone.

His advocacy for closed borders and protectionist economic policies flies in the face of GOP free trade orthodoxy. His apparent foreign policy doctrine America First upends the post-WWII order that has seen the United States work closely with our allies in NATO and serve as a unifying global force in confronting atrocities in places like Kosovo.

With the increased political polarization in our country, there is little common ground to be found between Republicans and Democrats.

When it comes to engaging in economically disastrous trade wars, abandoning our closest allies, needlessly escalating tensions with nations like China, and refusing to stand up to gross human rights violations and atrocities like genocide, Democrats and Republicans might actually be able to once again find common ground.

Trumps view of America as an island is antithetical to both Democrats and Republicans. In the coming weeks, months, and years, it provides the opportunity for Democrats and Republicans to join together, and stand up for the values that have made America a global force for good.

Lis Smith is a Democratic strategist & co-founder of 50 State Communications. She served as the director of rapid response for Barack Obamas 2012 campaign and deputy campaign manager for Martin O'Malley's presidential campaign.

The views of contributors are their own and not the views of The Hill.

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Onward: 3 lessons for progressives from Trump's inaugural - The Hill (blog)

Protests and supporters gather as Donald Trump takes the oath of office and becomes the 45th president of the United States, during the Jan. 20, 2016 inauguration ceremony in Washington D.C. (Photo: Bastiaan Slabbers/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

It's midnight in America.

Donald J. Trump has ascended to the highest office of the United States, making the billionaire bully the most powerful person in the world, and he did it with a campaign that Made America Hate Again.

These are dark times, and Trump's behaviour since winning the Electoral College, despite losing by 2,864,974 votes, has allayed no fears.

George W. Bush, who also lost the popular vote in 2000, used his inauguration speech to reach out to those who didn't vote for him. He said that immigrants "make our country more, not less, American," and pushed for civility and "community over chaos."

Trump, on the other hand, delivered an inauguration speech echoing his divisive campaign. He ranted about the "carnage" of the Obama era during which the U.S. saw its largest ever job creation streak, prison populations reduced for the first time in decades and crime rates falling to the their lowest rates since the 1960s.

He spoke of taking the country back from the elite, leaving out that his cabinet is full of billionaires and Goldman Sachs bankers, and to an almost entirely white audience he promised that "the forgotten men and women of our country will be forgotten no longer" while failing to mention he won't forget to take away their health care by the tens of millions.

Trump also said that "from this moment on, it's going to be America First," a slogan he borrowed from an anti-Semitic political movement in 1940 that tried to keep America from taking on the Nazis.

All told, it's been a bleak day.

But don't give up. Resistance isn't futile. If there's one thing that progressives should learn from Trump's election, it is that protest works.

Obama was inaugurated with 84 per cent approval and Democrats in charge of the Congress and Senate. But the reason why the U.S. doesn't have a Canadian-style single-payer medical system is because the right showed up en masse to health care town halls and scared Democrats into backing off.

Yes, Republicans are more ideological and likely to follow their leadership in lock-step, but some are already starting to get scared from non-violent crowds protesting the Obamacare repeal.

And on January 21, the world will be demonstrating against Donald Trump. Hundreds of Women's Marches, including some across Canada expected to draw big turnouts, will march in solidarity with the main Washington D.C. protest's anticipated 200,000 participants.

But that's just the beginning.

The right created a movement, the Tea Party, which not only protested in the streets -- beginning with the September 12 Taxpayer March on Washington -- but energized the Republicans to win the 2010 midterms. They literally took over the party and pushed it to the far-right, eventually electing anti-establishment Trump as their presidential standard bearer.

Progressives can do the same.

Senator Bernie Sanders speaks out against president-elect Donald Trump during a rally next to the U.S. Capitol on Nov. 17, 2016. (Photo: Getty Images)

So demonstrate and march non-violently, but also use the movement that developed around Bernie Sanders to organize at a community level and work your way up. Progressives can effect change from the grassroots by pushing local, state and federal Democrats leftward from Clintonian establishment centrism and by reminding Republicans that progressives are their constituents, too.

And, most importantly, defend the marginalized. Make no mistake, Muslims, people of colour, women and LGBTQ Americans will all be under constant attack from the Trump regime.

Trump may have won by scapegoating minorities and inflaming white fright, but he doesn't represent the majority. Trump was inaugurated with a historically low 37 per cent approval, and that was according to a Fox News(!) poll.

Don't get depressed. Learn. Fight. Resist.

And that's also true here in Canada, where progressives need to defend our border from Trump's influence by pushing Trudeau to fulfill his campaign promises as a firewall to Conservative party populism.

It is midnight in America, yes. But if people pull together, dawn will break once again.

Also on HuffPost:

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Progressives Need Their Own Tea Party - Huffington Post Canada

Tom Krattenmaker Published 11:58 a.m. ET Jan. 20, 2017 | Updated 19 hours ago

A military band performs in Washington on Jan. 19, 2017.(Photo: Mandel Ngan, AFP/Getty Images)

At the dawn of the Trump presidency, to be a progressive is to feel buried under an avalanche of wrong: the shocking election of an unqualified, undignified man to the White House, the unjust repudiation of an admirable Obama presidency and a period of substantial progress; a seeming victory for bigotry, nationalism, and ignorance.

Hope is hard to find. Yet hope is needed for people to carry on. The good news for true-blue progressives is that there are real reasons for hope in this time of fear and loathing, including the following five:

Demography

Despite all that went haywire in the November election, the underlying demographic trends remain and they bode well for progressives. Even if the Trump administration brought all immigration to a halt today, Americans will continue to become more diverse in terms of race, religion, and other characteristics.

To the extent that todays progressive movement is fueled by diversity andpeoples growing comfort with it, the winds are blowing in progressives favor. Age, too, is a factor in this dynamic. Data show that the millennial generation is more diverse and, among whites, more at ease with diversity than older generations. As the members of this younger generation age, those progressive values will follow them to mainstream status. Or so the theory goes.

USA TODAY

Women's March will send message to Trump: Wendy Sherman

USA TODAY

Jesus teaches us to love even Donald Trump: Column

Trump phenomenon has little to sustain it

Donald Trumps ascent to the White House is a phenomenon with the markings of a one-and-done. It revolves around a singular celebrity personality. Distinct from the Republican party, which sports organizational strength at the local, state, and national levels and which the new president flouted all the way to the top Trumpism has almost nothing going for it by way an infrastructure or movement. Its Electoral College success came despite Trump finishing nearly 3 million votes behindan unexciting Democratic opponent burdened by decades worth of accumulated baggage.

In view of all this, and the fact that the white Christians who propelled Trump to office move deeper into minority status with each passing day, Trumpism is an -ism with a bleak long-term future. Barring apartheid-light voter suppression or Democratic and progressive incompetence of epic proportions, it seems more than possible that future generations will see the 2016 election as the last hurrah for once-dominant American identity running on its final fumes.

GOP will bear the burden of governing

Is there more to Trump than bluster and hot air? Does the conservative GOP have something to offer beyond grievance and empty rhetoric? We are in the early stages of finding out. And if progressives are more right than wrong in their understanding the world, the answers could turn many voters against conservatives for a long time to come.

Exhibit A: health care. Confusion and national grumpiness about the Affordable Care Act have provided Republicans with endless political benefits. As many a quipster has noted, Trump and the GOP are like the dog that catches up with the car its been chasing: What do they do now?

Lest they go down as the party that took health care away from tens of millions of Americans, leaving many to die prematurely for lack of prompt and high quality care, they have to accomplish something they show little sign of being able to do: go beyond simplistic talking points and master an incredibly complex political and public policy challenge.

Good luck with that, GOP. And good luck answering to voters if you fail.

Progressive movement energized

Its striking to hear so little Im-moving-to-Canada nonsense from progressives post-election. Instead we find a grim determination to stay, and fight.

Obviously, this can go too far. Progressives would be foolish not to lend support if the Trump administration brings forward sensible policies that benefit people. But with so many progressive values and constituents under threat, a fighting spirit is what this moment requires and what we see.

Take, for instance, the effort to flood Congress members offices with calls of concern about health care repeal. And the womens march on Saturday, already being described as the biggestinauguration protest ever.

As the punk icon John Lydon famously sang, Anger is an energy. So is anxiety. Theres been plenty of both right now. The task is to channel them productively and sustainably.

POLICING THE USA:Alook at race, justice, media

USA TODAY

I voted for Trump, not against Planned Parenthood: Column

All is not lost

Fueling progressive angst is the imminent undoing of the accomplishments and legacy of the widely admired outgoing president. But comfort can be found in knowing that an African-American named Barack Hussein Obama was elected president twice, and that he comported himself with dignity, disciplineand class during his eight years in the White House.

Yes, that happened. As did societys growing inclusion of many Americans who had long been excluded. Even if Trump and the GOP Congress are able to roll it all back, this progress will remain indelibly etched in the nations history.

Yes we can, yes we did, Obama declared in his farewell speech. And as progressives ought to remind themselves, yes we can again, whatever havoc this next administration might wreak.

A member of USA Todays Board of Contributors, Tom Krattenmaker is a writer specializing in religion in public life and communications director at Yale Divinity School. His new book is titled Confessions of a Secular Jesus Follower.

You can readdiverse opinions from ourBoard of Contributorsand other writers ontheOpinion front page,on Twitter@USATOpinionand in our dailyOpinion newsletter.To submit a letter, comment or column, check oursubmission guidelines.

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5 reasons for liberal hope in the Trump era: Column - USA TODAY