Hey Folks,

This isn’t exactly “news,” but in the last week Trump has been saying and doing a lot of stupid and horrifying stuff. I know -- I’m as shocked as you are.

He wants to reopen Alcatraz. He’s escalating his trade war -- this time on movies. His proposed budget includes $1 trillion for defense while slashing support for education, Medicaid, and public assistance. He’s fired his national security adviser who couldn’t figure out how to use a messaging app. He’s planning to spend tens of millions of dollars on a military parade for his birthday. He’s trying to kill PBS and NPR and the National Endowment for the Arts. He reiterated his intent to annex Canada. He keeps defending his economic agenda by saying children don’t need as many toys, and it’s fine if they cost more. Asked directly if he has a duty to uphold the Constitution, he responded simply, “I don’t know.”

As a favorite writer of mine, Osita Nwanevu, put it: “It's actually unbelievable how stupid he is.” It’s a firehose of stupid. It’s a supersoaker of incompetence. It’d all be comical if it weren’t for the real, tragic human cost of it all.

But his stupidity and incompetence alone won’t save us. Plenty of authoritarians have been stupid and incompetent. One historian described Mussolini as a “bully, coward, and a failure.” Another historian described him as “an actor, a dissimulator, an exhibitionist who changed his role from hour to hour to suit the occasion.” Another called him “farcically inept.” Yet another, “part demagogue, part buffoon.”

While Trump plays emotionally stunted jackass in prime time, his goose-stepping underlings are busy consolidating power. By one measure, they’ve already moved nearly half of the Project 2025 agenda from the 900 pages of that infamous report into reality backed by Executive Branch authority, with no signs of slowing down.

Trump’s personal stupidity, arrogance, and incompetence alone won’t stop him -- but our organizing will. The reason we'll win is because we’re organizing a mass, unified, peaceful opposition against his malicious jackassery. To those in the 1,100 communities who showed up in solidarity with our unionized workers and immigrant neighbors under attack on May Day: thank you. For those getting ready to show up on No Kings Day (stay tuned for official launch), thank you too.

Shout outs for brave reporting and brave actions. Shout out to MeidasTouch for live broadcasting our weekly What’s The Plan chat last week. Shout out to the Contrarian for its coverage of the May Day protests. Shout out to the Guardian for its consistent pro-democracy coverage of Trump from abroad. Shout out to Emily Feiner, the social worker who peacefully protested at Rep. Mike Lawler’s town hall and was hauled off against her will.

Other shout outs you want to see? Let me know over on Bluesky. Courage is contagious -- keep spreading it. Be the Emily Feiner you want to see in the world. Read on to this week’s action items to do your part.

-- Ezra Levin
Co-Executive Director, Indivisible

Your weekly to-dos

1. Join a virtual phone bank on May 15 to call North Carolina voters about opposing the GOP reconciliation plan! Senator Thom Tillis will be one of the nation's most vulnerable Republicans in the 2026 midterms, so we’re urging NC voters to turn the temperature up on Tillis as we fight Trump’s Tax Scam. The virtual phone bank is open to volunteers nationwide via Scale To Win and includes training for those who need it.
2. Email your Members of Congress about bringing Kilmar Abrego Garcia home. If Trump is allowed to openly defy a court order, no rights are safe. We’re demanding that leaders in both parties use every tool at their disposal to ensure Abrego Garcia is freed and returned to America.
3. If you have a GOP representative, send an email to get them on the record about plans to defund SNAP and Medicaid. Republicans don’t want us talking about Trump’s reconciliation plan because they know it screws working people to pay for billionaires’ tax breaks. We need to get them on the record and hold them accountable. You can also click here to CALL their office during business hours.
4. Join this Thursday’s “What’s the Plan” call (3pm ET / 12pm PT) to hear about a MASSIVE new day of action coming in June. Each Thursday, our co-founders Leah and Ezra jump online to break down the news, draw inspiration from Indivisibles’ work, and lay out what’s next for the movement. This week, they’ll have big news about our next big mobilization.

What's happening this week re: Trump's tax scam

Congressional Republicans are still extraordinarily divided over the details of their plan* to defund Medicaid, gut SNAP, and pass huge tax breaks for billionaires, so they’ll spend this week in closed-door meetings having intra-party fights. You can read about the scope of their issues here, here, here, and even via Fox News (here).

These fights are happening because Republicans facing tough reelection campaigns are scared of losing their seats over social safety net cuts! Our job is showing those vulnerable Republicans -- and GOP leadership -- that they’re right to fear for their majority.

Please email your Republican representatives now to tell them we won’t pay the price of Trump’s tax cuts for billionaires. If you already called or emailed before, please do so again today!

IndivisiWIN of the week

Thanks to local Indivisible groups and their allies, Republican Representative Mike Lawler (NY-17) faced spirited opposition at his own town hall this weekend, leading to two peaceful demonstrators being dragged out of the venue. More than 600 constituents showed up to demand that Lawler keep his party's hands off Medicaid and do more to stop Trump’s authoritarian takeover attempt!

Fight right-wing disinformation with Indivisible’s Truth Brigade

Justice is under attack by right-wing disinformation! Far-right lies are fueling regressive laws and legally dubious executive orders, and propagandists nationwide are filing baseless cases to legitimize the unconscionable.

The Truth Brigade is Indivisible’s answer to the lies. We’re leading a grassroots approach to combating disinformation and, on May 14, launching a new campaign, “When Lies Make Laws,” to expose their tactics and highlight the stakes for our society.

JOIN US: Sign up for the Truth Brigade New Member Orientation and Message Campaign Launch on Wednesday, May 14, at 6:30pm ET / 3:30pm PT. Truth Brigade's virtual meetings are open to anyone ready to fight online lies -- from brand new members to longtime Brigadiers!

Follow us on Bluesky, Mastodon, and Threads to keep up on the latest information, and text “INDIVISIBLE” to 59798 to opt-in to our text messaging program, where we send rapid response actions a few times a month.