The Tipping Point

[Ajidica]

What makes you think it tarnishes their brand? They're the party that has voters openly declaring they prefer hostile foreign dictators to Democrats; if anything, I think Republican voters will like their politicians more the dirtier they fight.

And those people, are, what, 20% of the electorate? I've noticed a lot of people, both among my peer group and among my parents peers, who were not previously involved in politics/voting becoming much more involved - in no small part because the "there is no difference" idea is basically dead at this point.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

And those people, are, what, 20% of the electorate? I've noticed a lot of people, both among my peer group and among my parents peers, who were not previously involved in politics/voting becoming much more involved - in no small part because the "there is no difference" idea is basically dead at this point.

Well, it's great more people are getting active but breaking the Republican stranglehold on power at this point will be like threading the needle. A lot of things will have to go exactly right with our political process to have a long-lasting impact.

To start with, Trump must be removed from office by a split congress. Short of that, we're just arguing about rolling back Republican power at the margins. If we cannot get ~20 Republican Senators to remove the single most corrupt, inept and dangerous President in history from office then we've lost. Yup, Republicans may face some set backs going forward but just like with this past election, they have broken enough rules to remain in government where they vote with ironclad unanimity on maintaining their own power.

This election was a massive, historic wipeout for the Republicans....and they retained half of Congress, the Presidency and a stolen SCOTUS. If we cannot muster the power to remove Trump then it's game over as we will have demonstrated to the Republicans that there is literally nothing they can do (Treason for the love of sweet zombie jesus!) which will have serious consequences for them.

The Federal response (via the courts) to the Wisconsin, Michigan and North Carolina crisis will also be make or break for our system. Given the ineptness of the Courts to fight off this crisis before the Republicans could escalate it does not give me faith in the outcome.

It's also easy to dismiss the Republican's current fortunes as being the product of luck. Sure, the Senate was very difficult to take away from the Republicans due to pure chance. And this wasn't a presidential year so that was never an option for the voters. But you see, this is actually a huge problem.

The Republicans do not have to suppress the votes of every single black person to win, just enough to pass the post at the polls by 1 vote. They don't have to win every congressional seat to maintain power, just enough to hold onto one house or the other over a few cycles. This allows them to rewrite rules on elections and district boundaries and stack courts in their favor. Hell, in Wisconsin, one of the lesser known tactics the Republicans are now trying is to move the election of a state supreme court justice away from the general presidential election to further favor their voter base's voting habits.

They have affected this coup not by strangling people in the night but by attacking the system at the margins, with purpose and consistency for over a decade.

In engineering we have a problem with a process called 'fatigue'. A metal part under stress begins to develop tiny little fissures. These are not really a problem for most of the life of the part as these little fissures grow fractions of a mm per stress cycle. This can go on for years and eventually these little fissures begin to link up and accelerate in growth. Once this new process of linking up begins, the fissures will turn to cracks and split the part in very short order.

The health of our political system has hit the knee in the curve of the fatigue stress graph where it goes exponential and the part breaks in half under load almost instantaneously.

 

[El_Machinae]

I know you have been paying attention - but we have been fighting this in court - and winning! Yet the courts have allowed state legislatures to resubmit their own new redistricts which - who saw this coming - are basically the same as the ones shot down. The courts have even allowed elections to be held for the old, unconstitutional districts. You've got one side openly flaunting the rule of law and the will of the courts. We're past the point where courts are a sufficient counter.

And if NC-9 is any indication, even the integrity of the actual ballots cast is in question. Despite all the cries from Republicans about wide spread voter fraud it is now obvious that the only meaningful voting fraud has been a concerted effort by the Republicans themselves.

In the past we could general count on a rationale, sane Federal government to intervene but that's not going to happen now. The Senate under McConnell won't do anything to stop this and hey, they just stole the Supreme Court so that's off the table as well. And of course the conspiracy theorist in chief in the White House is all in on any and all efforts to maintain power.

What is a reasonable, actionable Plan B at this point?

Plan B is the courts and more courts. To sue everything nailed down, where people who care literally throw money at the problem and canvass for others to do so. To sue everyone involved for suppressing people's rights. Plan C is targeted and overwhelming violence, because it's no longer a Constitutional Democracy, which is why doubling-down on B is so important.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

.............and


The Republicans now have a propoganda arm as well. It's sad to watch responsible journalism struggle to fight the corruption going on right now. I read an AMA with one of PBS's leading reporters and she was asked why she doesn't use the words 'liar' or 'lies' during her coverage. She responded with a reasonable answer, that once you throw around words like that you quickly lose respectability. It's also hard to prove someone is lying.

The thing is that there have been a plethora of instances where there either was contemporaneous evidence that certain things were lies when they were spoken or such evidence came out shortly thereafter. The problem is that by the time reporters could be expected to have found proof of evidence of lies - enough to describe them as such - we've already moved on to the next whirlwind of lies that the journalists shy away from calling out.

I don't really think that PBS would lose a shred of credibility if they began calling Republicans liars when they are lying. As people have pointed out, most of the population is fully aware of what's going on - that's why the election was a landslide. But the fact that they remain unwilling to get tough with Republicans in even this small way helps enable them to retain enough power (even at the margins) to hold on and expand their position.

By itself, this problem isn't a huge problem but it's one part of the overall nightmare. On the other side, Fox news 'journalists' are now openly campaigning for Republicans and themselves lie or perpetuate lies on a daily basis. Then you have Facebook pumping out literal Fake News that no one knows how to respond to. On all sides responsible journalism is under attack and being swamped by propaganda and their own sense of responsibility has prevented them from effectively countering these problems.

The coup in Wisconsin is a turning point in American history. It's the most blatant power grab we've ever seen...and the people are so utterly desensitized by now, the Republicans so fanatical, the "moderates" so married to both-sides-ism, that I don't see any way out. Even armed revolution would just work in favor of the side with the military and the weapons.

Desensitized is the word of our era. Like I pointed out in another thread a while ago, we all remember Columbine as a turning point but it's as if the Vegas massacre didn't even happen for its impact on the culture. We've reached a similar point with political outrages and power grabs. Every day the envelope is pushed a bit more and we just collectively let it happen.

Plan B is the courts and more courts. To sue everything nailed down, where people who care literally throw money at the problem and canvass for others to do so. To sue everyone involved for suppressing people's rights. Plan C is targeted and overwhelming violence, because it's no longer a Constitutional Democracy, which is why doubling-down on B is so important.

The courts are lost for a generation. The Republicans managed to stall so many of Obama's appointments that they've now permanently titled them with lifetime appointments. The appointments have also mostly been an extreme sort to boot. We just narrowly avoided appointing an openly racist judge because Jeff Flake grew a flipping spine at the 11th hour of his final term.

Except Jeff Flake is out in January and the Republicans have retained control of the Senate and will be free to appoint any ol' nutjob completely unchecked for the next two years. Also Flake enthusiastically supported the court-stealing tactics under Obama and the court-stacking under Trump up until now so a huge amount of damage has already been done. The Republicans may have lost some seats in the House this election but the core that's left is fervently pro-dictatorship and of course they control the Senate so...

Yeah the courts are (potentially) fatally compromised at this point.

 

[Ajidica]

Well, it's great more people are getting active but breaking the Republican stranglehold on power at this point will be like threading the needle. A lot of things will have to go exactly right with our political process to have a long-lasting impact.

To start with, Trump must be removed from office by a split congress. Short of that, we're just arguing about rolling back Republican power at the margins. If we cannot get ~20 Republican Senators to remove the single most corrupt, inept and dangerous President in history from office then we've lost. Yup, Republicans may face some set backs going forward but just like with this past election, they have broken enough rules to remain in government where they vote with ironclad unanimity on maintaining their own power.

This election was a massive, historic wipeout for the Republicans....and they retained half of Congress, the Presidency and a stolen SCOTUS. If we cannot muster the power to remove Trump then it's game over as we will have demonstrated to the Republicans that there is literally nothing they can do (Treason for the love of sweet zombie jesus!) which will have serious consequences for them.

The Federal response (via the courts) to the Wisconsin, Michigan and North Carolina crisis will also be make or break for our system. Given the ineptness of the Courts to fight off this crisis before the Republicans could escalate it does not give me faith in the outcome.

It's also easy to dismiss the Republican's current fortunes as being the product of luck. Sure, the Senate was very difficult to take away from the Republicans due to pure chance. And this wasn't a presidential year so that was never an option for the voters. But you see, this is actually a huge problem.

The Republicans do not have to suppress the votes of every single black person to win, just enough to pass the post at the polls by 1 vote. They don't have to win every congressional seat to maintain power, just enough to hold onto one house or the other over a few cycles. This allows them to rewrite rules on elections and district boundaries and stack courts in their favor. Hell, in Wisconsin, one of the lesser known tactics the Republicans are now trying is to move the election of a state supreme court justice away from the general presidential election to further favor their voter base's voting habits.

They have affected this coup not by strangling people in the night but by attacking the system at the margins, with purpose and consistency for over a decade.

In engineering we have a problem with a process called 'fatigue'. A metal part under stress begins to develop tiny little fissures. These are not really a problem for most of the life of the part as these little fissures grow fractions of a mm per stress cycle. This can go on for years and eventually these little fissures begin to link up and accelerate in growth. Once this new process of linking up begins, the fissures will turn to cracks and split the part in very short order.

The health of our political system has hit the knee in the curve of the fatigue stress graph where it goes exponential and the part breaks in half under load almost instantaneously.

I'm not saying the GOP is inherently doomed and that it is inevitable we will soon have an age of peace and prosperity; merely that the situation does not call for Storming the Winter Palace.

 

[Hrothbern]

Democrats are herbivores and Republicans carnivores

The best way to reduce carnivores is to hunger them by not getting eaten as herbivores and herd together.

Let them eat eachother.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

@Ajidica And when do we cross that line then?

When Meuller refuses to indict a sitting president? Or when his report drops and it is ignored?

Is it in 2020 and the Republicans are still using the same frakking districts that have already been ruled unconstitutional multiple times?

Is it when they began filling the still-running concentration camps with subversives in addition to migrants?


Where's the off-ramp for you personally? I am genuinely interested.

 

[Phrossack]

And those people, are, what, 20% of the electorate? I've noticed a lot of people, both among my peer group and among my parents peers, who were not previously involved in politics/voting becoming much more involved - in no small part because the "there is no difference" idea is basically dead at this point.

I'd argue that they are roughly half of the entire electorate.

Roughly that much of the electorate does not vote at all even in national emergencies like this.

Even after you factor out those who can't make it to polls for various reasons, there are more than enough voters who believe "both sides are the same, might as well stick with my team" to make up for that.

It's been proven beyond doubt that as long as the two-party system stands, half or more of the electorate will not vote under any circumstances, no matter how dire. This means there are few consequences to a party being as extremist and criminal as possible in order to win--after all, their opponents were going to oppose them anyway, their supporters will support them anyway, and if they win they can reap the spoils of war without concern for right and wrong, national unity, or the law.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

I also apologize for editing in substantial content to my previous posts. I will strive to avoid that going forward. I am not doing it to win arguments retroactively, just fully flesh out my thoughts - which I should do in one go.

 

[Hrothbern]

I also apologize for editing in substantial content to my previous posts. I will strive to avoid that going forward. I am not doing it to win arguments retroactively, just fully flesh out my thoughts - which I should do in one go.

I have the same issue... with on top my terrible struggling with English.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

I do not think Meuller will indict either Trump or Pence out of his respect for our system. This is a problem as the rules governing the ability to indict political executives are completely unwritten at this level. The other side, meanwhile, has destroyed every unwritten rule as they go. If Trump is not indicted, he will serve out his term in office. The Senate will not vote to convict him and Nancy Pelosi et al seem to have no interest in even impeaching him to begin with for fear it may somehow blow up on them. Even now, the Democratic leadership are fearful and spineless.

 

[El_Machinae]

Specifically with Wisconsin (if I were American), I'd print out this on t-shirts (spending more time to find the most accurate graph available after it's been subjected to skeptical peer-review for not being the least bit misleading.

I would then fricken mail those t-shirts to people. Mail them to random small businesses. Mail them to public allies in the area. Like, I'd drop $100 on this and ask like-minded friends to do so as well. Make some damn noise. Piss, in the letter ask to share a photo of themselves in this t-shirt on Facebook and you'll send them another t-shirt.

There's no Plan C for a successful gerrymander that the courts won't address. Well, there is, but it literally requires the guillotine.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

Also, how much longer before Trump pardons himself and his family for all crimes, federal and state?

Sure, technically he can't pardon state crimes but there's lots of things he can't technically do that he's already done.

 

[Ajidica]

@Ajidica And when do we cross that line then?

When Meuller refuses to indict a sitting president? Or when his report drops and it is ignored?

Is it in 2020 and the Republicans are still using the same frakking districts that have already been ruled unconstitutional multiple times?

Is it when they began filling the still-running concentration camps with subversives in addition to migrants?

Where's the off-ramp for you personally? I am genuinely interested.

I'm not sure, but probably when we get to an Iran-Contra sort of situation where the President and the Administration start running secret gun-smuggling programs against laws recently passed by Congress explicitly banning the Administration from doing such a thing.

I'd argue that they are roughly half of the entire electorate.

Roughly that much of the electorate does not vote at all even in national emergencies like this.

Why don't they vote? Putting aside active disenfranchisement attempts like in Georgia, it often is due to logistical (ie: can't take time off work) or the voter doesn't feel either party is looking out for them. The logistical issues can be addressed by the state governments easily enough, such as through an expansion of early voting / absentee voting or mandatory paid time off on election day. If the voter doesn't feel the party cares about them, that is an indication the party needs to start figuring out what issues they can appeal to voters on. Specifically, what issues will get people out and not just which pro-corporate sellout can be packaged as the least odious.

The Senate will not vote to convict him and Nancy Pelosi et al seem to have no interest in even impeaching him to begin with for fear it may somehow blow up on them. Even now, the Democratic leadership are fearful and spineless.

Personally, at this stage I don't think Trump should be impeached. My personal view, and from what I have read is generally in line with traditional understanding of impeachment, is that impeachment is for when the President is taking actions that Congress is unable to prevent. Notice I said unable not unwilling. Looking back to Watergate, Congress didn't really have any tools short of impeachment to stop Nixon from basically trying to set up his own secret political police. Today, with Trump, Congress has a bajillion and one tools to stop the Administration from taking actions should Congress choose to use those tools. Congress can pass laws spelling out what regulatory agencies can and cannot do, they can/could ratify treaties such as the Paris Climate Accords or the JCPOA to prevent unilateral presidential withdrawal, they can drown the Administration in subpoenas and hearings should they choose, they can refuse to confirm judges or fill appointed positions.
That's why talking about impeachment right now is sort of pointless. There aren't enough votes to do it, and if there were enough votes, Congress would have all the tools needed to stop the "unprecedented assault on American democracy" without resorting to impeachment.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

What makes you think it tarnishes their brand? They're the party that has voters openly declaring they prefer hostile foreign dictators to Democrats; if anything, I think Republican voters will like their politicians more the dirtier they fight.

Gerrymandering works. When 45% of the vote can hold your majority in the legislature there's no disputing that it works. But in that 45% there are a significant number that have to be allowed to "turn a blind eye" on the cheating. Not all of them, obviously. There are also plenty who are all for cheating so long as they win. But if opening eyes reduces them down to just the "do whatever it takes" portion then even the most efficient gerrymander won't be enough.

I do not agree with this at all. So, they broke a supermajority in one state. Meanwhile that same state engaged in post-election reprisals against the winning side which laid the groundwork for copycats in two other states. Then the party in that same state committed brazen voter fraud while using the specter of voter fraud to restrict access to polls for their opponents. Oh and Republicans still control both houses of the state legislature so it's not exactly as if they have been swept from power.

If we are using them as an example to the copycats then the example they are setting is "how to turn a solid red state purple." No, there is not a "sweep from power." There is a steady removal from power though. Their chicanery after losing the governor's race cost them so much support that even their gerrymandering couldn't hold the supermajorities that they have enjoyed for decades. That gives the governor vastly more power since the legislature can no longer just enact Republican laws and override his veto. The electorate gave him the office, and now they have given him more power in that office. There is no indication that the GOP is going to be able to retake that office in the near future.

In the legislature, they aren't going to manage any better gerrymander, and in fact it is probably going to weaken. Their own efforts at electoral fraud, fueled by the mistaken notion "it must be easy because our propaganda wing says the Democrats do it all the time" actually demonstrated that even in a deeply Republican part of the state they can't actually get away with it, and will irritate even more of their voters and further energize their opposition. The current gerrymander might not be enough to hold through the next election, and even if it does when the gerrymander weakens the election after that could be all she wrote for the GOP in the NC legislature.

It is even conceivable that North Carolina could send a Democrat to the US Senate in 2020, or even flip in the Electoral College if the Democrats have a strong enough candidate and Trump disgusts half the GOP into staying home.

If that's the "example path" then the more red states we can put on that path the better. Because ultimately what matters is the electorate. Red states aren't red because their legislative body is packed with Republicans, they are red because their populations are full of people who believe the GOP rap. If they are full enough the GOP can manipulate a majority into a supermajority, or manipulate a deficit into a majority, but if they drive away enough of their own support then all the manipulation in the world can't hold them.

You have mentioned elsewhere that we've reached a point where gerrymandering and other efforts have gotten so bad that they're good in that they will or are blowing up in the Republican's face.

Not exactly. What I've said is that in most red state places gerrymandering is as good as it can get. Let's put a number on "most extreme gerrymander effectiveness," sort of just a guess; call it twenty percent. So the GOP can get 40% of the vote and still hold a majority in the legislature. But their popularity, such as it is, continues to decline, and now they only get 39%. What happens? They lose control of the legislature, and they can't maintain their gerrymander, suppression, etc etc etc. Without the gerrymander and suppression, what happens to a party that is only getting 39% of the vote? They are dead in the water.

The key is, was, and always will be that as Democrats get more power they need to produce results. Results are what continues to grow the margins. The governor of NC, so far, has produced very little, but there is no one in North Carolina who is going to hold him accountable for that when he faced supermajorities in both houses. Now he is going to have to produce a little, but he can still play against the GOP majorities. He needs to judiciously veto things that can be clearly demonstrated as bad for the state in language that voters can understand, thus continuing to erode GOP support. But it gets hard when the legislature flips. That's when everything they do has to be clearly demonstrable, in language that even recently former GOP voters can't deny, to be good for everyone.

I do not want to come off as a wolf-crying, sky-is-falling doomsayer but this is an existential crisis for our country. For the first time in my life I am seriously assessing my options to leave the country.

If California were to hold a secession vote I would seriously consider voting in favor of it. Given how vociferously I have attacked that idea in the past should at least inform your understanding of my take on the seriousness of the situation.

I've already established my bolt hole, and all my money is invested out of country. And I've supported dissolution, whether that is California secession or more general, for a long time. But that doesn't mean I think the situation is beyond recovery.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

I'm not sure, but probably when we get to an Iran-Contra sort of situation where the President and the Administration start running secret gun-smuggling programs against laws recently passed by Congress explicitly banning the Administration from doing such a thing.

Funny you should mention that scandal. Not a single convicted person served prison time for their crimes. They were either pardoned or got off on appeal. The scandal also did not reach the top of the administration despite their involvement in the crimes committed. In other words, there was little political or legal price that Republicans paid for that scandal or any of the many other crimes of the Reagan and HW administration. Iran-Contra had about as much long term impact as Whitewater, which is to say little to none, despite actual, serious crimes having taken place by the administration.

In fact you could just as easily point to the limp response to that scandal as laying the groundwork for the current breakdown of the system. We've trained Republicans that they can do whatever they want with impunity over the last two decades by refusing to take a hard line on illegal political acts and rampant voter suppression.


Also, the hell? Congress has passed many laws that explicitly ban the President from doing things and he did them anyways. Or they tell him not to do something and he does them. Remember when Congress enacted Russian sanctions he refuses to enforce? The Congress also passed laws regulating who and how the President can make certain cabinet appointments and he's openly flaunting all of them with Matt Whitaker. I think Republican Congressional control of the President is an illusion at this point.

Personally, at this stage I don't think Trump should be impeached. My personal view, and from what I have read is generally in line with traditional understanding of impeachment, is that impeachment is for when the President is taking actions that Congress is unable to prevent.

He nepotistically appointed his family members to key, but completely made up and unconstitutional cabinet positions. How does the Congress stop that exactly?

He's threatened nuclear war in a 3am twitter rant which actively endangers American lies. How does the Congress stop that either?

He's flaunting Congressional laws with the Whitaker appointment. What can they do?


And yeah, just because there are a multitude of things the Republicans in Congress are allowing to happen does not make them legal, ethical or moral. They must be opposed before they are emboldened to take more reactionary actions.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

If we are using them as an example to the copycats then the example they are setting is "how to turn a solid red state purple."

Michigan and Wisconsin are not solid red states. The Republicans made gains in the racist backlash against Obama but they were never solid red states. The Republicans turned some narrow election wins into massively imbalanced legislature that have held up to a huge election loss.

Losing their veto override is big but in response they have gutted the entire cabinet and executive government of a guy who hasn't even been sworn in yet. He won't be able to do anything himself. And they still won an absolute blowout in seats, no matter which way you cut it.

I hope things turn around but right now the best I think we can achieve is a slow down in the coup. I think a Democrat can win the Presidency in 2020 but by then I fear too much damage will have been done. Obama was not nearly as effective as he could have been due to Republican intransigence, the next will have a worse time of it.

How much can a President do if the Senate votes in December 2020 to pre-fill all cabinet positions with reactionary Republicans? Or what if they pass laws rewriting how all future federal judges will be filled - after they've already topped off the judiciary with their cronies? It would also be trivial to stop funding public media by executive order. They are already rewriting the rules on how journalists can access the President, they can take it further and just shut down neutral media sources that rely on government funding by executive order. They could also refuse to seat Democrats to the Senate in 'controversial' elections - as Nancy Pelosi is now threatening to do in response to NC-9. The Supreme Court has moved substantially to the right with one stolen appointment and another highly unethical (and downright perjurous) confirmation of another so it's doubtful they will rule against their own side on any key issues.

The census is also being manipulated to reinforce gerrymandering which will be a disaster for another 10 years. I'm not saying Democrats aren't going to win any elections going forward but I do not believe it is possible for them to win enough for enough consecutive cycles to reverse the damage that has been done. All we would need is another split government in 2022 to revert back to our current trajectory. There will not be enough time or Democratic power in the 2 years between the blowout they will achieve in 2020 and the midterms in 2022 to fully undo the damage. 2022 will favor Republicans by no other reason than it's a midterm and that may be enough by itself to allow them to regain control of one chamber of Congress and renew their assault.


So yeah, gerrymandering actually can get worse and it will. We should be thankful the Trump administration is as inept as it is because while they are attempting to hijack the census they have shown an inability to affect much change (yet). They aren't even funding it or hiring up to execute on it yet - and no census is almost as bad as a manipulated one given how much population growth has happened in urban areas since 2010. Even if we have a 'good' census, the majority of state governments will be Republican dominated through 2022 and will just build on their own gerrymandering based on whatever new census does hit. Even if it's not to their favor, they can still clearly manipulate the resulting maps to minimize their losses.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

I find it hard to forecast how much lower the Republicans can go or how much more craven they can get. Turns out they're devilishly inventive at subverting our Democracy. I honestly want to tip my hat at the cabinet-stuffing Wisconsin is engaging in because it's so damn creative. I never saw that move coming at all.

 

[Hygro]

It's almost as if the person we need is Hillary "The Republicans are the enemy and going to obstruct us on Day 1 and my experience with that living in the white house in the 90s makes me most qualified" Clinton.

Obama said "that's ridiculous" and won that election.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Michigan and Wisconsin are not solid red states.

The Democrats have held the majority in the Wisconsin legislature exactly one time in the past two decades plus. While horrific gerrymandering has created the massive supermajorities in the legislature there, to suggest that the electorate itself has not skewed Republican is a mistake that the local party tried to point out to the Clinton campaign and failed. Obama created better turnout for the Democrats, but there are no shortage of Republicans in Wisconsin.

Under a Democrat governor the skewing will diminish, but ultimately the turning of the tide has to happen in the electorate. The worst of the Republicans, those excited by Trump's "bigots, I am with you" message will either fade back into their previous powerless grumbling about how the GOP doesn't really do anything for them, or the GOP will continue to pander openly to them and alienate the rest of the Republicans. Either way, as long as the new governor performs the GOP will continue to decline in real numbers. The combination of declining numbers and reduced skew should establish at least purple representation, which the state's current electorate calls for, if not tipping the state solidly into the blue, if the Democratic party can justify that tipping through performance.

Same thing in Michigan.

How much can a President do if the Senate votes in December 2020 to pre-fill all cabinet positions with reactionary Republicans? Or what if they pass laws rewriting how all future federal judges will be filled - after they've already topped off the judiciary with their cronies?

Changing "advise and consent" to "usurp executive constitutional authority" is gonna take more than a lame duck session in a narrowly margined Senate.

They could also refuse to seat Democrats to the Senate in 'controversial' elections - as Nancy Pelosi is now threatening to do in response to NC-9.

And well they should...without the air quotes. If an election is actually affected by electoral fraud, no way should the alleged winner get seated, no matter who they are. Now, here's the point, NC-9 is not "controversial," it is in fact marred by fraud as determined by the one genuinely bipartisan level of government we have...the elections board. It doesn't matter what the NC Secretary of State has to say, or the US Congress, or the President. The reality is that voting fraud can't work, because both parties stack their half of the elections boards with the most hawkish partisans they have available to keep watch on the opposition. NC-9 is proving that to the GOP as we speak.

The census is also being manipulated to reinforce gerrymandering which will be a disaster for another 10 years.

No, it's not. It's being used to try to maintain gerrymandering at the federal level. It has very little effect in state elections. Giving more congressional seats to red states doesn't help the GOP if those states are all turning purple anyway.

2022 will favor Republicans by no other reason than it's a midterm and that may be enough by itself to allow them to regain control of one chamber of Congress and renew their assault.

If so then Democrats deserve what they get.

So yeah, gerrymandering actually can get worse and it will.

How? Most red states have already taken their forty some odd percent democrat voters and shoved half of them into one district and splintered the rest among the remaining districts so they have no voice. What can they do to make it worse? Federal level gerrymandering is maximized already. It can't get worse. In states where the Republicans have the executive and supermajorities the state level districting is already maximized also. It too cannot be made any worse.