It’s not uncommon to find bullies in a schoolyard — kids who boss other kids around, break the rules, and care only about themselves. It is uncommon for a president of the United States to act like a schoolyard bully.

Since taking office, Trump has threatened those who don’t fall in line behind him, run roughshod over our constitution and federal laws, and reveled in his power to cause harm to everyday Americans, as his Project 2025 agenda is doing.

Using “my way or the highway” bullying tactics, Trump is trying to force things upon the American people that we do not want, including slashing vital programs like Medicaid to fund tax cuts for the ultra-rich. Over 75% of Americans — including a majority of Republicans and Independents — oppose major cuts to Medicaid.

We oppose slashing Medicaid because we understand the human cost of doing so. In Colorado, 36% of all births are covered by Health First Colorado (HFC), our state’s Medicaid program. How will those 20,000 babies be impacted if HFC is cut? How many of those moms will die in childbirth? 60% of Colorado’s nursing home residents rely on HFC as their primary payer. How many of those 9,000 elderly people will be kicked out of their nursing homes?

Cutting HFC also threatens the viability of hospitals and nursing homes, especially in rural areas, where Medicaid reimbursements make up a significant portion of their revenue. About a quarter of all patients at Valley View and Grand River Hospitals are insured through HFC. When hospitals, nursing homes, and clinics cut staff or close down completely, it impacts all of us, regardless of our healthcare coverage.

Constituents in CD3 have been pressuring Rep. Jeff Hurd, R-Colo., to protect critical programs like SNAP and Medicaid. They’ve been flooding his office with phone calls, organizing “empty chair” Town Halls (since Hurd has refused to face his constituents in person), and joining “Hands off!” protests. This pressure is making an impact: Hurd recently stated that he opposed stripping Medicaid benefits from vulnerable populations.

At the same time, however, Hurd said he would continue to “advance the president’s guidelines.” It’s no secret that Trump is threatening Republicans who dare to oppose him. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, told the Anchorage Daily News that GOP lawmakers are afraid to say anything against Trump “because retaliation is real.” Republicans have spoken privately about their fear that Trump might incite his MAGA followers to commit violence against them or their family members if they dare to cross Trump. 

Giving in to a bully – a schoolyard bully or would-be dictator – only emboldens them. Fortunately, a growing number of everyday people, elected officials, and non-profit organizations are standing up to the Trump/Musk regime.

Even in deeply red districts, more and more Americans have been expressing their outrage at their representatives’ complicity with the Trump agenda. State attorneys general, unions, local governments, and non-profit groups have filed over 200 lawsuits against the illegal actions of the Trump regime; at least 149 have won initial victories.

At a White House meeting in February, Trump tried to bully Maine Gov. Janet Mills on a trans rights issue, even though Mills was following state and federal law. Mills looked Trump in the eye and told him, “See you in court.” The court recently settled in favor of the state of Maine. “It’s good to feel a victory like this,” Mills said.

Our elected officials play a particularly important role in standing up to Trump. We need to keep up the pressure on Rep. Hurd so that he moves beyond public statements and actually votes to protect Medicaid and reject massive tax giveaways to the rich. Once some Republican legislators begin standing up to Trump, others may finally find the courage to follow.

We should also be pressuring the Garfield County Commissioners to take a stand. So far they’ve remained silent about the harms that Trump/Musk are causing to us locally, busying themselves, instead, with things like micromanaging our libraries and passing a resolution to allow concealed carry of firearms in local government buildings. Let’s urge the commissioners to pass a resolution in favor of retaining the current level of coverage that Health First Colorado provides to the 14,000+ HFC members in our county, including over 6,000 children and teens.

Our nation has a long history of brave Americans standing up to bullies, fascists, and dictators. Now it’s our turn. Let’s keep up the pressure on all of our elected officials, get out in the streets for protests (the next big one is the No Kings National Day of Action on June 14), and contribute in every way we can to the nonviolent resistance movement fighting for the rights and freedoms of all Americans.

Debbie Bruell of Carbondale is a former chair of the Garfield County Democrats and is a past member of the Roaring Fork Schools Board of Education.