Former North Carolina State Rep. Mickey Michaux says protests like the one that took place in Raleigh and several other state capitals on Wednesday, February 5 must become commonplace if progressives are to successfully resist the Trump administration’s conservative agenda. (Photo: Brandon Kingdollar/NC Newsline)
A return to the strategies of the Civil Rights Movement is needed to turn back Trump administration policies that threaten to erase hard-won progressive victories that led to economic, racial and social advancements for all Americans, former state Rep. H.M. “Mickey” Michaux said this week.
The 94-year-old Durham Democrat added that President Donald Trump’s policies will be felt broadly, negatively impacting Americans of all economic classes and political stripes, and not just those in minority communities.
“If enough people get out there and start marching in the streets and showing disgruntlement and disfavor with Trump’s program, either one or two things will happen; somebody’s going to try to impeach Trump again or those who have been elected to office will begin to recognize that they’re under fire too,” said Michaux, who formed a personal friendship with Martin Luther King Jr., in the 1950s.
Trump was impeached twice during his first term but eventually acquitted of all counts by the U.S. Senate. On Wednesday, a day after NC Newsline’s interview with Michaux, U.S. Rep. Al Green, a Texas Democrat, announced that he is introducing new impeachment articles against Trump in the wake of the president’s comment that the U.S. would “take over” Gaza.
Michaux emphasized the need for leadership from both parties to work together to develop a unified strategy to protect the American people from Trump policies they believe are harmful.
“It’s going to take a combination of leadership coming from both sides of the tent, all angles of defense to get together and work out and do the same thing,” he said.
Michaux pointed to lawsuits filed against the Department of Justice by FBI agents who participated in investigations related to Trump as an example of how to push back against unpopular Trump actions and policies. The agents want to block the collection and release of names of investigators who participated in the probes of the Jan 6, 2021 U.S. capitol insurrection because they fear retaliation from the Trump administration.
“To me, that’s the way to go,” Michaux said. “Trump is pushing things like he’s going to be a dictator.”
In a wide-ranging interview, Michaux, who has a long history of successful legislative negotiations, particularly in securing funding for historically Black colleges and universities, drew parallels to the Civil Rights era, emphasizing the need for a united front across racial and political lines.
“I don’t know why they [Trump supporters] thought Trump would change if they gave him a second term,” Michaux said. “It’s upsetting to the point where if we don’t watch ourselves, we’re going to be right back where we were [before the racial and social advancements brought on by the struggle for civil rights].”
I’m like Martin, though, I might not get there with you but we’re going to get there.”
– Former State Rep. Mickey Michaux
Voters must hold elected officials accountable, Michaux said, warning that middle class whites will likely be affected more by some of Trump’s policies, particularly those the president contends are designed to streamline the federal bureaucracy.
“They put them into office and they’re going to have to make up their minds now about whether to raise enough fuss about it to make them [GOP leaders] back off of what they’re doing,” Michaux said. “That’s the only way that we can go at this point.”
A lot is at stake, said Michaux, who was the longest tenured member of the North Carolina General Assembly when he retired in 2018. Public education as we know it is at risk if Trump gets his way and dismantles the U.S. Department of Education, he said.
“North Carolina and other states have agreed to allow the United States government to help us make a free and fair education available to our kids,” Michaux said. “You take that federal money away and the only way you’re going to be able to maintain programs to provide free and fair education is to raise taxes on the state level.”
Trump and other critics complain that the department mismanages taxpayer money and inserts the federal government into local education issues.
Michaux said he and King had many discussions about social and racial issues and strategies to address them. Remarkably, he said, what’s happening under Trump’s leadership feels eerily familiar. Michaux expressed disappointment in the racial attitude some leaders still hold. Like a piano with its black and white keys, both of which are needed to create melodic music, Michaux said, Americans must come together in the spirit of unity and cooperation.
“I’m disappointed that there are still some folks living who are in positions of power and don’t realize that it takes everybody to work towards success,” Michaux said.
North Carolina is in a good position with a Democratic governor who can operate without threat of a veto, Michaux said.
“I think once folks begin to realize that once they’re in danger from a federal government knocking out all the programs that help the state, things might take a change for the better. I’m like Martin [Luther King], though, I might not get there with you but we’re going to get there.”