Activism has a new style, writes Politico. The lab-coat liberals are marching on Washington.

Aghast at Trump's hostility to science in almost every form from climate science to the health benefits of exercise, Democrats and Independents are looking into a black hole of disinformation, as Trump's alt-right Republicans take Washington, accompanied by educated Democrats who know better.

Researchers traditionally avoided wading into politics, preferring not to rock their funding boats from one political administration to another. Now, as winds of anti-intellectualism sweep America, they are testing whether a significant number in their ranks can win elective office, with the goal of keep science and innovation alive in America.

Recent research at Pew Research confirmed that 58% of Republicans believe that colleges and universities are bad for America. This Trump tidal wave of disinformation and attempts to discredit research has increased almost 20 points in two years.

“It is past time for scientists to step up and get involved … because that is the only way that we are going to change the course,” said Shaughnessy Naughton, a cancer researcher-turned-business owner who twice ran unsuccessfully for Congress in Pennsylvania. She is the founder of 314 Action, a political action committee that helps people with scientific backgrounds run for office. “Traditionally, the attitude has been that science is above politics, and by getting involved in politics, it could possibly pollute science. My response to that is, ‘How’s that working for you?'”

To understand the degree to which disinformation and a rejection of science is sweeping the Republican, read my July 2017 In-Depth essay America's Rejection Of Science, Rational Thinking, Institutions & Perceived Reality Is Epic & Dangerous.

A Declaration of Urban Independence Politico Magazine

Futurist and urban planner Richard Florida moved his family to Toronto a decade ago. Stunned by Hillary's loss, the theorist pulled back his new book from his publisher to do some serious soul searching.

His meaty article in Politico taps into my own mindset, one that is a total reversal of previous thinking among progressives on the role of the federal govt vs state and city govt. The idea is conservative -- one that puts key decisions about our urban and rural areas more in the hands of state and local govt.

Presently in America, rural Americans in red states are running the country. While it's great that the Supreme Court has agreed to hear the Democrats' lawsuit about gerrymandering state districts, the decision could go against Dems. The electoral college is stacked against progressives, urban areas and Democrats generally.

The solution? It could only work if we pack up our money, the disproportionate about of tax dollars blue states send to the federal govt.

Florida argues that states and local govt are much better able to develop effective policies for residents. On the face of it, the total abdication among Dems of civic participation in local and state governing would be a disaster on the front end of a major shift in power and funding to state and local govts.

Yet, if one realization has set in among thinking progressives, it's the understanding that it's our own fault that we've abandoned civic responsibility at a local level. And the centralized federal govt that we over-fund is working against us, especially in a Trump-era.

While white men Dems try to convince us that we should make room for anti-choice, anti-immigrant, pro-gun, anti-everything we stand for disenfranchised white male Republicans, Florida argues that we need a total reassessment of the roles of local, state and federal govt in our lives.

There's serious food for thought in this article and an open door for dialogue that is far more thoughtful than demanding that the solution to Dems problems is firing Nancy Pelosi, now that Hillary Clinton has gone down. A more organic, holistic approach is required.

Note, that this is not a Bernie Sanders vision, as Bernie embraces an even more massive federal govt. It does emphasize Bernie's argument that progressives must get involved at a local and state level. ~ Anne