America's shifting tides: from MAGA to MAGMA to GAMA

Throughout its history, America has been shaped by great socio-political movements. Currently, this movement is in its nascent, formative stages. It’s time for another Great American Movement Again. I call it the GAMA movement. It is the antithesis of the MAGA movement. Let me explain.

From MAGA to MAGMA

Since the election of Donald Trump in November 2024, America and the world have been startled by the avalanche of Trump’s pronouncements for changing the world order. His MAGA movement has morphed into a volcanic magma eruption, spewing molten rock across the globe in a series of startling declarations to attempt to begin to rearrange the post World War II global landscape. MAGA has evolved into a MAGMA movement. The following are a few examples:

Has declared that Ukraine started the war with Russia. He declared Zelensky to be a dictator. His representatives met with Russia in Saudi Arabia without Ukraine at the table. In an oval office meeting, Trump and Vance angrily denigrated Zelensky in front of the world in a shameful display of classless, unconscionable behavior. Afterward, Trump declared he has paused all military aid to Ukraine.
Declared the US wants to colonize or purchase Greenland.
Declared the US wants to take control of the Panama Canal.
Declared he wants to acquire Canada as the 51st US state.
Implemented punishing tariffs on products imported from Canada, Mexico, China, and Europe.
Declared that Gaza will become occupied by a US-led real estate development project—and millions of displaced Palestinians will have to find a new homeland.
Appointed an unelected billionaire (who contributed over US $250 million to Trump’s re-election campaign in 2024) to oversee the restructuring of the agencies that comprise the US government. Elon Musk is currently in the process of terminating tens of thousands of US federal employees, as well as eliminating a number of federal agencies (USAID, The Department of Education, etc.). Musk’s work has only just begun, without US Congressional oversight.
Appointed a former FOX news host as Secretary of Defense, and a cadre of other distinctly unqualified cronies and loyalists to positions overseeing strategically important federal agencies like the US Department of Homeland Security, FBI, Department of Justice, National Intelligence, Energy, EPA, CIA, the UN, Health and Human Services, State Department, etc.
Threatened to investigate and prosecute political adversaries.
Threatened to silence mainstream media outlets. Federal Communications Commission chairman Brendan Carr has initiated investigations into PBS, NPR, ABC, NBC, Comcast and a host of others. This includes suing mainstream news media outlet personalities for purported defamation, leading to multi-million dollar settlements.
Threatened to withhold critical federal aid to California to address the devastation of catastrophic wildfires that tortured southern California due to political considerations.
Has intimated his second term as US President could be extended beyond current constitutional limits.
Declared that the Gulf of Mexico was now named the Gulf of America.
Declared war on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) throughout American society.
He pardoned and released from incarceration over 1,500 individuals who had been convicted of various crimes for their participation in the January 6, 2021 riots at the US Capitol.

These are just some of the elements of the new MAGMA movement Donald Trump has thrust upon not just the American landscape, but the current world order. At the time of this writing, Trump’s first thirty-five days in office have resulted in a pyroclastic flow of gas and molten volcanic matter that threaten to destroy institutions, principles, individuals, and relationships that have served to provide stability in our world for generations. His imperialist ambitions are no longer veiled threats. They are obvious and apparent. As eloquently stated by Tufts University’s Monica Duffy Toft:

Imperialist rhetoric is becoming a mark of President Donald Trump’s second term. Imperialism is when a nation extends its power through territorial acquisition, economic dominance, or political influence. Historically, imperialist leaders have used military conquest, economic coercion or diplomatic pressure to expand their dominions, and justified their foreign incursions as civilizing missions, economic opportunities or national security imperatives. ¹

Beneath the surface: from MAGA to MAGMA

After the conclusion of the November 2024 election cycle in the US, the Republican party garnered a majority in the US House of Representatives, the US Senate and, of course, the US Presidency. As I have written previously here, this is not an anomaly in US politics. “The last five U.S. presidents have all had timeframes where both the House and the Senate were in control by their political party. Most of those ‘trifecta’ timeframes endured for a mere two years before American voters changed the equation. Why? One political party possessing the trifecta in Washington inspires the controlling party to aggressively push policy agendas which make it very challenging for those in the other party to support the proposed legislative and policy proposals.”

What was different post-election in 2024 were the following:

The Democrat Party in the US was completely befuddled and in disarray after the election. Honestly, they were shocked at their defeat(s). They were also worn out from the intense emotional volatility that inhabited this particular election cycle. This includes individual voters and groups of voters on the Democrat side of the electorate. People, particularly on the Democrat party side of the US political landscape, had become exhausted from all the rancor.
Mainstream (aka legacy) media outlets that typically supported the agenda of the Democrat party in the US in the run-up to the 2024 election had their integrity eviscerated. NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN and MSNBC were all casualties due to the outcome of the 2024 US election. Their viewers felt misled, dismayed, and betrayed. This led to significant declines in viewership post-election at these more progressive mainstream media outlets—a reality that persists to this day.
Independent news media outlets in the US have proliferated in both number and popularity with viewers post-election 2024. This is particularly true with independent news media outlets that broadcast daily and/or multiple times each day via the YouTube platform. The migration away from mainstream media news broadcasts in the US has accelerated dramatically toward sources of independent YouTube news broadcasts. While these sources of news are abundant and growing with new subscribers, they operate primarily in independent silos with little or no collaboration among them. There exists a tremendous opportunity for essential cohesion, collaboration, and cross-promotion of the independent, progressive news platform network in the US.
The fractured narratives or messaging from the Democrat party in the US has been widely criticized as a central element for their defeats in the November 2024 elections. This poor messaging from Democrats has yet to be rectified and has provided Trump with a void to aggressively push his agenda unopposed by any realistic, tangible, organized opposition. At the State of the Union address on March 4, 2025, the Democrat party resistance was the sum total of one Democrat member of Congress being escorted out of the chamber for being disruptive—a dozen women representatives wearing pink outfits—and another dozen representatives silently holding up ping pong like paddles with messages like “Liar” and “False” on them. Needless to say, the opposition to Trump and his MAGMA acolytes is neutered. There is nothing currently apparent that would lead one to have confidence that effective, organized opposition to Trump is on the horizon.
The Democrat party in the US is saddled with the same old faces and voices that led to their defeats and the resurrection of Trump. Currently, the Democrats seem to be unable to identify and elevate new messengers with a cohesive, coherent message capable of galvanizing like-minded citizens who oppose Trump’s MAGMA agenda.

In summary, there are fundamental subterranean conditions in the US that have led MAGA to morph into MAGMA. As identified above, there are several themes that emerge and persist. These include the loss of integrity of mainstream US media outlets that are typically characterized as progressive or those with a tendency to favor the Democrat party platform. There is also the ongoing absence of a cohesive and coherent message from the Democrat party, along with new and inspiring faces and voices to carry the message to the American people. Disarray in the news media landscape also contributes to the rise of the MAGMA movement. Fragmentation in the forces that typically inhabit organized opposition to the agenda of an emerging autocratic form of governance is the current, unfortunate reality in the US.

Moving on—from MAGMA to GAMA

What America requires at this moment in history is to Galvanize A Movement for the way Ahead—or GAMA. There are numerous elements that a GAMA movement contains. All of the elements require activism and a vastly more collective, collaborative, and consensual way to deploy effective opposition to the current pyroclastic flow of MAGMA. For some, to be frank, this motivation may include Gathering Against these Mean-spirited Antagonists. For others, it may be an inspiration to Guard Against Mindless Autocrats or the Movement toward Autocracy. For those who have concerns over the rise of influence by the wealthy, the motivation may be to join others in a Generation Against Monied Autocracy. For those with a sense of pride in America’s historical accomplishments, they may be inspired to join others in efforts to Guard America’s Magnificent Achievements, and oppose Trump’s attempts to demonize and rewrite US history.

Still others may not buy into Trump’s thesis that America is fundamentally broken and in need of wholesale reorganization. These are citizens who desire and have hope for a brighter, better future in America; those who come together to Guard America’s Meaningful Aspirations. GAMA requires the participation of people across the globe; it is an opportunity to deploy a Global coalition Against Maniacal Aggression. We are living in a period where we must Guard Against the Migration to Autocracy.

One thing is clear: Galvanizing an Awakening for Meaningful Advocacy and/or Alternative is a fundamental imperative in the US today. It’s a global imperative. Surrendering to the threats of Trump’s recent pyroclastic pronouncements becoming reality, as identified herein, is not an option. Recent public demonstrations against MAGMA have started to erupt across the US, and the global landscape. It’s time to Get Active and Maintain Advocacy for a better path forward. Autocracy, oligarchy, and imperialism all require one fundamental reality to evolve and proceed unabated; the fracture and fragmentation of sources of organized opposition.

Watch this space.