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| Students marching along the National Mall in Washington during a protest against President-elect Donald J. Trump on Tuesday. Credit Carlos Barria/Reuters |
“I’m going to be constrained in what I do with all of you until I am again a private citizen,” Mr. Obama, who will be living a few miles from the White House next year, told a meeting this past week of Organizing for Action, the group that maintains his political movement. “But that’s not so far off.”
Dozens of liberal advocacy groups, which have received a flood of donations and new members in the chaotic days since Mr. Trump’s defeat of Hillary Clinton, are gearing up for years of clashes with Mr. Trump. After eight years of advocacy on behalf of the Obama agenda, they are racing to recast themselves as bulwarks against Mr. Trump’s expected assault on an array of Democratic policies.
The mobilization against Mr. Trump began even before his victory was official. At just after midnight on Election Day, panicked immigration rights activists gathered for a conference call to strategize. A few days later, more than 80 representatives of 57 progressive groups convened in the offices of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights in Washington.
The mood was intense, angry and unforgiving, according to people who attended the confidential organizing session, which included representatives from labor, environmental groups, immigration activists, gay rights and civil rights organizations. Jim Messina, who managed Mr. Obama’s re-election campaign, offered brief remarks at the meeting, cautioning against any attempts to compromise and work with Mr. Trump.
“Push back at every level,” Mr. Messina urged. No one in the room objected, one attendee said.
Nan Aron, the president of the Alliance for Justice, started calling law firms in Washington the day after the election, beginning the process of opposition research on Mr. Trump’s likely Supreme Court nominees. Dozens of lawyers eagerly signed up for what is sure to be a heated battle over the direction of the court for a generation.
“They want to get involved,” she said. “They are worried about the new administration.”
Neera Tanden, an adviser to Mrs. Clinton and the president of the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank, said her organization had begun hosting daily meetings and conference calls as it plots the best way to resist Mr. Trump.
She called Mr. Trump’s first appointments extreme and said they had helped to “stiffen the spines” of Democrats. And she said the election had sparked a grass-roots awakening, with largely peaceful protests across the country.
Two planned rallies in Washington — one for immigration and civil rights on Jan. 14, and another focused on women the day after the inauguration — were devised mostly by social media campaigns. Activists in Washington expect hundreds of thousands of people to gather for the second rally.
But Ms. Tanden warned of dangers posed by the Trump administration, and warned against treating them “in normal Washington political terms.”
“I think the issue is, we do have the makings of an administration that could do more damage to democratic norms than any presidency in my lifetime,” she said.
Some Democrats say they are eager for Mrs. Clinton to re-emerge after a period of recovery interrupted so far only by a speech to the Children’s Defense Fund on Wednesday.
It is unclear when, or if, she might return to politics, though many Democrats said they would welcome it. “She’s one tough lady, and public service is in her blood,” said Representative Adam Schiff of California. “Don’t expect her to go quietly into that good night.”
But the immediate task of confronting Mr. Trump will fall to Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the new Democratic leader.
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Green egg eating Sam I Am is refusing to sip a taste from the silver spoon that stirred the concoction created in the cauldron of political gimmickery. The gruel's main ingredient is the rotten egg laid in America's lap in November. The infamous 'I Am' was quoted as mentioning spam, which is as unsubstantiated as his being seen using silver cutlery to aid in the consumption of his favorite dish. Sam refuses to comment as to his refusal to sip except to say, "It smacks of odious intent."
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