can we take a stand?

The President is doing illegal stuff right in front of our noses. We think "I don't hear anything too extreme about it in the news, so it must not be that bad" or "If it really was that bad, the news would have a field day with it" or "democrats would be more up in arms than they are if it was a really big deal." Our government has all these institutions strong armed. The owners of all the media companies are in the government's pockets. The democrats can't say shit in fear that they or their friends or supporters will be affected by the RICH powerplay going out from the oval office. The mainstream's hands are tied. My question: can america rely on the integrity of the people to get them through a manipulative crisis such as this? Can people see that the machine is not going to necessarily serve in their best interest and that there may come a time, such as now, where a taking a strong personal stand is in order, media spectacle or not. Can the U.S. take a stand against something without its security blanket telling it is ok to do so?