Mourning in America

Glad tidings to those of you who stuck around!

It wasn't just the electoral college-- he won the popular vote, too. Apparently, serious character issues, naked bigotry, and old age doesn't faze 51% of American voters. Trump galvanized the uninformed in 2016, and did so even more in 2024. In hindsight, now I see why Trump's Nuremberg-like rallies devolved into open mics and impromptu dance parties: he knew he had it in the bag.

Why did Kamala Harris lose? Exit polls suggest she lost support from Black men and especially Latino men, and never found footing with white men. Even though the economy improved under Biden and inflation gradually stagnated, it was hard to ignore the administration's overly patient approach to immigration, as well as a clumsy response to the Israeli-Hamas war. Progressives grew frustrated with Secretary of State Blinken (Biden's point man in the Middle East) in a no-win situation, but there's even more disappointment in Attorney General Merrick Garland. The administration's crown jewel, a sprawling infrastructure improvement program, will probably be left to rot. 

I had hoped that we were turning a chapter in American history. Instead, the worldwide pattern of totalitarianism has found footing where the international sport of soccer never quite has: the United States. In lieu of Messi, we have messy. I don't know what the next four years behold. On one hand, Trump is so notoriously distracted that he seldom follows through on threats and promises; on the other hand, he now has a legion of lapdogs that can do that for him. 

I've let the news settle in my head for over a week now, but it still feels noxious. To no one's surprise, most of Trump's cabinet appointments have been almost exclusively yes-men and bootlickers. If your instinct is to resist, keep resisting. The battle is lost, but the fight isn't over. 

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The Teeter-Totter of Democracy

I'll be succinct:

I've been writing this blog for almost 20 years. This is my 10th election cycle, presidential, midterm or otherwise. I have always believed in the democratic process and the distinctly American necessity of voting. Since my first impassioned plea in 2006, my biannual pep talk has steadily grown more partisan, and not by choice. Even then, the necessity of voting in elections --primaries, midterms, or in the general-- remains pivotal. I voted early this year, but with days to go, I'm still on pins and needles.

To paraphrase one wise writer: Donald Trump is a poor man's idea of a rich man, a moron's idea of a smart man, and a failure's idea of a successful man. Nothing about him has changed since 2015, give or take some old age memory loss. I don't need to reiterate all the awful things he's said and done, and that he's never truly been qualified for the job. His ardent supporters couldn't care less; this election cycle has become less about this antics and more about a blind, confounding hatred for his opponent. The "death of democracy" talk is not blown out of proportion. 

Holy f***, vote for Kamala.

If you disagree, we don't have to communicate or interact ever again. Vote for Kamala.

To everyone else, I'll see you in November.

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Apples and Oranges

The two recent debates were an intriguing contrast. The presidential showdown was what I expected; Vice President Harris knew exactly how to prod Donald Trump, and he took the bait. The vice presidential debate, however was so contrasting in energy that it almost felt like a relic from decades past. JD Vance was poised the whole way but couldn't help but lie to augment his argument (again, *almost* a throwback); Tim Walz looked a little out of place at first, but held his own the rest of the way. 

With three-plus weeks until the election, the contrasts go well beyond how the candidates present themselves on TV. The Trump misinformation machine is in high gear, accelerated by Vance, who isn't afraid to make crap up if it supports his argument. Joe Biden is making the most of a lame-duck presidency, and the Harris/Walz campaign (for better or worse) is an avatar for staying the course. 

As I write this, the presidency, US House, *and* US Senate are all up for grabs. Polls suggest Democrats hold a razor-thin lead in all three, and the aftermath of 2016 should remind everyone nothing is guaranteed. The anxiety is palpable. 

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Flip This Ticket

I hope I publish this post before something else major happens. Good grief.

Call it the Kamala effect. Since the Vice President took the reins from President Biden on July 21st, the Democrats have raised over a quarter billion dollars nationally, she instantly took the lead in polls in several swing states, and brought new energy into an otherwise interminable election cycle. The timing was uncanny; Biden wasn't going to back out during the RNC, but opted to do so a couple days after, to curb the traditional post-convention bump.

Even though Harris was a strong presence on the campaign trail, her first run for the Oval Office in late 2019 was undercut by financial issues. Now she has the message *and* the war chest. It also puts the onus of age squarely on Trump, who won the June debate by default but still rambles like Abraham Simpson at his frequent rallies. There's also the prosecutor versus felon angle. Even with the dramatic boost in donations, the race has gone from a narrow Trump lead to a virtual tie nationally, and there's still three months of brinksmanship to go. 

Now the question, who will be the veep's veep? Probably a middle-aged white guy with liberal, not necessarily progressive leanings. JB Pritzker would be a good pick (local bias) but Tim Walz would also be suitable. Either would look relatively sane --and safe-- compared to an awkward, jejune, trust fund doofus like JD Vance.

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