I used to have faith in the good will and common sense of my fellow citizens. Over the past several years, I’ve lost that faith.
Good will?? The MAGA zealots who have taken over a previously normal political party routinely engage in outlandish accusations and escalating calls for violence. As David Frum recently wrote,
When a madman hammered nearly to death the husband of then–House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Donald Trump jeered and mocked. One of Trump’s sons and other close Trump supporters avidly promoted false claims that Paul Pelosi had somehow brought the onslaught upon himself through a sexual misadventure.
After authorities apprehended a right-wing-extremist plot to abduct Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Trump belittled the threat at a rally. He disparaged Whitmer as a political enemy. His supporters chanted “Lock her up.” Trump laughed and replied, “Lock them all up.”
Fascism feasts on violence. In the years since his own supporters attacked the Capitol to overturn the 2020 election—many of them threatening harm to Speaker Pelosi and Vice President Mike Pence—Trump has championed the invaders, would-be kidnappers, and would-be murderers as martyrs and hostages. He has vowed to pardon them if returned to office. His own staffers have testified to the glee with which Trump watched the mayhem on television…
Common sense??? Chris Lamb is a journalist professor at IU-Indianapolis who has documented (at length) the ridiculous “facts” that Republicans have to believe in order to cling to their insistence that the 2020 election was stolen.
Lamb began by referencing the Washington Post’s compendium of Trump’s lies–over 30 thousand of them– during his four-year presidency, and linked to the newspaper’s accessible data base of those lies. And as he reminds us, that figure was restricted to public statements.
There is no point fact-checking Trump because he uses no facts.
There is as much evidence that Donald Trump led American troops on D-Day as there is evidence that he won the 2020 Presidential Election.
And yet, as he points out, two-thirds of Republicans say Biden’s win of that election was illegitimate. In a post replete with links to sources of his evidence, Lamb deconstructs that claim, and enumerates the multiple ridiculous assertions that must be accepted as true in order to believe it.
The post points out what should be obvious: for one thing, that the massive award against Fox News for defamation could not have been won had there been any probative evidence of election fraud. (As he writes, “It’s worth noting that the truth is an absolute defense in libel suits. If news sites – and I use that word loosely – told the truth they would have been immune from defamation lawsuits”). He also points out that a significant number of the sixty-plus cases dismissed for lack of any evidence were heard–and dismissed–by judges Trump appointed.
Lamb’s post provides a meticulous and documented list of the claims MAGA folks have embraced, and copious evidence of their falsity. I won’t recite that whole list–which I encourage you to click through and read–but to say it is discouraging is an understatement.
The unanswered question, of course, is: what percentage of the American population actually believes these things? How many of my fellow Americans have listened to both Biden and Trump, to Democratic and Republican political figures, and actually concluded that Democratic rhetoric has stoked violence? What percentage of American voters truly thinks the 2020 election was stolen, despite a total and complete absence of any corroborating evidence?
And what is wrong with that cohort? Why do they cling to beliefs that are so clearly unsupported by reality?
So yes, until relatively recently, I was confident that most people in this country were people of good will and common sense. Yes, we have always had fringe elements–the bigots of the far Right and far Left, the discontented, fearful and well-armed “Second Amendment” contingent, the scary theocrats like Beckwith and Banks– but I used to believe those people constituted a relatively small part of our body politic.
In the age of MAGA, It’s harder and harder to believe that.
I tell myself that these deluded souls really are a minority; that it is only because they are so loud and “in our faces” that they seem so numerous, but it gets harder and harder to convince myself that the sort of people with whom I regularly interact (on this site and in “real life”)–people who are, by and large, normal, measured and evidence-based –are the real majority.
If they aren’t–if the hordes of angry MAGA Christian Nationalists return Trump to power–the rest of us will lose more than faith in our fellow Americans. We will lose America.
Sheila’s words today hit me hard; losing faith is a terrible thing to live with but losing hope of regaining that faith is a near-death toll for America because it has spread like wildfire this past 8 years. We don’t know how closely related our political beliefs are tied to our hopes and our faith till we are helpless to stop those who are determined to destroy this nation and rebuild it to suit their wants.
Silly as it will sound to most of you, a warning line spoken by Rhett Butler to the plantation owners in the movie “Gone With The Wind” keeps running through my mind watching Trump and his MAGAs at work. He said, “There is as much money to be made from destroying a civilization as there is in building one.” And we are watching our very civilization being destroyed systematically by what was once the Republican party who were at war to reunite and save it. But it has insidiously infected the the Democratic party from within; whether the ousting of President Joe Biden was a saving factor is yet to be seen. For we have never in our history faced the degradation of the magnitude we witnessed on Sunday, July 21, 2024, this vital election year. Compare it to the drastic decision of the allies during WWII to carry out D-Day; knowing the high cost in the loss of lives and no assurance it would work. My hope and faith ended on Sunday; I lost not only the president I supported but lost hope and faith in the Democratic party. They are taking chances with our very lives; I woke up on Monday feeling empty, something was and is missing from my life. Not only my trust and faith in the party but I lost trust and faith in myself and the decisions and actions I have taken the past 8 years to support them.
“If they aren’t–if the hordes of angry MAGA Christian Nationalists return Trump to power–the rest of us will lose more than faith in our fellow Americans. We will lose America.”
It is truly frightening to realize that facts do not move the needle for so many Americans. As long as the story they believe is what they stick with, facts do nothing to change minds.
What does change minds? Story. So far, the MAGA cult is more effective at telling their story than the D’s have been. From the beginning of the insurrection on January 6 they have convinced their people that what they saw with their own eyes was untrue, and have convinced them of their false story.
What is the story that Dems can use to counter the lies and “alternate facts” of MAGA? What will it take to finally wrest them away from the MAGA story?
I do not know the answer to that question, but what is not working so far is hoping to persuade them to change their minds. At this point they will not be persuaded, so we should not bother to try.
I have to laugh at the Republican party’s complete transformation into a cult. The “Make America Safe Again” slogan that was pushed at the convention is really really bad coming from party that is strongly anti-immigrant and has strong racist rhetoric. Read it out loud; MASA. As in “Yes ma’sa”.
Now the the Republicans have the oldest candidate to run for president, who can’t stay awake in public, whos speeches ramble like someone who can’t keep a coherent train of thought, they have a real problem. Plus they were so confident all they had to was beat Biden, they doubled don’t with a Trump clone for VP, in JD Vance, right down to the blue suit and red tie. The was no attempt to do anything but energize the base.
Take heart, JoAnn. It’s clear that Biden has accepted his decision and he also thinks he has picked a good successor. Harris is smart and capable. Nearly every picture of her shows a happy warrior, but we know that, as a former prosecutor, she has a very serious side.
This morning I see that Republicans are calling her a DEI pick and criticizing her because she likes Venn diagrams? Who
doesn’t like a good Venn diagram? After only two days we can easily see that racism is alive and well in the Republican party. We don’t even need a Venn diagram to see it.
My biggest issue now is gullibility. Watch out for deep fakes.
im remembering how gun laws,bills etc, became so heavy with etc.etcs. and never made it. seems like the rnc piling on more and more crap. it top heavy,with no substance,other than hate. maybe its time to relize the media ,most of it,is insighting a insurrection,directly,or indirectly. though we can fact check if ya get in a long line,and dig. but, we have allowed the news media into out home. nope. throw em out. lines of true journalism exist. and the circle of journalists keep a tight watch on the issues. break the line like Daisy and your toast. its becoming a feud between who gets to sit in and watch. now one party is denying access to some,who tell it like it is. social media hype is getting to the point of out of control.(private enity stokes insurrection,Parody?) now we have a ohio senator who decided its going to take a civil war to win,win what? along with psuedo hillbilly jd, what could be next? get a live interview with them both together, and see how far they can further sink trump..
I lost all hope on November 9, 2016, when I awoke to hear that Donald J. Trump had been elected to the Presidency. I was not initially a Biden supporter in 2020. Even then I thought he was too old, and I was 72 at the time. He proved me wrong. He has been a great President. I didn’t want him to run for reelection for the same reason I didn’t support him in the 2020 primaries– age. However, when he announced, I really believed he could beat Trump. Even after his disastrous performance in the debate, I thought it was too late to change candidates. I still feel that way.
I like Harris. I think she brings a new energy to the campaign. I just don’t think there is time for her to mount a vigorous campaign. And it isn’t even a given she will be the nominee. I also have the same fear I had when she ran in the 2016 primaries; i.e., the rampant racism and misogyny in this country, not just among the MAGAts, will make her unelectable. I pray I am wrong.
Most of the racists, misogynists and religious zealots are already in the 45 cult. They will never be persuaded out of their delusion. The public displays of their cultish behavior tells everyone who they are. Believe them.
The MAGA party is stuck with the oldest Presidential candidate ever, a convicted felon and adjudicated rapist. He is so unfit for office of any kind as to be laughable if it weren’t so dangerous.
He also has had and currently has a spouse who is an immigrant. His VP’s wife is of East Asian descent. How does that square with White Christian Nationism’s demand for racial cleanliness?
It is heartening to see that the Dems seem to be united in acceptance of the decisions made by our current President to leave the upcoming election and endorse his very capable Vice President. Last evening, Harris had already garnered the needed delegates to be the presumptive nominee.
The bluster and threats of legal challenges from the MAGA is being mocked by experts as it should. That threatened litigation will empty their coffers pretty quickly. Its intent is to further weaken our faith in the system and to create as much chaos as they can.
I was sad and disheartened at first. Now I am just angry and more determined than ever to fight for our democratic system with whatever tools I have at my disposal.
It is up to us to save our country from fascism and dictatorship. Stand and deliver! Get loud and proud. Our very lives depend on it!
Don:
yes ma,sa. bravo. ya couldnt couldnt have cracked that whip fas,ta..
JoAnn, calm down. JD, terrific comment. Jan, not to worry. Kamala will be fine. There IS enough time for her to mount a solid, winning campaign.
Sheila, I don’t think the Republican party was “normal” since the day after Lincoln was shot. They became the cult of the rich then. Now, it’s just insanity.
The MAGATS cannot change their minds once they commit to the cult. They have been inculcated with belief over proof since they were kids in Sunday school. Their equally gullible parents doubled-down on the brainwashing. I saw the results of that as a school teacher in my classrooms. In sum, these intellectually lazy and wanting people simply cannot afford, mentally and psychologically, to change their minds for fear that their entire psyche will collapse leaving them nowhere to go. Racism, misogyny and all the rest of the bigotry are the LEARNED behaviors and thought patterns of those who are fundamentally insecure in their own skin. These are the things that have created MAGA. The orange con man knew this, though I doubt he understood it completely.
I’m afraid the polls just don’t give us enough information on the most important facts we need, and I’m referring to the mystery of just how many folks are supporters of trump, or maga, or just extreme right-wing ideology. There simply isn’t a clear picture, and it drives me crazy. I keep finding it harder and harder to believe there are that many – indicated by polling – who are willing to vote for such an obvious bad – no, disgusting, fraudulent – choice for POTUS. This shouldn’t even be close, but instead a landslide, for democracy, represented solely by the Democrats. Vote!
“Frankly, my dear,” the orange guy doesn’t “give a damn,” and his followers can’t think for themselves. Bigotry, fear, and the like make it harder than ever to argue with stupid.
When people are told what to believe, and they follow along, that’s the beginning of the end.
We can talk about faith, we can claim faith, but faith seems to have many facets. In essence though humanity is basically a ship without a rudder, true faith will move mountains, but selective or false faith will just ensure disaster.
Concerning the faith that you are right and everyone else is wrong, puts into play what happened in Germany in the ’30s, “night of the long knives!”
This actually eliminated the opposition for Adolf Hitler to become the true leader of the Nazi party. All the others were murdered in a one night bloodletting. This to go along with “kristallnacht,” “night of broken glass,” camouflaged the real intentions. Is it difficult to dupe an entire population? Obviously it wasn’t that difficult, you had expert propagandists playing on the fears and hatred of the silent majority. Those that really weren’t active and politics and such but had tremendous grievance for whatever reason. The world war I burden was difficult on Germany. They were looking to lay blame. They found their fall guy and inacted their villainous propaganda to just walk through the front door. But behind that door, the floor was drenched in blood. Not long after, the Nazis would drench the world in blood.
That silent majority put their faith in men who were not who they say they were, and, it wasn’t a secret who they were either. But, they chose, because of their hatred and desperation, they chose wrong! They chose men, they chose liars and murderers and con artists and thieves along with self-proclaimed predators! And, it obviously felt really good to do so, until, it started to collapse All the way to losing the war.
Then the population cried, claimed they didn’t know what was happening, that they were a bunch of dupes that were duped basically. And when the Americans marched into Auschwitz, it was a horrific scene with mountains of bodies. The American soldiers went into town and pulled all of the German citizens out of there homes and made them bury the bodies. They cried and they thought it was unfair, but, there was no way they didn’t know what was going on right outside of town. The smell was more than hellacious, but the citizenry claimed how unfair it was that they had to bury all those bodies. You see the Ohio State senator calling for civil war if DT and Vance lose. And you would have plenty loading up there arsenals to enact that civil war. This is exactly what happened to Germany. And it’s an abject lesson to everyone claiming faith in men. Trust but verify! Faith is one of the most precious gifts a person can have. But almost like clockwork, that faith is misplaced. Because people are stupid, and, they refuse to look at history as being the window to the world. What does history tell you? It tells you that there are opportunities that have been missed throughout history to prevent some of the greatest miscarriages of Justice, compassion and empathy.
All because the the lens or prism of propaganda distorted what people saw, and the Bolshevik revolution, the boxer revolution, numerous civil wars including our own, will be the next attempt at having faith in men, and which will fail!
We can say how much better we are connected and we could never be corrupted in that manner. But it’s already happening. When you have a convicted felon running for president of the United States, what does that say to allies and neighbors? Nothing good!
So, don’t put your faith and hope and something that has become a runaway train, and work at enhancing true faith, true love, true compassion, which Christ begged. He said, love God, and love your neighbor or fellow man, basically the entirety of the law in a nutshell. If that, is not reason enough to have faith and bear witness, then you are just a heartless, breathless skin bag of hatred. “Always seeking but never able to find!” All the while, crying, “too bad, too bad!”
The ones who need faith are the 50% or more of potential voters who are tired of partisanship and ideology and just want a government “of, for and by ” the people – NOT the rich, not the celebrities, not the Parties, not BIG OIL/TECH/FINANCE/HEALTHCARE. Until that happens, they will likely stay home and let us be MAGATIZED.
Since President Biden stepped aside, support for VP Harris has been erupting like lava from a long pent up volcano. There has been a steady stream of good news on top of good news. Of course, the opponents of democracy will viciously attack her. It is all they can do. And, of course, the MAGA minions will swallow the lies. It is what they do. But a new day is coming. I think our biggest danger now is complacency. We still need to get out the vote for sanity, and that seems to be the full focus of the Democratic Party right now. Good for them!
Thanks to Vern — always wise advice.
JoAnn — Biden must have known deep down in his heart that he had lost the confidence of the movers and shakers in his party or he wouldn’t have bowed out. And without support of the party he WOULD have lost.
You know, if you really think about it, the MAGA folks have always existed, it’s just now they are getting to have a big party on TV where they wear their MAGA costumes and worship the orange one. But they were always among us — just not out so blatantly. I think we are all just shocked by the depth of their vitriol. I know I am. Think of all the people who rallied around Hitler before WWII started. They just seemed like ordinary German citizens but sometimes the right cult leader brings out the very worst in those already predisposed to go that way and the gullible.
It’s a damn shame.
Peggy wrote, “Watch out for deep fakes.”
I spent several hours yesterday debunking the many attacks against Kamala’s “fake family photos” on social media, claiming that her father was white and her mother was Asian. I guess they don’t want her to be black. The picture was a fraud. Even X had a community note stating that neither of Kamala’s parent was listed in the photo. To be clear, her father is black Jamaican, and her mother is from India. She is black and Indian.
Although the loud and proud MAGA crowd is out there and probably accounts for 25% of the voting population, there is another hefty contingent of pro-GOP or never-Democrats. I believe they are embarrassed with Trump, so they keep quiet, but they would never vote for a “baby-killing” Democrat.
This is the same for the never-Republican crowd, or what you mainly see here on this blog. It wouldn’t matter if Trump were at the top of the ballot; nobody would vote for a GOP candidate.
As for JD Vance, Pete Buttigieg was on Bill Maher and destroyed JD Vance and Mike Pence. He also breaks it down in real simple terms why all these rich Silicon Valley types like Trump and the GOP. They’re rich! I hope Kamala picks Pete as her running mate, even if it’s prep for 2028. In my opinion, he’d be a better POTUS candidate than Kamala, but if chosen as VP, I would love to watch the VP debates with Pete and JD. It’s short, so take a watch:
https://youtu.be/7XuIEg_Y4fM?si=AAHowBdhTJ7QkZaL
As a young, new prosecutor, one of the best lessons I learned was to anticipate defenses from the mindset of the other side. As yourself not, “what would I do/say?” but “what would they do/say?”
I don’t understand his supporters, no matter how hard I try. They defy logic and no amount of “Hillbilly Elegy” will help me get into their mindset. That is what makes this election (and honestly, the last 8 years) so very scary. I have NO IDEA what they might do or how the maga voter might react.
You’ve got to KNOW your adversary and debate/discuss with this in mind:
“Never argue with stupid people; they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience.” Mark Twain
And even if you successfully “lead a horse (jackass?) to water, you can’t make him drink.” So if that MAGA follower shuts up long enough to listen to documented facts and purports to “see your point”, be very skeptical. Who convinced whom and of what? Actions “speak louder than words” . Be ready to be very happy he “saw the light”, but be just as ready to feel disappointment when you run into Mr MAGA/Trump Sycophant at the next “Lock her up!” rally and he throws his torch on the pyre where an effigy of (woman, Democrat, gay man, person of color….etc) Is being burned at the stake.
That said, I DO have a modicum of faith and hope in the younger generation to listen when we elders speak with them as adults with functioning brain cells and we then sincerely ask for their opinions with explanations …. AND LISTEN….. What they say and believe matters. After all, in another 10-15 years, most of us blog-aged pontificators here will be pushing up daisies and they will be in charge.
Signed, “ Mark “ my words, thank you Mr Twain!
I have just finished a book on authoritarian leaders, one of the interesting issues of new authoritarians is they are less likely to engage in violence – rather they incite others to take this step – and are in turn more likely to assume the form of an entertainer – Trump, Meili, and Duterte, for example. As Sheila notes, we have blurred the lines of reality, inclusive of politics and comedy ….
When people are told what to believe, and they follow along, that’s the beginning of the end.
We can talk about faith, we can claim faith, but faith seems to have many facets. In essence though humanity is basically a ship without a rudder, true faith will move mountains, but selective or false faith will just ensure disaster.
Concerning the faith that you are right and everyone else is wrong, puts into play what happened in Germany in the ’30s, “night of the long knives!”
This actually eliminated the opposition for Adolf Hitler to become the true leader of the Nazi party. All the others were murdered in a one night bloodletting. This to go along with “kristallnacht,” “night of broken glass,” camouflaged the real intentions. Is it difficult to dupe an entire population? Obviously it wasn’t that difficult, you had expert propagandists playing on the fears and hatred of the silent majority. Those that really weren’t active in politics and such but had tremendous grievance for whatever reason. The world war I burden was difficult on Germany. They were looking to lay blame. They found their fall guy and inacted their villainous propaganda to just walk through the front door. But behind that door, the floor was drenched in blood. Not long after, the Nazis would drench the world in blood.
That silent majority put their faith in men who were not who they say they were, and, it wasn’t a secret who they were either. But, they chose, because of their hatred and desperation, they chose wrong! They chose men, they chose liars and murderers and con artists and thieves along with self-proclaimed predators! And, it obviously felt really good to do so, until, it started to collapse All the way to losing the war.
Then the population cried, claimed they didn’t know what was happening, that they were a bunch of dupes that were duped basically. And when the Americans marched into Auschwitz, it was a horrific scene with mountains of bodies. The American soldiers went into town and pulled all of the German citizens out of their homes and made them bury the bodies. They cried and they thought it was unfair, but, there was no way they didn’t know what was going on right outside of town. The smell was more than hellacious, but the citizenry claimed how unfair it was that they had to bury all those bodies. You see the Ohio State senator calling for civil war if DT and Vance lose. And you would have plenty loading up their arsenals to enact that civil war. This is exactly what happened to Germany. And it’s an abject lesson to everyone claiming faith in men. Trust but verify! Faith is one of the most precious gifts a person can have. But almost like clockwork, that faith is misplaced. Because people are stupid, and, they refuse to look at history as being the window to the world. What does history tell you? It tells you that there are opportunities that have been missed throughout history to prevent some of the greatest miscarriages of Justice, compassion and empathy.
All because the the lens or prism of propaganda distorted what people saw, in the Bolshevik revolution, the boxer revolution, numerous civil wars including our own, was the next attempt at having faith in men, and all failed!
We can say how much better we are connected and we could never be corrupted in that manner. But it’s already happening. When you have a convicted felon running for president of the United States, what does that say to allies and neighbors? Nothing good!
So, don’t put your faith and hope and something that has become a runaway train, and work at enhancing true faith, true love, true compassion, which Christ begged. He said, love God, and love your neighbor or fellow man, basically the entirety of the law in a nutshell. If that, is not reason enough to have faith and bear witness, then you are just a heartless, breathless skin bag of hatred. “Always seeking but never able to find!” All the while, crying, “too bad, too bad!”
Allow me to bring a spiritual perspective. As a Jesus-follower (I don’t use the term Christian for myself any more as it carries too much negative baggage — and rightly so) I am informed by the words of the Bible and Jesus in particular. He said that he would not entrust himself to man as he knew what was in the heart of man. We are all weak, and fail in many ways. What compounds the issue however, is what the Apostle Paul describes as ‘rulers and authorities in the heavenly realm’. Yes, Satan and the demonic exist, and are in high gear influencing anyone they can to work against all that is good. Jesus says that in the ‘last days’ even the elect would be deceived if not for God. Jesus himself was a victim of human weakness and political maneuvering. Remember, in his day there was little to no separation between religion and politics. Funny, it seems we are in a similar situation, as many (Christian Nationalists especially) seek to reduce that divide. And so, history repeats itself. And those who love and hold the truth as important will face percussion of one sort or another. And what of our future and the future of the whole world? Well, Jesus says that if God does not step in, we would destroy ourselves.
So, we are in the midst of birth pangs. With or without Trump our societies and world are on a short leash. Need I talk about climate change and biosphere degradation? Where then is my hope? Not in humanity that historically has proven unable to fix anything My hope is in the God of all creation. And I work for a better world, even though I know that this one has to end.
There is no hell but the one we make. All will be redeemed in the next life (such was the belief in the early Church). And there is no heaven ‘up there’, rather, we can look forward to a renewed heaven on earth here. The Jesus-follower continues to love all, including our earthly home, because that is our new genetic code. And we hope because our hope is not in this world — not in Trump, the Democratic party, the Republicans or any other force. Our hope is in the God who loves all, passionately. That is the rock on which I stand. May you also find that rock in the coming days. (End of sermon…thanks for reading).
Using first amendments rights in bad faith to fool, swindle and mislead fellow Americans for selfish, political power and greed is at the heart of the problem. Now propaganda channels twist and turn the facts and are using false narratives to herd many Americans away from democracy. The Maga movement convinces people to give up their power to them and join their march toward autocracy.
It’s been reported that Kamala has gotten all the delegates she needs to be the nominee and will be put on the ballots by the August 7th deadline for candidates.
Biden is a great POTUS and answered the call of his time. His timing of throwing a monkey wrench into the trump campaign by dropping out has thrown Maga into a tailspin and has put the spotlight on to trumps many negatives.
Biden the lifetime statesman that knows how things work is now free to work behind the scenes to ensure a democratic win. Supremes just made it official for POTUS to have full authority and no repercussions. Could that be why Maga insists that Biden step down, they know he’s mentally sharp and capable of causing them a lot of “good” trouble.
To see the misogynist. lying con man loose to Kamala is in my book “Divine Justice”!
Anthony Hendriks. My dad used to say “God helps those who help themselves.” He didn’t originate it, but he used it to impress on us the need for personal responsibility. I don’t expect the god who let Hitler burn the Jews to save us from Putin, Trump, et.al.
“We must be certain that, as the rights of the individual are the most sacred elements of our society, we will not allow passion, vengeance, hatred, and racial antagonism to cloud the principles of universal justice and mercy.” -Ansel Adams
Born Free and Equal (c.1994)
This lesbian fears for her country. And woe to any who attempts to harm me and mine, I may be liberal, but I’m armed and refuse to be a victim of these foolish retrogrades.
always good to read you professor, even when it’s scary as hell
“Bigots on the far left”? Is that some sort of balancing remark? Who are we supposed to be bigoted against? I would not call my strong feelings about MAGAS bigoted.
We have to have faith in Kamala….be positive and support her. I was devastated on Sunday when Joe made his announcement….but this within 1/2 hour he put his support behing Kamala. I listened to him and I believe what he told us. The MAGA is running scared right now…and the only thing they can do is bash Kamala just like they did Joe. I was 81 yesterday and Joe is 8 months older than me. I don’t blame him for stepping down. Some days are better than others for me…I can’t imagine what it has been like for him. I will imagine he will still be a big player in Kamala’s campaign and then presidency. They have been friends since she worked with Bo…..years ago in California and claims to be part of each other family. True friends become family through the years. I have several friends that I call family!
Excellent and astute comments here that echo a lot of what Iʻm also thinking. Would add that President Biden has been the most effective president and surprised many with the amount of legislation, especially bi-partisan, that passed during his term in office.
While it is disheartening to realize the fanatical MAGAts and never-Democrats are more numerous than merely fringe, I still see signs of the majority of Americans as reasonable and pro-democracy. This gives me hope.
Although it is not official yet, Kamala Harris seems to be the Democratic presidential nominee and I would like to predict my preference for her VP, Mark Kelly. I think he has all the qualities and qualifications, as well as the right temperament, intelligence, and stamina for the job. Bonus, Kelly is a US astronaut, and has the rare distinction of having flown in space, with all the perspective that entails. HARRIS/KELLY 2024 !!!
Shared your post on Facebook yesterday and they removed it. I’m very distressed by this…have shared frequently for years and that was a first. Will share daily now and see what happens
JoAnn, with Biden’s acceptance of the situation, I spent Sunday feeling hope, where previously I had basically given up on your election.
J Smith Jones, Mark Kelly is a decent possibility. My father lived in Arizona before he passed, and he was always a big fan, and true supporter of Mark. Still, part of me worries that a choice like that would cause the complete loss of the flat earth vote. But who are we kidding, they were all going to vote Republican anyway.
Andy Beshear is a real possibility, I think. Plus, I think he’d absolutely dismantle Vance in a debate.
One of the great things about Kamala is her background as a prosecutor. I loved watching her grill people in committee meetings. (Props where they’re due: Katie Porter is my absolute favourite in this regard.) I can’t _wait_ for a Harris/Trump debate. There will definitely be beer, burgers, and popcorn involved.
Jan Lindemann, I think the polls of the last few weeks–especially those in swing states–were what ultimately convinced Biden, and the democratic apparatus. The GOP certainly felt that Biden could no longer win. One big piece of evidence is just how restrained, how abnormally quiet, Trump was after the debate. I imagine that his advisors were constantly wrestling his phone away so the Dems and the media could focus on Biden’s age and terrible performance. They _want_ to face Biden; they don’t want to face Harris.
The bigoted gang among the GOP supporters was always going to vote for Trump. The issue is only whether Harris’ candidacy brings out some who may have stayed home. It’s almost certainly the case that it will, but I’m not sure that this will be a ton of people. The GOP is always good at getting out their vote, anyway.
On the flip side, Harris could easily be good for inspiring a bunch of Democratic-leaning people to come out and vote, as well. Here’s where I show my faith: I want to believe that people are generally decent enough that _this_ cohort is bigger than Trump’s cohort.
Now, if we could just get West and Kennedy to quit it, I’d be happier. They are supported by GOP money, and it’s clear they are just supposed to siphon away some Dem votes. In an election that is going to come down to a few thousand votes in a small number of swing states, this is a potentially catastrophic (and really corrupt) strategy for destroying democracy.
Sharon Miller…I didn’t say God would fix every bad thing. However, God is with us and experiences everything we do. And she calls us to be part of the solution.
John H, yes, Gov. Andy Beshear is another good VP choice and have seen Tennessee Brando on YouTube endorse him as authentic. Brando also thinks Beshear would mop the debate floor with Vanceʻs scruffy beard. The Democrat bench is deep with quality people of intelligence and integrity. On another note, VOTE BLUE to hold the Supreme Court justices accountable!