The 2024 Election is over. Harris lost; Trump won. In addition to decisively winning the necessary Electoral votes, Trump also captured a majority of the popular vote across America. Democrats lost control of the Senate and will fail to take control of the House. In short, Democrats got their asses handed to them.
I contend that the GOP actually lost this election as well. Republicans, in fact, no longer exist as a political party in anything other than name. Their replacement by Trumpists is now complete. The soon-to-be-ruling party has no working platform other than “whatever Trump wants”. A once-proud political pillar focused on fiscal responsibility, national defense, respect for the law, and personal morality has been fully consumed by a cult whose leader has forced multiple businesses into bankruptcy, has demonstrated zero respect for our military, is a convicted felon who incited an insurrection, and is a proven rapist, philanderer, and misogynist.
Trumpists are, of course, still managing to feel aggrieved. Harris called Trump the day after the election to congratulate him and then made a gracious public concession speech. In response, Trumpists complained that Harris should have conceded earlier to let Trump “have his moment” – almost laughably ignoring the fact that Trump still hasn’t conceded his 2020 loss. Yes, this is what our future holds.
I’ve been forced to quickly process scenarios I hadn’t dared to fully contemplate and I’m still trying to understand my own state of mind.
I am not in denial. I have no desire to storm the U.S. Capitol like an idiot, even if some believe that to be acceptable behavior. I have no desire to make accusations of widespread voter fraud, even if some believe that evidence is totally unnecessary.
I am not angry at Democrats. There will be no shortage of finger-pointing, but it’s obvious that Harris wasn’t a perfect candidate with a perfect campaign. She’s not a particularly gifted orator and she could have done a much better job at getting her economic message across. However, Harris didn’t lose the election because of her speaking skills nor because of any campaign errors. She lost because she’s a black woman who didn’t appeal to America’s worst instincts.
I am not feeling personally threatened. At least not yet. I’m an old, straight, upper-middle-class, white male. I should be fine. Of course, a Trump DHS web crawler might eventually find this blog and label me a political dissident. (Sadly, that’s not just a humorous aside.) While I also suspect that Medicare and Social Security will be at serious risk from Trumpism, that might take a while. Trump himself promised to support both programs but, once in office, he most certainly won’t feel bound by any of his campaign blather. Other Trumpists, however, might not be thrilled to screw over a major constituency.
I am gravely frightened for many of my friends. Individual freedoms which we have all taken for granted will be trampled. Generations after mine will be forced to deal with the shitshow we will leave them. I am so sorry. I wish I could have done more.
Finally, I am deeply depressed. I purposely waited a few days to post anything to avoid any raw outpouring of my post-election emotions. Those days have only clarified my depression.
My fellow Americans not only elected an unstable con-man to be the President of our country; they gave him a clear mandate to do whatever he wants. A man with no moral compass will soon be the symbolic face of America both to the world and to our nation’s children. A man with no agenda other than revenge and the enhancement of his own personal wealth and image will soon be the most powerful person on the planet with no institutional restraints. A man who doesn’t give a damn about this country will soon empower an amalgam of idiots and narcissists to run it.
America will get what it wanted. God help us all.
My issues with Trumpism are obviously now well beyond any debatable policy differences. Even if mass deportations become magically practical, is caging our fellow human beings like cattle really who we are? Even if Trump does possess a magic consumer-price wand, did we really need to sell the soul of our nation for the promise of a cheaper cheeseburger? Apparently so.
This post may thus be my last. At the risk of sounding maudlin, I started this blog out of love for my country and for the complex, messy, infuriating, extraordinary, incredible process that is American democracy. I have little desire to document its fall to a petty tyrant.
I continue to believe in reasonable, nuanced political discourse as I suggested in my very first post, but I no longer see a place for it in our new reality.
I continue to believe that the majority of individual Americans – including many of those who voted for Trump – are good people. I continue to be at a loss to understand how any of them thought that vote might be a good idea. While I suspect that many will come to regret their decision, I will derive no satisfaction from that regret.
I continue to believe in the American ideal. I am heartened that there are those who will continue to fight for the fragile construct of a free and inclusive American society that rejects the politics of fear and that proudly projects the voices of our better angels to the world. They have my admiration, my support, and my prayers that they will have more success than I.
For now, though, I’ll be the old guy at the bar who’s drinking a good bourbon while trying very hard not to read, watch, or listen to the news.
Thank you to my readers for putting up with my ramblings.