Full disclosure. In a statement intended to surprise no one, I'm a political junkie. And have been for quite a while. Long enough to watch the pendulum swing both ways. Long enough to know this isn't the end of the Republic. So was last night a surprise? Duh, yeah, but honestly, not on the same scale as the Cubs winning the World Series (#GoCubsGo). But very much not outside the realm of probability (Nate Silver, of fivethirtyeight.com fame, wins again). Analysis can wait for a subsequent post, mostly because there's too much smoke in the air, and the wounds are still too fresh. This post has a different intent. While not a identified Democrat, or for that matter an identified liberal, today's post is addressed to those who are disheartened at the outcome of last night's election. Believe me (sorry, had to throw that in there), there are silver linings. Here are a few.
1. This was NOT a repudiation of the ideals of the Democratic Party. The Dems have long been viewed as the standard bearers of the American working class, until recently personified by union workers, teachers, public servants, police and fire, manufacturing. College educated or not. There's at least half the population that thinks that there are significant headwinds facing working class Americans, and one of the many takeaways from last night is that the desperation is real. Real enough for people to roll the dice on something, anything that might offer a chance. The Democratic Party has, in my lifetime, has always been closer to the hearts of the public, if not necessarily the wallets. But having a compassionate heart can be challenging when hope, in the form of economic stability and opportunity, is waning or lost. Americans have ALWAYS been, as a people, off-the-scale charitable, compared to other countries. I don't think that's gone anywhere.
2. The late Mario Cuomo said it best. "You campaign in rhetoric, you govern in prose". I very strongly suspect that any references to walls, repealing Obamacare, and indictments, will be coming only from members of the losing party and the paid talking media heads, and they're entitled to protest with vigor. But IMO most Americans, of both parties, won't be listening. The campaign is OVER, now the process shifts to expectations and actions. And I suspect that the incoming government will be quickly looking at how they can get some quick wins, but no one said winning was easy. Now get to work. We're watching. An acquaintance said some year's ago, "the losing party earns the right to bitch". True.
3. It's still a divided government, and it's a good thing. Despite claims to the contrary, this was absolutely NOT a victory for the "right". Yeah, Mike Pence is the VP-elect. When someone can give me a list of accomplishments credited to a VP in the last 40 years I'll reconsider. And yes, I'll grant you Al Gore invented the internet. But a new right wing victory? Nah, if that were the case we'd be talking President-elect Cruz (ugh.). Let's call it what it is, a center-right President-elect. Pro-choice? He was always your guy, so Roe v. Wade isn't going anywhere. Supreme Court? The second amendment won't go the way of 13th floors. Obamacare? Well, no one anywhere didn't think it needed to be fixed, so let the new guy deal with it. But we're not going to turn into a police state in January. Unlike the other potential GOP candidates, this Pres-elect arrives nearly chit-free (well, if you don't include Russia [that's a joke people]). He owes about no one in D.C., and that's liberating in an unheard-of fashion. BUT...unlike the lesson President Obama learned the hard way, there is a "way of getting things done" in Washington, that that way will go through one guy. Paul Ryan. It will be an interesting evolution of a relationship. Could be "Lethal Weapon", could be "The Odd Couple". We'll see. But it absolutely won't be a blank slate for the Tea Party. They'll continue talking to themselves, like they're not taking their meds.
4. The Democratic Party 2.0. I'll be very upfront here, I think the successes of the prior Clinton years have, not unexpectedly, led to a slow, steady, and stealthy shift from the "party of the people" to the "party of the status quo", funded by the interests of those who'd greatly benefitted from the economy of the 80's and 90's. Wall Street, big business, union leaders (NOT rank and file workers). Democrats in power turned into Chamber of Commerce Republicans. But power does that to people, it's human nature. Why be optimistic? Look who's in the on deck circle. My man Bernie. My almost fave Warren. My real fave Tulsi. My other fave and new badass Senator from Illinois, Tammy Duckworth. The bench, IMO, finally has the chance to emerge from a heavy yoke. Sorry, but I'm optimistic. Theo Epstein would be proud of these new Cubs.
My fellow Americans, this isn't like The Empire Strikes Back, when Luke disregards Yoda's pleas to stay and complete his training (Dagobah, it's no Cancun). Hope isn't lost. The purview of this democracy is, now more than ever, the ability to air and debate diverse and often conflicting ideas, with the short term judges the voting public, and the long term judge history.
Closing with yet another over religious reference, a Portuguese proverb. "God writes straight with crooked lines". I hope it applies here too.
A few more posts, then I'll probably shut this down and get on with life. Thanks as always for reading!
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