I was pretty ambivalent about writing this, my planned "last" post for the blog. Still too many smoldering embers, ready to ignite again. In that mindset I was initially leery of pouring salt on what is still for some a fresh wound. So I figured I wouldn't write a post at all. But then, I remembered why I started the blog in the first place; as a space where I could entertain (hopefully) a more select (dare I say nuanced) audience than I would get if I just threw generic literary grenades on Facebook. So in summary, hell yes, I'm going to blog. Besides, this really is my planned last post. Folks who've been along for the ride, thanks! But, in the true spirit of full disclosure, for my (mostly) left-leaning Democrat friends, you may choose to stop reading now. You've been warned.
Well, Donald Trump won. IMO, you're either surprised or you're a liar, because even HE didn't think he was going to win. As Colin Powell once famously said, in reference to Iraq and the American invasion, "if you break that thing you've bought it". How very true, America.
This was an election between two historically flawed candidates. The only difference being, one had a message, and the other one lost. It was really that simple. Despite how they want to parse the details, "Make American Great Again" was a much stronger tagline than "I'm With Her". It still is.
I think only time will tell how successful Mr. Trump will be once he takes office, but after all the crazy of the campaign I'm not going to be the one who bets against him. But as I've adopted as a generic consolation line for my liberal friends, "look, the upside is that Trump was easily the most moderate Republican in the field". Think about it, would you rather have had President Cruz?
But in the aftermath I continue to be more intrigued by what happens with the Democrats, as I'm confident the GOP can self-destruct without my assistance. What happened in November was that the party of Clinton, powered by Wall Street, Hollywood, and liberal elites, failed to appreciate just how much their standard bearer was despised by a largely hidden swath of America, so much so that they were willing to roll the dice on a modern day version of Archie Bunker. IMO that accounts for the wild inaccuracy of the pre-election polling. The disgruntled were simply not part of the traditional voting electorate prior to now.
But losing is one thing. Not learning from it is simply galling. The Clinton campaign playing the blame game is entirely a human response; no one wants to stand up and admit they sucked. It's easier to blame James Comey, the media, the alt-right. It's harder to say, "we ran a poor campaign", but look at it from this perspective, "YOU LOST TO DONALD J. TRUMP!". If any line deserves all caps, it this one. Not using the election loss as an opportunity to learn and get stronger would simply be a shame.
I'd be a lot less disappointed by the outcome if I think it'll ultimately result in a new and revitalized Democratic Party, but the re-election of Nancy Pelosi as House Minority Leader doesn't say "new" like a Tesla. More like Yzma from Disney's "The Emperor's New Groove", minus the charm. Really folks, what the hell are you thinking? Her great fundraising ability? Where did that get you?“Trying to please everybody is impossible - if you did that, you'd end up in the middle with nobody liking you. You've just got to make the decision about what you think is your best, and do it.” - John Lennon
Gee, and I only thought he wrote great songs. Beyond the Party clinging to the leaders of the past, my greater concern is the inability (or unwillingness) of the Democrats to adopt an clear and singular identity, instead choosing to try an be "all things to all people", which seems to not have been successful the last hundred times they tried it. And while I probably agree more with "traditional" Democrat policy positions than those of the GOP, what I view as an utter lack of conviction on the part of the Clinton Democratic party has long kept me rather loosely affiliated as a Republican-leaning independent, at least until Bernie came along. Then I was a Bernie-leaning Independent. Now my recipe for a new-Democratic Party isn't for it to become the "party of Bernie", but hell, at least try and be something more than "Chamber of Commerce, GOP-lite". Puleeze. But unfortunately, what I'm hear from the Democratic leadership post-Trumpageddon is a doubling-down on the same stupid identity politics that got them shellacked in the first place. This crap about listening to "their" constituencies and trying to create some sort of consensus policy platform is the same playbook that has now resulted in soon-to-be 0-for-3 in branches of the Federal government. What would I do? Hah, sorry you asked.Care about working class Americans? Well, lets start with reforming unions, the historic backbone of the Democratic Party. Either reform or let folks like Scott Walker do it for you. And if you don't think it's necessary, please look at the election results, as painful as rewinding that may be. Donald Trump WON Michigan. WON Pennsylvania. Won Wisconsin. Won blue collar workers everywhere. Why, because all those blue collar workers are racists? If you believe that I'm surprised you've been reading this blog at all, what, with your head buried up your... let's just say in the sand. No, Democrats in general, and Hillary in particular this election, didn't speak to working- and middle-class Americans. Now this as an observation, not presented as some sort of fact. Actually, akin to the idea of the "first woman President", I think the decline of union participation is in many cases an perverse byproduct of success, not an intrinsic flaw. Union achievements in promoting worker rights and protections are historically important, but I think many take those gains for granted. Today society is ever more focused on the "here and now" versus the hard fought battles that got Americans the rights and privileges they enjoy today. Same goes with women's rights. The idea of a woman President is, thankfully, something that many/most Americans simply take for granted, thus Hillary running on gender identity as some sort of birthright didn't appeal to voters, particularly young women, who would rather shatter their own glass ceiling rather than that of a multimillionaire septuagenarian.
So Dems, stand up for workers (not their union bosses). Stand up for immigrants (and not just so they can vote for you). Stand up for non-descrimination (because it's right, not because it's poll-tested). But anti-business? Where will that get you? Demonizing Trump voters? Some of them are (or used to be) Democrats. Don't be the party of hate, let the GOP own it. So how to put that into practice, in a new year with the GOP essentially controlling all branches of government? Here's what I'd suggest. Give the GOP the rope, if they choose to make a noose out of it, let 'em. Don't be the party of obstruction, it will only cast Democrats as the villain to "progress". Agree and cooperate where there are gains to be made, in jobs, in the economy, in peace. Disagree EARLY when policies are divergent to Democratic ideals, not only after they go bad. State objections clearly and concisely, but don't sweat over the messy details of governance; the GOP owns that now. The clearest best upcoming example is healthcare, soon to be formerly known as Obamacare. Can the GOP, with an orthopedic surgeon/politician at the helm of HHS, do better? Let's see, but in the meantime I'll be putting some new money into medical device stocks (wink emoji). Call me back with the cost curve in three years, we'll have a drink. You'll pay. Actually, we'll all pay.
Folks, I'm closing the blog on a upbeat note. Fans of American politics have, in the last 16 years, lived through the pendulum swinging from talk of a "permanent Democratic/Republican majority" in Congress, because if there's anything close to a truism in politics, it's the irresistibility of overreach on the part of the party in power. And that invariably leads to, you guessed it, a transfer of power back to the minority party. It may take eight years, but Democrats, please don't sit on the status-quo, waiting for 2020. Start rebuilding today. And thanks for reading!
