Please read this πππ gift article πππ by Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times. It summarizes a good strategy for responding to Donald Trump's victory.
1. I accept Donald Trump's victory.
2. I will be a watchdog, not a lap dog.
3. I will back organizations fighting to uphold human values.
4. I will subscribe to a news organization. The news organizations have failed us, but they will watch Trump at least some of the time.
5. I will try to understand why so many Americans disagree with me.
βWe can disagree and still love each other unless your disagreement is rooted in my oppression and denial of my humanity and right to exist.β -Robert Jones Jr., essayist (quote has been mis-attributed to James Baldwin)
I don't think that trying to understand their vote eliminates the possibility of calling it out as hurting others and being a morally bankrupt vote. I'd like to understand why this happened. I think that Trump's behavior was normalized to the point that many voters were able to mentally set it aside and vote based on their vain hopes for lower grocery prices and such. There's plenty of blame to go around for this normalization - traditional media, social media algorithms, foreign disinformation campaigns, cultural institutions such as churches, and so on. I also agree with Bernie Sanders that the Democratic Party has failed to attract the working class, or even pay meaningful attention to their very real problems.
I, too, cannot agree with item 5. I have wasted enough time trying to understand them, and will expend no more effort in that direction. I have three granddaughters, and those who voted for T**** (including my late mother) will get no forgiveness or understanding from me. They have decided wrongly: they are now my sworn enemies, and will remain so.
Do you remember all the hand wringing after 9/11 and all the exclaiming about, βwhy do they hate us?β Even back then 23 years ago, I thought, βwho cares why they hate us?β
I refuse to try to understand people who are either greedy, racist, misogynist and religious bigots who believe that only people exactly like them deserve a voice. Thereβs no room for anyone not like them. And that would be most of us.
There is a big difference between the frustrations of 9/11 and today. The anger of 9/11 was directed at a group that we had no affiliation with and owed no duty to. They attacked us without any apparent provocation. Very similar in many ways to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
But this is dealing with our own citizens. We may completely disagree with their views and positions but we HAVE to acknowledge that they too are citizens of this country and have a right to their opinions no matter how wrong-headed we believe them to be. And in that regard, they WON, something we can't undo. So whereas the 9/11 enemy was from outside, these are our own people and we really have no choice but to at least try to understand. We'll it help? I don't know, I expect it to be very problematical. But if we DON'T try to understand and find common ground, we will be lost forever. And that is not something I e am willing to concede at least not without an effort.
#5? What about them understanding why I disagree with them? The time for understanding is over. The time has come for straight talk: "No. I reject that. It is wrong." You can follow with "tell me why you think that way," or you can preface it with "That's what you think. Here's what I think..." But the time has come for tough love, for showing our own anger, in conversation and demonstration. Band together, sure, but it starts with the bravery to stand up for yourself. And for us.
You ignore the one issue that is critically important. THEY won, not us. WE are in the position (something most Americans aren't used to) of being on the losing side and arrogance and attitude doesn't have much currency for losers. If we take your view, they will very likely just kick us to the curb. And why not? What's in it for them?
We need to help build a new media juggernaut to rival and break through the talk radio and podcast information and propaganda silo that MAGA has built to cocoon their followers from EVER even hearing the Dems message. The mainstream media totally failed our democracy with false equivalencies and normalization.
Brian Taylor Cohen nailed the post-election analysis in the youtube below.
We saw the effect Taylor Swift had on voter registrations with one tweet. We need Swift and Beyonce to start doing political counterprogramming. They have the recognition and access to production resources to get up and running fast. We need the substack crowd to provide the research, guests and content to educate the electorate.
That's a pipe dream. We lost the war. We need to stop acting like we are the only ones who are right and start figuring out how to get along with others. Otherwise it won't matter because our future will be limited.
I'm afraid I already failed #6.....I lost my temper with my son today when he said my thoughts on tRuMp were ridiculous and then laughed at me. I am beyond sad. :(
Winston definitely had a way with the English language, Dale could you please Can someone explain to me how in the 2020 election Biden got almost 81 million votes and Trump 74 million votes, more or less a total of 155 million. In 2024 Trump gets 73 million votes and Harris 68 million votes, more or less. When I went to sleep Monday night, over 78 million had already voted, all day Tuesday there were lines around the block with very eager voters where they were staying open after scheduled closing because so many were still standing in line, and the vote total was around 141 million, 14 million less than in 2020. Then Harris gets 13 million less votes than Biden in 2020, and Trump 1 million less than in 2020. So in an election that was so eagerly anticipated by women and Democrats, how is this possible. Also that the totals of 14 million difference between the two elections comes up twice. It does not make sense to me. Kamala ran a flawless campaign with packed arenas, Trumps they were walking out early. I am not a conspiracy theorist, but we know that Elon Musk is a world class one with the resources to implement with Russian assistance something nefarious. So will someone please explain how this happened? Thank you in advance, Maureen & James.
I think it's pretty obvious what happened (and the polls reflect this).
1. For Trump, very little changed from 2020 to 2024. With a few differences which probably were off setting, he got just about the same vote in 2024 as in 2020.
2. Harris was never really close. There was an initial burst of enthusiasm, but in the end she ran a very flawed "flawless" campaign. It was flawless in one sense... she speaks well, she connects with people, she had a great connection. But it was also highly flawed. She NEVER really came into her own with a program that was c clear and convincing and differentiated herself from Biden (who was severely flawed despite all his great efforts on our behalf). She refused to put distance between herself and Biden on important policies. She clearly lost a big support group of people who supported Gaza. Despite Trump's constant anti- Hispanic rants, she lost a large part of the Hispanic vote which Biden swept overwhelmingly in 2020.
3. There was a huge racist and misogynist factor which worked against her.
Yes she got 67 million votes. But in the end she lost so many votes from Biden's 2020 victory that she never really had a chance.
Clearly Biden's refusal to do what he had promised at outset of 2021 hurt. He should have NEVER run again. He was too old. He was clearly diminished. And most importantly he DIDN'T do what he said he would do which was only serve one term. Had he declined to run for 2024 who knows what might have happened. Maybe Harris would have had the time to build a stronger coalition. Or maybe someone else would have emerged as a better stronger candidate. But Biden boxed everyone in for his own ego gratification and now his term in office will be remembered as "the term between Trump's two terms" not exactly a great legacy.
Iβm wondering how to prepare myself for another exhausting and soul-depleting four years of an even more rabid Trump Administration. And I will never fathom his depth of support across the country after everything he has said and done over the years. I realize how alienating my country has become for me and those I care about.
It is still mind-boggling how millions of Americans voted for a convicted felon. If those voters saw qualities they admired in him, heaven help us all.
I think you name something important. The opposite of alienation is inclusion. And if the Dems want to guide the tone of the nation, they need to do more on a grassroots level to help you feel included, invited. Ongoingly, not just at election time
Yes, this has to be a core premise. I vacillate on Mr. Walz, but he really is a blue collar guy and he was barely visible. Kamala came from working class but she got crushed on the "economy" and the border. People who know that Trump is a convicted felon still believe that he can and will help them with prices, which are coming down. As are interest rates. Biden/Harris will get no credit, but the economy may very well take off and soar. As it did when he inherited the Obama economy.
Unless he spends inordinate time and money trying to evict Brown people, and prices climb because of labor shortages in harvesting crops, cooking meals, serving them, etc. etc. Watch the movie, "A Day Without a Mexican"
The tone that they voted for was racist and misogynist. That is not the inclusion I aspire to. Their cover was the economy, the truth was pure prejuidice.
Thank you for making this point. Democrats have a history of acting like they want all of us to be involved but really wanting to be the nationβs mommy and daddy. People like Nancy Pelosi donβt take kindly to young upstarts like AOC having new ideas. This is the exact opposite of what a true community does. A true community is open to new ideas! In fact, America won World War II because a pioneer in the art and science of organizational development used community based learning as a method for how all of the weapons we needed to win the war were manufactured. That personβs name is W. Edwards Deming. I invite everyone to research his work to learn how the Democrats could re-organize as a true community based political party.
Simple- they were told repeatedly, and believed, these were corrupt and politically motivated hit jobs, aka βLawfareβ.
You are the same in that you also believe what you hear repeatedly and consistently throughout all of your media. At this level you are no different and if you canβt comprehend this, youβre not equipped to solve the American problem of being divided against itself.
There is no mystery how America is divided nearly 50-50 against itself: Half has been told βAβ,
half told βnot-Aβ.
Some mystery in how much of this equal division can be attributed to:
1) active-balancing of news by commercial media interests who want maximal conflict so as to sell maximal ads, vs
2) foreign interests who benefit most from a nearly equally divided country, with tfg slightly ahead, vs
Think about this for a second. Did you ever see the movie about Rubin "Hurricane" Carter? Remember the people who rushed to support him and the efforts to overturn his conviction? That's why millions of people voted for a convicted felon. I understand you (and i) don't agree with this but they see Trump as their "Hurricane". And that's precisely why millions of people voted for him. They think he is the aggrieved one, and even though I believe they are nuts to feel that way and that he really IS a felon and should be locked up, they think he is wrongfully accused. And that's why they support him and vote for him.
It is important that we understand, in detail and depth so we can know how to defeat it. I was born in 1948 and i've seen worse. My parents were born in 1918, and they saw much much worse. My grandparents were born in the 1890s. Their parents were born in the Civil War. It's a long hard fight. Take care of yourself. Take breaks, but don't give up. Never give up.
Itβs only been 2 days and I canβt count how many times Iβve already read βGet your passport ready/renewed!!β Thatβs not a possibility for many of us. It takes money to move to another city let alone another country. You canβt just pull up stakes and go either. You have to be able to offer your new country a reason to allow you to stay. Do you have a job that will benefit them? Are you rich and able to benefit their economy through your purchases and investments?
Iβm a disabled veteran. I live on my disability comp & take part-time jobs when Iβm able to in-between the surgeries Iβve needed to repair the damage caused by my service. Iβm stuck here. I already have to fight tooth & nail to get the healthcare I earned and itβs going to get so much worse. I already know trump will gut veteranβs compensation & healthcare services. I already know I will then lose my home & end up in one of the camps miller & trump promise to use for all βthe lazy, useless homelessβ. My passport isnβt going to help me one bit.
People need advice rooted in reality, not pie in the sky bullshit that only the rich can afford.
Plus, not everyone will want to leave. Does patriotism matter? What about choosing to stay and fight for all those the trump cult deems expendable? Iβm already feeling stress, worry and frustration and I know it pales beyond measure next to what those in the groups trump & his cult have targeted are feeling right now. If everyone leaves who will fight for those who canβt?
If moving to Canada or elsewhere is an option & you want to & can go, then go. I wish you good luck with that.
The problem is the winning side is NOT going to make eggs and had any cheaper. The election was bought by big corporations and billionaires who have price gouged consumers because they could. The previous administration mishandled the pandemic so badly that over a million died needlessly. The economy was in a huge downturn while Trump was talking about taking bleach to cure Covid.
My state has lots of immigrants, legal and otherwise, who form the backbone of our economy in agriculture, construction, meat production, as well as high tech jobs in the Research Triangle Park. If most or all of those people are not at those jobs, our economy will nosedive. Housing and food prices wonβt be any cheaper for sure. Native born Americans will absolutely not take those jobs. (Do you aspire to work in a chicken processing plant?) I think people will be unpleasantly surprised by what chaos the winner of this election and his minions will cause. I have no sympathy for people who voted for the winner of this election if the chaos rains down on them. They chose it.
I agree. I cannot fathom that people canβt remember the trauma of his first four years. How could they be so cavalier with other peopleβs lives to vote for him again?! Itβs unbelievable that so many crave authoritarianism.
Those who voted cheaper gas and eggs don't realize the cost of everything is about to skyrocket. May they rot in hell. May those men have ED. May those men and women have STDs/STIs.
I am a CPA on Bainbridge Island. I have Mexican and Guatemalan gardeners. They told me they were for Trump. I asked them why. They said they listen to Hispanic radio all day long and it was telling them frightening stories that made them want to go for Trump, mostly of a gay or transsexual nature, which offended their masculinity. This talk radio was sold to a friend of Jared Kushner about a year ago, when the format changed to MAGA. The irony is Trump would easily put my guys into a deportation camp in a blink. The talk radio played upon their homophobia and castration anxiety. All over the USA these Hispanic blue collar laborers listen to this station
Trump is the great imposter. He is a criminal mind, grifter, and gangster. He is going to steal billions. Furthermore, he is a Russian agent. He will go back to selling State secrets and revealing undercover agents overseas who will be arrested and thrown out of windows. He was shake down industries with threats of tariffs. The list is endless. He has a complete carte Blanche now. Iceberg dead ahead.
I am afraid that you are correct Michael C. Berry. We each need to prepare ourselves and any family and friends who will listen, for some horrible times ahead. I fear for those who will be singled out for deportation, work camps, and any other demeaning situations the upcoming regime demand. It could be a difficult lesson to learn for many people.
Thank you for your posts and for telling it exactly as it is. We are in for a horrible time.
I feel for those who were taken in by the propaganda and werenβt able to understand that thatβs what it was. Iβm not referring to or insulting their intelligence at all. Itβs a very specific step in propaganda to play on a groupβs biggest fears, especially those rooted in cultural beliefs. We are all susceptible. I can only imagine how utterly betrayed theyβll feel when they realize they were played and are now the target.
Similarly, I have two personal care assistants, both of who said they would vote for Trump because he will deport the immigrants who want their jobs. ??? One is Black, and the other is white; both are Americans, not immigrants. Where do they get this stuff? It will take us decades to ferret out all the misinformation and disinformation that made this election happen.
Honestly, how do these immigrants find the time? Between living like royalty on government assistance (because they are too lazy to work), simultaneously stealing all the good "AmAmerican" jobs, PLUS taking over cities and committing crimes, they must be exhausted.
I had an assistant in 'August when my foot was in a non-driving boot. She had come to America with her parents from Mexico when she was 8 years old; she's now 50. They are all citizens now but she said her father and most men in her extended family (his cousins all came and are all citizens, too) are all trumpers because they "came the legal way" and don't want to allow people who don't come "the legal way" into the US and trump would stop the illegals from coming. sigh.
Sadly those men will soon be reminded that racism doesn't care about your actual status just like Asian Americans suffered when the cheeto blamed China for COVID.
Trump cut legal immigration quotas drastically, allowing the fewest number of legal immigrants in many years. That compounded the problem of so many desperate people coming across the border illegally. They had no other option.
There is one specific talk radio station they all listen to while they are working. It was sold two years ago to a friend of Jared Kushner who changed its format to MAGA. This radio station is played by all these workers all over the USA.
Propaganda wins every time and they know how certain people will react to those kinds of perceived threats. There will be so many people hurt by trump and his haters; that is the what is so horrible about his election.
Especially so, SPW, because it was all a very deliberate, very specific propaganda fueled by hate, bigotry, racism & misogyny.
Those who voted for trump did so (generally speaking) for the benefits they personally will see (tax cuts), those who agree with all that hate and those who were targeted by very specific propaganda.
Almost all undocumented workers pay into Social Security, Medicare, Unemployment, Labor and Industries on phony Social Security Numbers. This helps to support Social Security but they will never receive benefits.
I am wondering if it will be like Florida where a huge portion of the immigrant population left when they enacted a law about employers having to verify the legal status of their workers. Will there be a mass exodus across the nation?? I work in a big box store and am wondering if a lot of the people I see regularly will leave. Business is already tough.
I too have been wondering if all the scary rhetoric is intended to frighten undocumented people into leaving the country or even legal workers like the Haitians in Ohio. On the other hand, they really canΚ»t go back if their home country deadly dangerous to them.
That's interesting. I think I have relatives on Bainbridge Island. And we heard that Trump spent the last four years building a highly effective network to win this election, but that is really deviously smart stuff. What is the radio station? Are their programs broadcast nationwide? Or did they buy stations across the country? Please tell us more. We have to watch for similarly underhanded tactics beginning now.
I made the mistake of checking my phone at 4 or 5 AM and read the horrid news. The rest of my sleep sucked to say the least. I guess I'm lucky to have had the day off. I had Bourbon on hand and I'm not sure that helped but there's that. I'm offered solace from Kamala's words that we're basically not done and the good work will continue. Some words from Lawrence O'Donnell made some sense too when he quoted Frederick Douglass: "If there is no struggle, there can be no progress." Douglas was in his thirties when he said this and an escaped slave.
I donβt know the specifics about your situation.
Might I offer: grieve. Give yourself time to mourn. I wouldnβt recommend too much time but you know what is best for you.
Then, when you are ready, find like-minded people, your community, who are willing to do the work to get us through this, to the other side. There is strength in numbers.
Kelly, did deep dear. There are hundreds of examples of others in the past that came thru worse (WWII underground, for instance). Stand strong. He's just a loud carnival barker and an old man with goofy hair. Keep calm and carry on.
I just worked so hard. I door knocked in a swing state. I donated time, money, talked to people. I couldnβt have done more, but I feel like I didnβt do anything. I justβ¦ canβt.
I am a hospice chaplain. One of my patients was a Jewish woman who survived the Nazi occupation. Her parents and sister and brother all died in camps or on the way. She herself had a traumatic story of survival escaping from a train headed to a camp and his in an abandoned town with a couple of other girls at the hands of Russian doctors and soldiers. She was a young teen. She eventually made it to America. She managed to thrive. Her motivation to keep living at all costs, to keep fighting and thriving was that she KNEW the Naziβs wanted her dead as they wanted all Jews dead and she wasnt going to let them have the satisfaction. So she did everything to survive, she wasnβt going to die or be extinguished. Draw strength from others like her. From the generations of people descended from African slaves whom at every turn have had have people trying to silence them.
I think you, you all, did an amazing job of investing yourselves right into the campaign, donating time energy and hard earned money. I think I understand how gutted you feel, (because it would be selfish to assume I know). I personally cannot understand how 'they' pulled the rug out from under a very well disciplined campaign with a very well disciplined person in Ms Harris. I think it is because a lop-sided battle has been fought, but the democrats went in playing by the rules. You would HAVE to know that anything trump related is tied to a scam, I imagine the democrat think-tank assumed they had all maga's options and contingencies covered, but no, even reading messages above regarding Hispanic radio stations broadcasting and amplifying maga/trump's false scare tactic messaging in 'their' native tongue. What else then that 'we' wouldn't consider fair play did this machine get up to? Who made the bomb threats in sensitive swing state voting areas?
Really, with Musk, the mainstream media, other nations with their interests, all assisting one team. YOU, WE didn't have a snowball's chance of winning this. It's a long walk back from this depressing outcome for sure, but you're young and strong, and the country is going to need the strength and commitment you have despite it being deflated to crap right now. Every person you 'touched' will remember, and that will catalyse in the future when trump/maga get into their stride and get cocky with it. You and the others like you have been the vanguard for this long fight β¦ and it wasn't time wasted at all.
Hang in there Kelly. I am with you. I, too, was in total despair yesterday when I heard the news that he had won. I did the same things you did short of the door-knocking as I am disabled and live in Indiana and am caregiver to my 84 year old Mother who Voted for him no less. (Ugh). I do not want to live in Trump's America either but after a long conversation with my oldest daughter who thank God is a Psychologist, she told me it would kill her and her Sister if I decided to "check out" early. So somehow I will carry on. Somehow we will find a way to navigate this dark road ahead of us. #RiseResistRepeat #LoveWillKeepUsAlive. This song and this Band (The Eagles) have helped me get through this Election about more than anything. Stay strong Sister. β€οΈπΊπΈπ
You did everything you could. It wasnβt useless. Take good care of yourself now. Try to focus on what is right in front of you - the big picture is too much at this moment. Do what brings you support and comfort. Rest. Eat good food. When you can you will be able to start anew.
At 83, it is very tough to look @ what is ahead for my remaining years. For a good 8 years it has been a struggle know democracy was on the table , not the price of eggs or bacon. The previous struggle for women's rights to have a credit card & financial security & basic respect. I am too angry & grieving & all out of optimism
I refuse to let him take anymore oxygen in my life. I refuse to worry about things I have no control over(his win) but I will do everything I can to protect the vulnerable.
One last comment if people are complaining about cost of food now wait till he does his promised mass deportations. Who do they think is going to pick the crops?
His tech bro buddies likely have robot crop pickers and other things like this on the drawing board (old fashioned imagery! ). Anything to avoid hiring a human being. I was watching a gardener at a condo recently using a leaf blower. A robot could do that, but then the man would lose his job and likely heΚ»s not skilled at this point to do more than he is doing. There are a lot of jobs that could be automated but then the workers lose their jobs and canΚ»t be retrained for anything meaningful. Heck, from what IΚ»ve seen already in the workplace AI will eliminate the need for a lot of people whose jobs involve writing. All these people worried about high prices are going to have a lot more to worry about when their jobs disappear. Even professionals are going to be impacted.
Yeah - remember during the pandemic most of them went back home and crops were rotting in the fields? Leading to high prices for low quality goods but it was the only game in town.
There will be a few arrests of gang members, who will be deported and some raids on neighborhoods. Then the chaos that surrounds him will create other crises and attention -media attention-will be averted.
I have no idea what to do now. I teach a middle school classes with predominantly students of color. Will they be rounded up and deported in January? Will it become open season for school shootings in schools with majority non-whites? Iβm scared.
Des, I do not have any simple solutions but, 1 Bay Area School District is educating about the attempted deportation of students on "Day 1".
As reported by HCR on LFAA tonight. Trump's Campaign Press Secretary KARALINE LEAVITT said that Trump would launch the largest deportation operation of 'illegal' immigrants. Get ready for attempted splitting of families again this time in 2025.
BTW, "Day 1" is about 75 calendar days away but, I cautioned a concerned parent to prepare for intense mis & dis information during the so-called "Transition" period until the 47th inaugural January 21, 2025 when the Dictator appears on "Day 1".
I have been following Marc Elias/ Democracy Docket litigation since 2022. Since, 1/1/2023 Demo racy Docket has filed 327 lawsuits with 234 judicial victories won & still counting. As previously posted, I became a yearly PAID Subscriber to Marc's Team in the Pre-election period during which Dem Docket added to their legal victories.
I will honor the Vice Presidents words & "keep fighting" in the courts.
I liked what Sunny Hostin said on The View, that this election was "a referendum on cultural resentment". A large percentage of white American voters, faced with losing their majority, chose to blow up our country. So selfish and wrong. Putin, through his Trump/Vance puppets, is going to dismantle America and steal everything he can steal, including US military strength. American children will lose freedom and democracy. Shame on Americans who chose an unqualified obvious Putin puppet over a well-qualified candidate with excellent character.
I remember the Womanβs March in 2017. I was there with my daughter and her friends. It was a day where there was a sense of being part a huge statement. The mood was upbeat. Today I am not so sure. My daughter is devastated . My granddaughter is afraid her mother will be deported - she is English and also a US citizen. I had to assure my granddaughter that it will be ok and that she will be safe. It has been a tough day but I will get up every morning , put one foot in front of another and keep moving forward. At 82 I am determined to live long enough to vote again for Kamala Harris. Self care everyone, it will be a long haul but we will get there.
I sincerely believe that Trump will not last the 4 years. We have to consider what to do about Vance. He is not the charismatic character that Trump is(was). Will he have the same following? He is more intelligent but not street smart
I think vance will kick trump to the curb within six months. His VP will be Mike Johnson (who fervently believes in an End Times religion) or someone else equally dangerous.
It will be all the silent backers that wrote Project 2025. It will be the Elly Musks , Steve Bannons, Steve Millers with their foot in the door & butts in the cabinet. I trump will be off playing golf.
What is maddening is the fact that agent orange will now get away with all the crimes he committed (and for which he was indicted or convicted). Our legal system failed one of its biggest tests ever. I have a very hard time with this realization.
He has figuratively shot everyone without penalty. Having just read about the Dodds experience as ambassador to Germany in 1933 , this sounds similar & people's reactions are similar. Project 2025 full steam ahead! It will take more than elections, if we have any, or we will have rigged ones like in Hungary, to take anything back & that will take several life times.
I appreciate your comments. But we have to deal with this fact: Trumpβs crimes, flaws, and plans for a second term were well known, and a majority of our fellow citizens embraced them. Trump is the leader they desire. Trumpβs vision of America is their vision. I grew up in 1950s Birmingham. I really thought things were on the upswing, that as Dr. King reminded us, the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice. Does it? I canβt say I believe that anymore.
I don't share any of your optimism. The majority of white women voted for Trump. And what I realized is this is what the majority wanted - Trump. They weren't going to vote for a Black woman. They wanted this foul, deranged convicted felon rapist. The nastier he is, the more they love him. He will never leave. He has promised to deport millions and destroy his enemies. Think Hitler 2.0. Today a large pickup blew past us with a large Trump flag. It has begun, and it's going to be bad.
The depth and breadth of systemic racism and misogyny in this country is clearly much greater than most of us can comprehend.
We can kid ourselves there are other reasons Kamala lost, but sadly that is the reason and it is a very tough competitor. The work of the resistance begins again soonβ¦.
"If you're going through hell, keep going." --- Winston Churchill
Please read this πππ gift article πππ by Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times. It summarizes a good strategy for responding to Donald Trump's victory.
1. I accept Donald Trump's victory.
2. I will be a watchdog, not a lap dog.
3. I will back organizations fighting to uphold human values.
4. I will subscribe to a news organization. The news organizations have failed us, but they will watch Trump at least some of the time.
5. I will try to understand why so many Americans disagree with me.
6. I will keep my cool.
7. I will care for my mental health.
8... 9... 10... 11... 12... 13... 14...
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/06/opinion/trump-democrats-loss.html?unlocked_article_code=1.X04.FR2X.59IizgT4xYIr&smid=url-share
Can't agree with number 5. It's because they live in fantasy land or are racists/mysoginists.
Agree with you, Don.
βWe can disagree and still love each other unless your disagreement is rooted in my oppression and denial of my humanity and right to exist.β -Robert Jones Jr., essayist (quote has been mis-attributed to James Baldwin)
They are imbeciles in my estimation. I am comforted knowing they will suffer under trumpβs actions like the 67 million who voted for Kamala!
I don't think that trying to understand their vote eliminates the possibility of calling it out as hurting others and being a morally bankrupt vote. I'd like to understand why this happened. I think that Trump's behavior was normalized to the point that many voters were able to mentally set it aside and vote based on their vain hopes for lower grocery prices and such. There's plenty of blame to go around for this normalization - traditional media, social media algorithms, foreign disinformation campaigns, cultural institutions such as churches, and so on. I also agree with Bernie Sanders that the Democratic Party has failed to attract the working class, or even pay meaningful attention to their very real problems.
I, too, cannot agree with item 5. I have wasted enough time trying to understand them, and will expend no more effort in that direction. I have three granddaughters, and those who voted for T**** (including my late mother) will get no forgiveness or understanding from me. They have decided wrongly: they are now my sworn enemies, and will remain so.
Do you remember all the hand wringing after 9/11 and all the exclaiming about, βwhy do they hate us?β Even back then 23 years ago, I thought, βwho cares why they hate us?β
I refuse to try to understand people who are either greedy, racist, misogynist and religious bigots who believe that only people exactly like them deserve a voice. Thereβs no room for anyone not like them. And that would be most of us.
There is a big difference between the frustrations of 9/11 and today. The anger of 9/11 was directed at a group that we had no affiliation with and owed no duty to. They attacked us without any apparent provocation. Very similar in many ways to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
But this is dealing with our own citizens. We may completely disagree with their views and positions but we HAVE to acknowledge that they too are citizens of this country and have a right to their opinions no matter how wrong-headed we believe them to be. And in that regard, they WON, something we can't undo. So whereas the 9/11 enemy was from outside, these are our own people and we really have no choice but to at least try to understand. We'll it help? I don't know, I expect it to be very problematical. But if we DON'T try to understand and find common ground, we will be lost forever. And that is not something I e am willing to concede at least not without an effort.
We need to understand and that will help us be stronger and build back better. So #5 is important.
#5? What about them understanding why I disagree with them? The time for understanding is over. The time has come for straight talk: "No. I reject that. It is wrong." You can follow with "tell me why you think that way," or you can preface it with "That's what you think. Here's what I think..." But the time has come for tough love, for showing our own anger, in conversation and demonstration. Band together, sure, but it starts with the bravery to stand up for yourself. And for us.
Temporary satisfaction, ultimate failure for America, to not try to understand why βeveryone is out of step except my Johnnyβ.
You ignore the one issue that is critically important. THEY won, not us. WE are in the position (something most Americans aren't used to) of being on the losing side and arrogance and attitude doesn't have much currency for losers. If we take your view, they will very likely just kick us to the curb. And why not? What's in it for them?
We need to help build a new media juggernaut to rival and break through the talk radio and podcast information and propaganda silo that MAGA has built to cocoon their followers from EVER even hearing the Dems message. The mainstream media totally failed our democracy with false equivalencies and normalization.
Brian Taylor Cohen nailed the post-election analysis in the youtube below.
We saw the effect Taylor Swift had on voter registrations with one tweet. We need Swift and Beyonce to start doing political counterprogramming. They have the recognition and access to production resources to get up and running fast. We need the substack crowd to provide the research, guests and content to educate the electorate.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XGlZcV26-8&t=2s
That's a pipe dream. We lost the war. We need to stop acting like we are the only ones who are right and start figuring out how to get along with others. Otherwise it won't matter because our future will be limited.
I'm afraid I already failed #6.....I lost my temper with my son today when he said my thoughts on tRuMp were ridiculous and then laughed at me. I am beyond sad. :(
Thank you Kathleen. That was a very inspiring article.
Thank you for the unlocked article, Kathleen.
Winston definitely had a way with the English language, Dale could you please Can someone explain to me how in the 2020 election Biden got almost 81 million votes and Trump 74 million votes, more or less a total of 155 million. In 2024 Trump gets 73 million votes and Harris 68 million votes, more or less. When I went to sleep Monday night, over 78 million had already voted, all day Tuesday there were lines around the block with very eager voters where they were staying open after scheduled closing because so many were still standing in line, and the vote total was around 141 million, 14 million less than in 2020. Then Harris gets 13 million less votes than Biden in 2020, and Trump 1 million less than in 2020. So in an election that was so eagerly anticipated by women and Democrats, how is this possible. Also that the totals of 14 million difference between the two elections comes up twice. It does not make sense to me. Kamala ran a flawless campaign with packed arenas, Trumps they were walking out early. I am not a conspiracy theorist, but we know that Elon Musk is a world class one with the resources to implement with Russian assistance something nefarious. So will someone please explain how this happened? Thank you in advance, Maureen & James.
I think it's pretty obvious what happened (and the polls reflect this).
1. For Trump, very little changed from 2020 to 2024. With a few differences which probably were off setting, he got just about the same vote in 2024 as in 2020.
2. Harris was never really close. There was an initial burst of enthusiasm, but in the end she ran a very flawed "flawless" campaign. It was flawless in one sense... she speaks well, she connects with people, she had a great connection. But it was also highly flawed. She NEVER really came into her own with a program that was c clear and convincing and differentiated herself from Biden (who was severely flawed despite all his great efforts on our behalf). She refused to put distance between herself and Biden on important policies. She clearly lost a big support group of people who supported Gaza. Despite Trump's constant anti- Hispanic rants, she lost a large part of the Hispanic vote which Biden swept overwhelmingly in 2020.
3. There was a huge racist and misogynist factor which worked against her.
Yes she got 67 million votes. But in the end she lost so many votes from Biden's 2020 victory that she never really had a chance.
Clearly Biden's refusal to do what he had promised at outset of 2021 hurt. He should have NEVER run again. He was too old. He was clearly diminished. And most importantly he DIDN'T do what he said he would do which was only serve one term. Had he declined to run for 2024 who knows what might have happened. Maybe Harris would have had the time to build a stronger coalition. Or maybe someone else would have emerged as a better stronger candidate. But Biden boxed everyone in for his own ego gratification and now his term in office will be remembered as "the term between Trump's two terms" not exactly a great legacy.
Truly sad indeed.
Iβm wondering how to prepare myself for another exhausting and soul-depleting four years of an even more rabid Trump Administration. And I will never fathom his depth of support across the country after everything he has said and done over the years. I realize how alienating my country has become for me and those I care about.
It is still mind-boggling how millions of Americans voted for a convicted felon. If those voters saw qualities they admired in him, heaven help us all.
I think you name something important. The opposite of alienation is inclusion. And if the Dems want to guide the tone of the nation, they need to do more on a grassroots level to help you feel included, invited. Ongoingly, not just at election time
Yes, this has to be a core premise. I vacillate on Mr. Walz, but he really is a blue collar guy and he was barely visible. Kamala came from working class but she got crushed on the "economy" and the border. People who know that Trump is a convicted felon still believe that he can and will help them with prices, which are coming down. As are interest rates. Biden/Harris will get no credit, but the economy may very well take off and soar. As it did when he inherited the Obama economy.
Unless he spends inordinate time and money trying to evict Brown people, and prices climb because of labor shortages in harvesting crops, cooking meals, serving them, etc. etc. Watch the movie, "A Day Without a Mexican"
Suggestions? I don't see the Republicans doing that, so I'm curious and would love to hear your ideas.
The tone that they voted for was racist and misogynist. That is not the inclusion I aspire to. Their cover was the economy, the truth was pure prejuidice.
So much this, Ellie! I am sick to death of the double standard!! Dems need to do x,y,z, make nice, blah, blah, blah.
While I never hear anyone saying that to or about Republicans. WTF?!
Tina - Rachel Maddow posted earlier: https://youtu.be/NCna8cLHgMI?si=sQmAxcC9Gf5jVaj2
To Tina -
Rachel Maddow today offered a path forward that will include all of us:
https://youtu.be/NCna8cLHgMI?si=sQmAxcC9Gf5jVaj2
Thank you for making this point. Democrats have a history of acting like they want all of us to be involved but really wanting to be the nationβs mommy and daddy. People like Nancy Pelosi donβt take kindly to young upstarts like AOC having new ideas. This is the exact opposite of what a true community does. A true community is open to new ideas! In fact, America won World War II because a pioneer in the art and science of organizational development used community based learning as a method for how all of the weapons we needed to win the war were manufactured. That personβs name is W. Edwards Deming. I invite everyone to research his work to learn how the Democrats could re-organize as a true community based political party.
Simple- they were told repeatedly, and believed, these were corrupt and politically motivated hit jobs, aka βLawfareβ.
You are the same in that you also believe what you hear repeatedly and consistently throughout all of your media. At this level you are no different and if you canβt comprehend this, youβre not equipped to solve the American problem of being divided against itself.
There is no mystery how America is divided nearly 50-50 against itself: Half has been told βAβ,
half told βnot-Aβ.
Some mystery in how much of this equal division can be attributed to:
1) active-balancing of news by commercial media interests who want maximal conflict so as to sell maximal ads, vs
2) foreign interests who benefit most from a nearly equally divided country, with tfg slightly ahead, vs
3) β¦?
Think about this for a second. Did you ever see the movie about Rubin "Hurricane" Carter? Remember the people who rushed to support him and the efforts to overturn his conviction? That's why millions of people voted for a convicted felon. I understand you (and i) don't agree with this but they see Trump as their "Hurricane". And that's precisely why millions of people voted for him. They think he is the aggrieved one, and even though I believe they are nuts to feel that way and that he really IS a felon and should be locked up, they think he is wrongfully accused. And that's why they support him and vote for him.
It will be more than four years. He said he is going to be a dictator. Believe him.
Or we will get Donald Jr. or JD. If the Idiocracy who.know nothing of democracy.continue to vote these mopes in.
It is important that we understand, in detail and depth so we can know how to defeat it. I was born in 1948 and i've seen worse. My parents were born in 1918, and they saw much much worse. My grandparents were born in the 1890s. Their parents were born in the Civil War. It's a long hard fight. Take care of yourself. Take breaks, but don't give up. Never give up.
Volunteer to care for the needy if you have the time. PLenty of women and children will be suffering.
Canada is looking good.
Itβs only been 2 days and I canβt count how many times Iβve already read βGet your passport ready/renewed!!β Thatβs not a possibility for many of us. It takes money to move to another city let alone another country. You canβt just pull up stakes and go either. You have to be able to offer your new country a reason to allow you to stay. Do you have a job that will benefit them? Are you rich and able to benefit their economy through your purchases and investments?
Iβm a disabled veteran. I live on my disability comp & take part-time jobs when Iβm able to in-between the surgeries Iβve needed to repair the damage caused by my service. Iβm stuck here. I already have to fight tooth & nail to get the healthcare I earned and itβs going to get so much worse. I already know trump will gut veteranβs compensation & healthcare services. I already know I will then lose my home & end up in one of the camps miller & trump promise to use for all βthe lazy, useless homelessβ. My passport isnβt going to help me one bit.
People need advice rooted in reality, not pie in the sky bullshit that only the rich can afford.
Plus, not everyone will want to leave. Does patriotism matter? What about choosing to stay and fight for all those the trump cult deems expendable? Iβm already feeling stress, worry and frustration and I know it pales beyond measure next to what those in the groups trump & his cult have targeted are feeling right now. If everyone leaves who will fight for those who canβt?
If moving to Canada or elsewhere is an option & you want to & can go, then go. I wish you good luck with that.
I wish everyone god speed. Thereβs another vote coming up in two years.
In this election one side wanted cheaper gas and eggs while the other side wanted to save democracy and people in our communities.
There is much work to be done. We must stand united against the tyranny that they want to inflict on our most vulnerable. I pledge to stand up.
The problem is the winning side is NOT going to make eggs and had any cheaper. The election was bought by big corporations and billionaires who have price gouged consumers because they could. The previous administration mishandled the pandemic so badly that over a million died needlessly. The economy was in a huge downturn while Trump was talking about taking bleach to cure Covid.
My state has lots of immigrants, legal and otherwise, who form the backbone of our economy in agriculture, construction, meat production, as well as high tech jobs in the Research Triangle Park. If most or all of those people are not at those jobs, our economy will nosedive. Housing and food prices wonβt be any cheaper for sure. Native born Americans will absolutely not take those jobs. (Do you aspire to work in a chicken processing plant?) I think people will be unpleasantly surprised by what chaos the winner of this election and his minions will cause. I have no sympathy for people who voted for the winner of this election if the chaos rains down on them. They chose it.
I agree. I cannot fathom that people canβt remember the trauma of his first four years. How could they be so cavalier with other peopleβs lives to vote for him again?! Itβs unbelievable that so many crave authoritarianism.
Agree. And what do the Native Americans think of the white people who indignantly proclaim "Keep them out! It's our country"?
"This country has always had an illegal immigration problem. Ask any Native American."
Those who voted cheaper gas and eggs don't realize the cost of everything is about to skyrocket. May they rot in hell. May those men have ED. May those men and women have STDs/STIs.
I pledge to stand up too.
Why the Hispanic vote went for Trump.
I am a CPA on Bainbridge Island. I have Mexican and Guatemalan gardeners. They told me they were for Trump. I asked them why. They said they listen to Hispanic radio all day long and it was telling them frightening stories that made them want to go for Trump, mostly of a gay or transsexual nature, which offended their masculinity. This talk radio was sold to a friend of Jared Kushner about a year ago, when the format changed to MAGA. The irony is Trump would easily put my guys into a deportation camp in a blink. The talk radio played upon their homophobia and castration anxiety. All over the USA these Hispanic blue collar laborers listen to this station
Trump is the great imposter. He is a criminal mind, grifter, and gangster. He is going to steal billions. Furthermore, he is a Russian agent. He will go back to selling State secrets and revealing undercover agents overseas who will be arrested and thrown out of windows. He was shake down industries with threats of tariffs. The list is endless. He has a complete carte Blanche now. Iceberg dead ahead.
I am afraid that you are correct Michael C. Berry. We each need to prepare ourselves and any family and friends who will listen, for some horrible times ahead. I fear for those who will be singled out for deportation, work camps, and any other demeaning situations the upcoming regime demand. It could be a difficult lesson to learn for many people.
Thank you for your posts and for telling it exactly as it is. We are in for a horrible time.
I feel for those who were taken in by the propaganda and werenβt able to understand that thatβs what it was. Iβm not referring to or insulting their intelligence at all. Itβs a very specific step in propaganda to play on a groupβs biggest fears, especially those rooted in cultural beliefs. We are all susceptible. I can only imagine how utterly betrayed theyβll feel when they realize they were played and are now the target.
Similarly, I have two personal care assistants, both of who said they would vote for Trump because he will deport the immigrants who want their jobs. ??? One is Black, and the other is white; both are Americans, not immigrants. Where do they get this stuff? It will take us decades to ferret out all the misinformation and disinformation that made this election happen.
Honestly, how do these immigrants find the time? Between living like royalty on government assistance (because they are too lazy to work), simultaneously stealing all the good "AmAmerican" jobs, PLUS taking over cities and committing crimes, they must be exhausted.
//heavy sarcasm intended//
I had an assistant in 'August when my foot was in a non-driving boot. She had come to America with her parents from Mexico when she was 8 years old; she's now 50. They are all citizens now but she said her father and most men in her extended family (his cousins all came and are all citizens, too) are all trumpers because they "came the legal way" and don't want to allow people who don't come "the legal way" into the US and trump would stop the illegals from coming. sigh.
Sadly those men will soon be reminded that racism doesn't care about your actual status just like Asian Americans suffered when the cheeto blamed China for COVID.
And when Japanese Americans were put in "internment camps" during WWII for the crime of being Japanese.
Trump cut legal immigration quotas drastically, allowing the fewest number of legal immigrants in many years. That compounded the problem of so many desperate people coming across the border illegally. They had no other option.
There is one specific talk radio station they all listen to while they are working. It was sold two years ago to a friend of Jared Kushner who changed its format to MAGA. This radio station is played by all these workers all over the USA.
Shades of Rwanda
Propaganda wins every time and they know how certain people will react to those kinds of perceived threats. There will be so many people hurt by trump and his haters; that is the what is so horrible about his election.
Especially so, SPW, because it was all a very deliberate, very specific propaganda fueled by hate, bigotry, racism & misogyny.
Those who voted for trump did so (generally speaking) for the benefits they personally will see (tax cuts), those who agree with all that hate and those who were targeted by very specific propaganda.
Almost all undocumented workers pay into Social Security, Medicare, Unemployment, Labor and Industries on phony Social Security Numbers. This helps to support Social Security but they will never receive benefits.
I am wondering if it will be like Florida where a huge portion of the immigrant population left when they enacted a law about employers having to verify the legal status of their workers. Will there be a mass exodus across the nation?? I work in a big box store and am wondering if a lot of the people I see regularly will leave. Business is already tough.
https://www.propublica.org/article/florida-immigration-bill-farmers-rick-roth?utm_source=sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=dailynewsletter&utm_content=feature
I too have been wondering if all the scary rhetoric is intended to frighten undocumented people into leaving the country or even legal workers like the Haitians in Ohio. On the other hand, they really canΚ»t go back if their home country deadly dangerous to them.
Thank you Michael for this information. I doubt that most people are aware of this talk radio station.
That's interesting. I think I have relatives on Bainbridge Island. And we heard that Trump spent the last four years building a highly effective network to win this election, but that is really deviously smart stuff. What is the radio station? Are their programs broadcast nationwide? Or did they buy stations across the country? Please tell us more. We have to watch for similarly underhanded tactics beginning now.
What will they do in the deportation camps?
People will suffer and die from abuse and lack of food, medical care and shelter.
I made the mistake of checking my phone at 4 or 5 AM and read the horrid news. The rest of my sleep sucked to say the least. I guess I'm lucky to have had the day off. I had Bourbon on hand and I'm not sure that helped but there's that. I'm offered solace from Kamala's words that we're basically not done and the good work will continue. Some words from Lawrence O'Donnell made some sense too when he quoted Frederick Douglass: "If there is no struggle, there can be no progress." Douglas was in his thirties when he said this and an escaped slave.
I'm ready to begin learning what I myself, with others can do, starting tomorrow to limit his reach and staunch the bleeding i know he will cause.
β
Iβm beside myself. I have no optimism left at this point.
I donβt know the specifics about your situation.
Might I offer: grieve. Give yourself time to mourn. I wouldnβt recommend too much time but you know what is best for you.
Then, when you are ready, find like-minded people, your community, who are willing to do the work to get us through this, to the other side. There is strength in numbers.
I myself need to do this, need to find community.
I grieved for four years last time.
Iβm not grieving - Iβm MAD !!!
Iβm both.
Kelly, did deep dear. There are hundreds of examples of others in the past that came thru worse (WWII underground, for instance). Stand strong. He's just a loud carnival barker and an old man with goofy hair. Keep calm and carry on.
I just worked so hard. I door knocked in a swing state. I donated time, money, talked to people. I couldnβt have done more, but I feel like I didnβt do anything. I justβ¦ canβt.
I am a hospice chaplain. One of my patients was a Jewish woman who survived the Nazi occupation. Her parents and sister and brother all died in camps or on the way. She herself had a traumatic story of survival escaping from a train headed to a camp and his in an abandoned town with a couple of other girls at the hands of Russian doctors and soldiers. She was a young teen. She eventually made it to America. She managed to thrive. Her motivation to keep living at all costs, to keep fighting and thriving was that she KNEW the Naziβs wanted her dead as they wanted all Jews dead and she wasnt going to let them have the satisfaction. So she did everything to survive, she wasnβt going to die or be extinguished. Draw strength from others like her. From the generations of people descended from African slaves whom at every turn have had have people trying to silence them.
I think you, you all, did an amazing job of investing yourselves right into the campaign, donating time energy and hard earned money. I think I understand how gutted you feel, (because it would be selfish to assume I know). I personally cannot understand how 'they' pulled the rug out from under a very well disciplined campaign with a very well disciplined person in Ms Harris. I think it is because a lop-sided battle has been fought, but the democrats went in playing by the rules. You would HAVE to know that anything trump related is tied to a scam, I imagine the democrat think-tank assumed they had all maga's options and contingencies covered, but no, even reading messages above regarding Hispanic radio stations broadcasting and amplifying maga/trump's false scare tactic messaging in 'their' native tongue. What else then that 'we' wouldn't consider fair play did this machine get up to? Who made the bomb threats in sensitive swing state voting areas?
Really, with Musk, the mainstream media, other nations with their interests, all assisting one team. YOU, WE didn't have a snowball's chance of winning this. It's a long walk back from this depressing outcome for sure, but you're young and strong, and the country is going to need the strength and commitment you have despite it being deflated to crap right now. Every person you 'touched' will remember, and that will catalyse in the future when trump/maga get into their stride and get cocky with it. You and the others like you have been the vanguard for this long fight β¦ and it wasn't time wasted at all.
Go well.
You are a hero. Not all heroes win the fight, but they all give all they have. Thank you, and God bless you.
ππ
Hang in there Kelly. I am with you. I, too, was in total despair yesterday when I heard the news that he had won. I did the same things you did short of the door-knocking as I am disabled and live in Indiana and am caregiver to my 84 year old Mother who Voted for him no less. (Ugh). I do not want to live in Trump's America either but after a long conversation with my oldest daughter who thank God is a Psychologist, she told me it would kill her and her Sister if I decided to "check out" early. So somehow I will carry on. Somehow we will find a way to navigate this dark road ahead of us. #RiseResistRepeat #LoveWillKeepUsAlive. This song and this Band (The Eagles) have helped me get through this Election about more than anything. Stay strong Sister. β€οΈπΊπΈπ
https://youtu.be/4-kF-wgTHfo?si=LP8lHk6Aon92Vy7N
From a fellow Hoosier, thank you for what youβve written. I wish you well.
You did everything you could. It wasnβt useless. Take good care of yourself now. Try to focus on what is right in front of you - the big picture is too much at this moment. Do what brings you support and comfort. Rest. Eat good food. When you can you will be able to start anew.
Problem is the old man might be incompetent, but his minions will carry out his ugly whims.
Elon Musk is quite competent at getting his hands on taxpayer money already.
At 83, it is very tough to look @ what is ahead for my remaining years. For a good 8 years it has been a struggle know democracy was on the table , not the price of eggs or bacon. The previous struggle for women's rights to have a credit card & financial security & basic respect. I am too angry & grieving & all out of optimism
I refuse to let him take anymore oxygen in my life. I refuse to worry about things I have no control over(his win) but I will do everything I can to protect the vulnerable.
One last comment if people are complaining about cost of food now wait till he does his promised mass deportations. Who do they think is going to pick the crops?
Not to mention the truly stooped tariffs!!
His tech bro buddies likely have robot crop pickers and other things like this on the drawing board (old fashioned imagery! ). Anything to avoid hiring a human being. I was watching a gardener at a condo recently using a leaf blower. A robot could do that, but then the man would lose his job and likely heΚ»s not skilled at this point to do more than he is doing. There are a lot of jobs that could be automated but then the workers lose their jobs and canΚ»t be retrained for anything meaningful. Heck, from what IΚ»ve seen already in the workplace AI will eliminate the need for a lot of people whose jobs involve writing. All these people worried about high prices are going to have a lot more to worry about when their jobs disappear. Even professionals are going to be impacted.
Yeah - remember during the pandemic most of them went back home and crops were rotting in the fields? Leading to high prices for low quality goods but it was the only game in town.
Exactly re food harvesting!
There will be a few arrests of gang members, who will be deported and some raids on neighborhoods. Then the chaos that surrounds him will create other crises and attention -media attention-will be averted.
I have no idea what to do now. I teach a middle school classes with predominantly students of color. Will they be rounded up and deported in January? Will it become open season for school shootings in schools with majority non-whites? Iβm scared.
Des, I do not have any simple solutions but, 1 Bay Area School District is educating about the attempted deportation of students on "Day 1".
As reported by HCR on LFAA tonight. Trump's Campaign Press Secretary KARALINE LEAVITT said that Trump would launch the largest deportation operation of 'illegal' immigrants. Get ready for attempted splitting of families again this time in 2025.
BTW, "Day 1" is about 75 calendar days away but, I cautioned a concerned parent to prepare for intense mis & dis information during the so-called "Transition" period until the 47th inaugural January 21, 2025 when the Dictator appears on "Day 1".
I have been following Marc Elias/ Democracy Docket litigation since 2022. Since, 1/1/2023 Demo racy Docket has filed 327 lawsuits with 234 judicial victories won & still counting. As previously posted, I became a yearly PAID Subscriber to Marc's Team in the Pre-election period during which Dem Docket added to their legal victories.
I will honor the Vice Presidents words & "keep fighting" in the courts.
I liked what Sunny Hostin said on The View, that this election was "a referendum on cultural resentment". A large percentage of white American voters, faced with losing their majority, chose to blow up our country. So selfish and wrong. Putin, through his Trump/Vance puppets, is going to dismantle America and steal everything he can steal, including US military strength. American children will lose freedom and democracy. Shame on Americans who chose an unqualified obvious Putin puppet over a well-qualified candidate with excellent character.
I remember the Womanβs March in 2017. I was there with my daughter and her friends. It was a day where there was a sense of being part a huge statement. The mood was upbeat. Today I am not so sure. My daughter is devastated . My granddaughter is afraid her mother will be deported - she is English and also a US citizen. I had to assure my granddaughter that it will be ok and that she will be safe. It has been a tough day but I will get up every morning , put one foot in front of another and keep moving forward. At 82 I am determined to live long enough to vote again for Kamala Harris. Self care everyone, it will be a long haul but we will get there.
I sincerely believe that Trump will not last the 4 years. We have to consider what to do about Vance. He is not the charismatic character that Trump is(was). Will he have the same following? He is more intelligent but not street smart
Vance is actually worse.
He is slick. He won't stuff his foot in his mouth like Rump. Rump will bless him and.lookout 2028.
I agree mer t, I also don't see tRump lasting 4 more years, and fear that Vance will be even more cruel.
I think vance will kick trump to the curb within six months. His VP will be Mike Johnson (who fervently believes in an End Times religion) or someone else equally dangerous.
It will be all the silent backers that wrote Project 2025. It will be the Elly Musks , Steve Bannons, Steve Millers with their foot in the door & butts in the cabinet. I trump will be off playing golf.
What is maddening is the fact that agent orange will now get away with all the crimes he committed (and for which he was indicted or convicted). Our legal system failed one of its biggest tests ever. I have a very hard time with this realization.
He has figuratively shot everyone without penalty. Having just read about the Dodds experience as ambassador to Germany in 1933 , this sounds similar & people's reactions are similar. Project 2025 full steam ahead! It will take more than elections, if we have any, or we will have rigged ones like in Hungary, to take anything back & that will take several life times.
I appreciate your comments. But we have to deal with this fact: Trumpβs crimes, flaws, and plans for a second term were well known, and a majority of our fellow citizens embraced them. Trump is the leader they desire. Trumpβs vision of America is their vision. I grew up in 1950s Birmingham. I really thought things were on the upswing, that as Dr. King reminded us, the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice. Does it? I canβt say I believe that anymore.
I don't share any of your optimism. The majority of white women voted for Trump. And what I realized is this is what the majority wanted - Trump. They weren't going to vote for a Black woman. They wanted this foul, deranged convicted felon rapist. The nastier he is, the more they love him. He will never leave. He has promised to deport millions and destroy his enemies. Think Hitler 2.0. Today a large pickup blew past us with a large Trump flag. It has begun, and it's going to be bad.
Totally agree with you!!!
The depth and breadth of systemic racism and misogyny in this country is clearly much greater than most of us can comprehend.
We can kid ourselves there are other reasons Kamala lost, but sadly that is the reason and it is a very tough competitor. The work of the resistance begins again soonβ¦.