I believe that in this year’s presidential/congressional election the majority of us will prove that America is better than Donald Trump and congressional Republicans.
Of course, beliefs are by nature not facts, which means I may be wrong about us (by the way, I discuss the nature of beliefs in my new book).
It is possible that Trump is a reflection of the kind of people we have become, and equally possible that he isn’t.
I choose to believe the latter, that Trump is a reflection of a minority of Americans, not the majority.
Thus, I believe we are morally better as a people than Trump is as a person.
That we are more compassionate as a people than Trump is as a president.
That we are more concerned about the well-being of all of us than Trump is about any of us.
That we want more from a president than the crude, ugly, bombastic, caustic, childish rhetoric and behavior we get with Trump.
We all know that our country is far from perfect, that as a people we have never lived up to our own ideals, have tolerated the intolerable too much, and are prone to making political mistakes we live to regret.
Donald Trump and the Republican majority in the Senate are the biggest ones yet.
But in November we will have the chance to make up for them, to correct the mistake we made, to show once again that we are a better people than Donald Trump and congressional Republicans have shown themselves to be.
To do that we must resist getting discouraged about the current circumstances we are facing. That is exactly what Trump, Republicans, and the Russians want us to do.
We must reject the temptation, choosing instead to stand together and speak with one voice in declaring that America is a good nation and we are a good people.
If we stay firm and stand together we will win a critical and beautiful victory in November that the whole world will celebrate with us.
So let me say it again: I honestly, truly, absolutely, categorically believe that America is better than Donald Trump and congressional Republicans, and, come November, we will prove it.
This must be the primary focus of our lives for the next nine months. Yes, we have families to care for and work to do, but replacing Trump and his Republican enablers is the most important responsibility we have at the moment.
Failure is not an option. We must and we can achieve a great victory for ourselves, and more importantly, for our children and grandchildren and all future generations of Americans.
They are counting on us. We will hand to them the country they deserve by showing what kind of people we truly are when we vote.
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Thanks for this, Jan. I am holding onto every thread of optimism that I can find. Looking forward to seeing you and Joy on Monday!
We are holding on together, Judy. That is key. See you next week.
Always appreciate your optimism Jan. I need the encouragement. Still torn about my vote. Honestly think Bernie’s beliefs are closest to mine. If your readers are looking for ways to get involved they might consider the organizations Vote Forward or Reclaim Our Vote. Hope you don’t mind the advertisement.
Wilbur, I have concluded that Bernie cannot beat Trump and that is all that matters to me right now. I will vote for him if he gets the nomination, but I am hoping he doesn’t. I will not vote for him on March 3.
Jan, I’m sensitive to that concern. Would you care on this forum to share who you think could most likely to beat Trump?
At this point it is a process of elimination. I will say that I think the strongest ticket would be Biden/Klobuchar, but I am not ready to support Biden to lead it.
Jan,
I made the mistake of watching the Democrat debate tonight on NBC. In my view, it was a clusterfuck of attacks from and at all the candidates! The person most likely to benefit from this sorry display is Donald Trump!
I echo Wilbur’s question: who from this bunch can do what absolutely must be done — BEAT TRUMP!!
Bill Blackwell
Bill, I have to let my reply to Wilbur stand as the answer to your question. That means my decision is still fluid.
Jan,
I, I appreciate your optimism and continue to hold to mine, also. I agree with you reasoning about candidate selection.
Gene, I think it is hopefulness based on reason rather than optimism. Whatever it is, though, I am confident most Americans see this man for what he is and will not want another four years of him.
Jan, thank you for once again providing the foundation for hope in November.
The three most important points you make in this post are: 1. “in November we will have the chance to make up for them, to correct the mistake we made, to show once again that we are a better people than Donald Trump and congressional Republicans have shown themselves to be.” 2.“To do that we must resist getting discouraged about the current circumstances we are facing. That is exactly what Trump, Republicans, and the Russians want us to do.” 3.“We must reject the temptation, choosing instead to stand together and speak with one voice in declaring that America is a good nation and we are a good people. If we stay firm and stand together we will win a critical and beautiful victory in November that the whole world will celebrate with us.”
But, the reality, after last night’s debate and Iowa and New Hampshire elections, is that the Democratic Party is anything but rallying behind a unified candidate that can beat Donald Trump. I am a moderate and am hoping for a strong candidate from that group. But, I am also aware of the strength of Bernie’s rise to the top in the polls now (and would vote for him if he was the candidate). As a senior citizen I was hoping that Biden would remain strong and we could all coalesce around him. But, then after his defeats and last night’s performance at the debate (he was basically a no-show), if he does not become the “comeback kid”, do well in Nevada, win strong in South Carolina, and propel himself toward Super Tuesday, he is dead in the water. I thought, until the last few days, that Bloomberg might provide the strength and energy to lead moderates against Sanders and Trump. But, not anymore. He may have the money, but I am hoping he will soon support Biden and help bring the party back together against Trump. And, right now, as good and wonderful candidates as Mayor Pete, Elizabeth Warren and Amy Klobachar are, they appear to be candidates for vice president (as you point out in your post supporting Klobachar – at least she will keep Minnesota from moving to Trump), not able to unite the party against Sanders. Ten days ago, James Carvale came out of his closet and strongly criticized Democrats for what is happening in their party. He said that it is “Power” that wins elections. And, right now Donald Trump, his Senate cronies, Bill Barr, and the Supreme Court have most, if not all, of the power. If a moderate does not emerge soon, Sanders will barter with blacks and young people, probably barter with and pick Elizabeth Warren as his running mate, and we may end up, in fact, having some sort of a “revolution”. The good news is that Sanders, yes leading, has poll numbers of only 27%. That leaves moderates 73% of polling numbers to coalesce around.
John Hamerski