I still believe that anger is hard to sustain and most people will reject the constant efforts to enrage them ... I appreciated this post and having hope!
It will be a long slog. But if we have learned anything, it’s that the crazies continually self inflict wounds that slowly bleed themselves out. The Dems have to stop copying that scenario, though.
Nov 11, 2022·edited Nov 11, 2022Liked by Steven Beschloss
“It was a good day, I think, for democracy,” ...
Many of those people who are still holdng onto Trumps tail at first condemned him. Then, seeing how he was easily manipulated, they decided that riding the tiger would take them to great places. They lost, in effect. Now, it is time for the dismount. If they survive that, they still must answer for their assault on democracy. Members of the Federal legislature are guilty of impeding the business of Congress. If the GOP takes the House and/or the Senate, the DOJ is holding the evidence of their crimes.
Thanks to the youth, the women, LGBTQ+, Black men and women, Muslims, Christians, and the Republcans who chose nation over politics, for makeing this a much less damaging situation if the GOP does win control of Congress. Lets just call it a coalition of hope in the face of imminent loss. We have done a good thing.
Thank you Steven, for your wise and thoughtful comments. I can tell you that we, your Canadian neighbours to the North, were likewise relieved that no Red Wave materialised in the American mid-term elections. Where did that concept originate, anyway? I have long believed that Donald Trump is best left behind, in the metaphorical dust of the discord and dissent he created. For too long, Trump dominated the News for no good purpose. He provided fodder for pundits to remark how crazy and unhinged he was. Many became numb to his malice and evil intent. Public appearances and rallies were 'Hollywood moments' for Trump to continue his 'acting career', i.e. buffoon show. His script is old and redundant. The mid-terms show that his ship has sailed. The only stage left for him will be Court proceedings. The fact that he took aim at his fellow Republicans and once supportive media, is telling. There are still 4 seats hanging in the balance, and regardless of how they land, there should ALWAYS be hope; hope for moving forward, hope for working in tandem for the America that lost some of its lustre on the National and World stage. As I write this, I am watching the Remembrance Day Ceremony in Ottawa, ON presented by CBC TV. Young and old stand together in unity; people of many races and Nationalities, and members of every Military Service corps ( land, sea and air) from all across Canada, lay wreaths in respect for the service of our War Veterans. It made me think of the phrase used by Winston Churchill on June 16, 1941: "United we stand. Divided we fall." A similar sentiment actually appears at least twice in the New Testament (Matthew 12:25 and Luke 11:17). Founding Father John Dickinson incorporated the phrase into The Liberty Song, first published in the Boston Gazette in July 1768. Hope not hate should be the mandate going forward, in the United States of America.
This overall essay is excellent and certainly tends toward the optimistic. Here, though, I address only my home state, Pennsylvania. There, at the top of your composition, is a pic of our man, John Fetterman, Senator-elect Fetterman. Criticisms flew about John following his debate with Oz, but people need to consider that he was under tremendous pressure there and yes, some of his responses were "strained". But he needed to comprehend even the intent of the question utilizing closed captioning, then was given a stringent time limit to address the topic. Can you keep up with a closed captioned crawler? I often fall behind. In any event, Fetterman was running to join the "greatest deliberative body in the world". Can you say "deliberate"? Consider, research, debate, reconsider, then reconcile, then compromise; it is not a bullet-fast procedure and John is more than capable.
Also, I noted your reference to Josh Shapiro, our governor-elect, entering the national spotlight. I could not agree more. Intelligent, lucid, engaged, understandable, hard-working and empathetic, this man is an excellent candidate for higher aspirations.
Then one other thing: this election saw the swing from Republican to Democratic control of the state legislature for the first time in years. There is no doubt that Trump's interference in our state, promoting Oz and Mastriano, was a major contributor to this as well as the fine campaigns of both Josh and John. See, I feel like I can be on a first name basis with these two. Am both proud of and pleased with my state this term.
Yes, there are reasons for optimism, and you listed them so clearly: Josh Shapiro, John Fetterman, Gov of MD, Gov of MA, and now Senator Mark Kelly, and the Senate seat in NV, just called last night, giving the Dems a majority in the Senate once again, and maybe even a larger majority in Dec if people really that we can't have an ex-football player who has no qualifications for anything, serve in the Senate. I saw a great interview with Jon Mecham on CNN last night. His faith in the system, his analysis of how the guardrails worked, how election denialism is shrinking in popularity, how a woman's right to choose is important to Americans, in spite of what SCOTUS did to try to destroy it, his very thoughtful approach to our times and the optimism he expressed, as you did @StevenBeschloss, are helping me to feel more positive, less stressed, more hopeful that we are getting our country back, that the 2 major political parties will once again return to intelligent debates on policy to achieve our common goals, especially the goal of making a better America for all Americans. Our great experiment is creating a Democratic Republic is going to survive. I am so grateful.
The Republicans didn't do so well, and now, trump is trashing everybody. Calls DeSantis DeSanctimonious, Youngkin Young Kin saying it sounds Chinese. He even blames Melania for Oz loss.
People are dropping him, yet, there he is all over the media still, with his rants and raves. Will we never have a day's peace from him and his childish stupidity? Garland wanted to wait until after the election. Well, it's over. Now, we are waiting.
I still believe that anger is hard to sustain and most people will reject the constant efforts to enrage them ... I appreciated this post and having hope!
It will be a long slog. But if we have learned anything, it’s that the crazies continually self inflict wounds that slowly bleed themselves out. The Dems have to stop copying that scenario, though.
“It was a good day, I think, for democracy,” ...
Many of those people who are still holdng onto Trumps tail at first condemned him. Then, seeing how he was easily manipulated, they decided that riding the tiger would take them to great places. They lost, in effect. Now, it is time for the dismount. If they survive that, they still must answer for their assault on democracy. Members of the Federal legislature are guilty of impeding the business of Congress. If the GOP takes the House and/or the Senate, the DOJ is holding the evidence of their crimes.
Thanks to the youth, the women, LGBTQ+, Black men and women, Muslims, Christians, and the Republcans who chose nation over politics, for makeing this a much less damaging situation if the GOP does win control of Congress. Lets just call it a coalition of hope in the face of imminent loss. We have done a good thing.
Thank you Steven, for your wise and thoughtful comments. I can tell you that we, your Canadian neighbours to the North, were likewise relieved that no Red Wave materialised in the American mid-term elections. Where did that concept originate, anyway? I have long believed that Donald Trump is best left behind, in the metaphorical dust of the discord and dissent he created. For too long, Trump dominated the News for no good purpose. He provided fodder for pundits to remark how crazy and unhinged he was. Many became numb to his malice and evil intent. Public appearances and rallies were 'Hollywood moments' for Trump to continue his 'acting career', i.e. buffoon show. His script is old and redundant. The mid-terms show that his ship has sailed. The only stage left for him will be Court proceedings. The fact that he took aim at his fellow Republicans and once supportive media, is telling. There are still 4 seats hanging in the balance, and regardless of how they land, there should ALWAYS be hope; hope for moving forward, hope for working in tandem for the America that lost some of its lustre on the National and World stage. As I write this, I am watching the Remembrance Day Ceremony in Ottawa, ON presented by CBC TV. Young and old stand together in unity; people of many races and Nationalities, and members of every Military Service corps ( land, sea and air) from all across Canada, lay wreaths in respect for the service of our War Veterans. It made me think of the phrase used by Winston Churchill on June 16, 1941: "United we stand. Divided we fall." A similar sentiment actually appears at least twice in the New Testament (Matthew 12:25 and Luke 11:17). Founding Father John Dickinson incorporated the phrase into The Liberty Song, first published in the Boston Gazette in July 1768. Hope not hate should be the mandate going forward, in the United States of America.
As always, your article is great and hits every thought and concern.
"grievance-laden, blame-minded, camera-ready hostility" - perfectly stated.
Steven,
This overall essay is excellent and certainly tends toward the optimistic. Here, though, I address only my home state, Pennsylvania. There, at the top of your composition, is a pic of our man, John Fetterman, Senator-elect Fetterman. Criticisms flew about John following his debate with Oz, but people need to consider that he was under tremendous pressure there and yes, some of his responses were "strained". But he needed to comprehend even the intent of the question utilizing closed captioning, then was given a stringent time limit to address the topic. Can you keep up with a closed captioned crawler? I often fall behind. In any event, Fetterman was running to join the "greatest deliberative body in the world". Can you say "deliberate"? Consider, research, debate, reconsider, then reconcile, then compromise; it is not a bullet-fast procedure and John is more than capable.
Also, I noted your reference to Josh Shapiro, our governor-elect, entering the national spotlight. I could not agree more. Intelligent, lucid, engaged, understandable, hard-working and empathetic, this man is an excellent candidate for higher aspirations.
Then one other thing: this election saw the swing from Republican to Democratic control of the state legislature for the first time in years. There is no doubt that Trump's interference in our state, promoting Oz and Mastriano, was a major contributor to this as well as the fine campaigns of both Josh and John. See, I feel like I can be on a first name basis with these two. Am both proud of and pleased with my state this term.
Yes, there are reasons for optimism, and you listed them so clearly: Josh Shapiro, John Fetterman, Gov of MD, Gov of MA, and now Senator Mark Kelly, and the Senate seat in NV, just called last night, giving the Dems a majority in the Senate once again, and maybe even a larger majority in Dec if people really that we can't have an ex-football player who has no qualifications for anything, serve in the Senate. I saw a great interview with Jon Mecham on CNN last night. His faith in the system, his analysis of how the guardrails worked, how election denialism is shrinking in popularity, how a woman's right to choose is important to Americans, in spite of what SCOTUS did to try to destroy it, his very thoughtful approach to our times and the optimism he expressed, as you did @StevenBeschloss, are helping me to feel more positive, less stressed, more hopeful that we are getting our country back, that the 2 major political parties will once again return to intelligent debates on policy to achieve our common goals, especially the goal of making a better America for all Americans. Our great experiment is creating a Democratic Republic is going to survive. I am so grateful.
The Republicans didn't do so well, and now, trump is trashing everybody. Calls DeSantis DeSanctimonious, Youngkin Young Kin saying it sounds Chinese. He even blames Melania for Oz loss.
People are dropping him, yet, there he is all over the media still, with his rants and raves. Will we never have a day's peace from him and his childish stupidity? Garland wanted to wait until after the election. Well, it's over. Now, we are waiting.
Yet. Sinema! & then there’s Mr Coal- Manchin. Neither are trustworthy!