I don’t know. It wasn’t a rout. It’s not a mandate. We’re just a divided country and the Republicans got a 2% bump because of anti-incumbent sentiment.
No excuses for being duped. Listen to someone with another POV, Google, tune into another source for news. They are willfully ignorant and I believe they like how it feels to be in a club with other angry Americans.
I feel we’re about to find ourselves in a combination of Huxley’s and Orwell’s nightmare visions; some will experience social, economic, legal coercion while others will continue to be fed distracting, algorithm-driven spectacle designed to keep them perpetually anesthetized.
Thoughts from an Irish American (the kind that looks on the dark side):
• Trump won. I get it, but it wasn’t as much of a landslide as some are saying.
• 2+2=7. The main reason Trump won may be that we have reached the tipping point for addressing disinformation spread on social media. Up is down and down is up, etc. As Maria Ressa (see note) explained in interviews and in her book, "How To Stand Up To A Dictator," the fastest way to spread a lie is to lace it with anger and hate. We’ve already had 9 years of Trump 101.
• Kamala startled us with hope. When Biden dropped out, Kamala was the jolt of optimism we needed. Around that time, the country’s mood seemed to mirror the Sounds of Silence (Disturbed version) and that’s a sad place to be. I also appreciated the Liz Cheney/Republican joint venture (although I don’t agree with them on most issues, especially the Iraq war).
• “They” Don’t Listen. Democrats talk to people every four years and don’t listen to people at all levels ever. Does any party listen? No. Republicans in states “know” what we want because they take their marching orders—and actual legislation2—from the highest bidders, including the Heritage Foundation and the Kochs. We pay the price by not paying attention (so you’re right about voters).
• Agenda 47/Project 2025 is Happening Now. If the Dems checked Trump’s campaign site in 2023, they would have found his Agenda 47 videos (see note) that draw from Project 2025. Or, they could pretend they’re average people and check out You Tube occasionally. That’s how I found them last July. At the time, I thought the Dems should have played Trump’s hateful words. Sadly, I now know these policies are popular with “the people.” That is, until they learn about things like no teacher tenure, stop and frisk is good, transgender kids are sexual criminals, “education choice” options will bankrupt schools, you can deport legal immigrants by changing their status, single mothers will no longer get benefits, climate change is a hoax, and on and on.
• Truth/Education Was/Is Available. Ali Velshi (Velshi show), Deadline White House, and other shows did try to explain/educate about Agenda 47. Velshi demonstrated that Trump had to know about Project 2025 because of things he did in his first term (like Schedule F to fire federal workers). Dems made some effort at the convention but the theatrics and focus on “democracy” overtook the facts and the horrors. My new favorite explanation is the Jason Kravits “Schoolhouse Rock” version ("The Project 2025 Song" available on You Tube). Great job!
• Missed Media Opportunities. Instead of bloviating about useless polls and other nonsense, MSNBC could have produced a series with Ali Velshi’s Project 2025 pieces. Or, some of the topics that Nicolle Wallace covers. In 2015, MSNBC/CNN showed Trump rallies all day with no full rallies from anyone else. Was this year different? Yes and no—profits are key. I’m sure the “Media Critiques Itself” show will be out by the 12th of Never.
• Too Soon to Say We Told You So? Mike Huckabee as US Ambassador to Israel. Betsy DeVos may be back if she’s allowed to close the Department of Education. Stephen Miller can set the policy to provide reparations to white men who face rampant discrimination. God knows what Elon Musk wants. Money talks and the politicians and Trump Supreme Court judges listen. Trump increased his support from white women. Today, women are getting emails/and public harassment: Your Body, My Choice from men. So much for women’s rights. Can’t wait for Christian Nationalism.
• The End or the Beginning? I’m 70, white, female, have owned cats, and could move to Ireland (my mother came from Ireland). According to JD, I’m not supposed to care about my country, the children, or the future. And yet, I can’t help myself, so it’s time for a chorus of When Irish Eyes Are Smiling...whether I’m ready to smile or not! (Although, I’ll happily take a refund of the school taxes I have paid since 1991.) Thanks for "listening."
1 Deadline White House, 11/07/2024 and the Velshi Show 11/23/2023
2 Mother Jones article 05/13/2021 “Leaked Video: Dark Money Group Brags About Writing GOP Voter Suppression Bills Across the Country” by Ari Berman and Nick Surgey.
3 Forbes article by Alison Durkee, 11/6/2024 “What Is Agenda47? What To Know About Trump’s Policy Agenda After Election Win.” Includes a link to Trump’s videos that he removed from his campaign site.
All of the pundits are glossing over the fact that 10-odd million Democrats just didn't bother to vote and Trump got less than a third of the number of registered voters. So hardly a massive mandate.
Right leaning voters have been pandered and lied to on an industrial scale for nearly 3 decades by the right wing media bubble. Even though they nominally have access to real news and even to the liberal side's points of view, they don't because the Orwellian party told them not to believe their own eyes.
Thomas Jefferson said that "a Democracy depends on an informed electorate". We don't have that, and have not had it for decades. Never mind the structural advantages that favor the right, with the Electoral College, 2 Senators per state regardless of population, and the ruthless gerrymandering in red states.
We're no longer a functional Democracy. We have not been for quite some time now and frankly it is only going to get worse.
Don't give up! We can still do ballot curing TODAY! Key downballot races - and at least one US House race - are still not called.
Tens of thousands of ballots are in limbo due to technicalities which can be fixed (a missing zip code on a mail ballot envelope, a sloppy signature). The voters need to be notified - that can be done by phone even if you’re out-of-state. These are races for Congress, also down ballot races which are very important.
This link tells you where elections are still in play. Click on a state and you’ll see a list that includes phone banking opportunities.
It's a good question...what allowed Trump to win a second time...not why did the Democrats lose? And anyway do the Republicans under Trump really represent the working people of this country in any real way aside from reflecting their grievances? Did they offer anything real to those who believe the Democrats abandoned them? Or did they merely offer a protest, a chance to blow things up in the hope that whatever emerges will help the working people?
Today any criticism of the voter is brushed off as looking down at people. It is ok to let a rapist, conman, immoral and incompetent person become president because there are imaginary people that "look down on me"
Four decades ago, Neil Postman prophesied an apocalypse of moral idiocy in the age of mass media. “When a population becomes distracted by trivia,” he wrote, in Amusing Ourselves to Death, “when cultural life is redefined as a perpetual round of entertainments, when serious conversation becomes a form of baby-talk, when, in short, a people becomes an audience and their public business a vaudeville act, then a nation finds itself at risk; culture-death is a clear possibility.”
Postman was prophetic, but he couldn’t have had any idea how bad things would get in the age of Donald Trump and Twitter. Faced with Trump’s behavior, America’s norms of decency and truth proved to be far more fragile than many of us imagined.
First, Americans delighted in Walter White (Breaking Bad). I know I did. As he got worse and more narcissistic, the more attractive he became. I know I cheered for him as he overcame each obstacle until he met somebody worse and then.. a Gatling Gun did the trick. I guess it’s anti hero worship. But it’s not unusual. Just as I was fascinated that Walter did and said things I never could based upon the strictures of my life, so Trump, in all his glory thrills and delights those who are helpless and powerless and disappointed and resentful because,c’mon, it feels so good and powerful to be bad. I think that this antihero worship is a driving factor for a good portion of Trumpies. Peace, love, etc are just no fun. I never thought my Sunday school teachers were very interesting.
My second theory is basic laziness plus deficiencies in the Harris campaign (impossible to cure given the facts of a relatively unknown candidate and only 4 months to campaign). If undecided, it’s very human to prefer the devil you know ( blond, male, rich, former prez and tv star) to the one you don’t (and who is also female and brown).
I am one of the useless educated white women who supported and voted for Kamala. Now I have to put that useless education back to use to survive 4 more years and resist, when the opportunity presents itself.
Interesting about Walter White or Tony Soprano. I didn't find them to be worthy of being cheered on. I was fascinated by them and their success and by their psychoses, but never did I find them anything but repellant even as I faithfully watched each episode.
You’re asking the right questions. I’m already exhausted from reading Monday morning quarterbacking. We need to confront the far more important questions about what the American population has become. Thank you for beginning that conversation.
Thank you, Charlie. I wish we could make this required reading. I cannot bear to watch or read the post mortem back & forth b/c, until now, nobody has addressed what did work and how horrifying are the answers. You have given me some degree of sanity and I am grateful
We have to figure out how to reach voters buried in the reality Trump has created for them. He has at least 3 cable stations, hundreds of right wing podcasts & radio programs. They repeat what Trump says 24/7, without any criticism. Democrats don’t have propaganda networks. We must figure out how to match what Trump has created.
https://open.substack.com/pub/linmcm/p/words-from-the-past?r=3v1cs9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
I don’t know. It wasn’t a rout. It’s not a mandate. We’re just a divided country and the Republicans got a 2% bump because of anti-incumbent sentiment.
No excuses for being duped. Listen to someone with another POV, Google, tune into another source for news. They are willfully ignorant and I believe they like how it feels to be in a club with other angry Americans.
Thank you Charlie. I am grateful for your trusted voice in these very dark days!
I feel we’re about to find ourselves in a combination of Huxley’s and Orwell’s nightmare visions; some will experience social, economic, legal coercion while others will continue to be fed distracting, algorithm-driven spectacle designed to keep them perpetually anesthetized.
A Cascade of Fails (with a little hope?)
Thoughts from an Irish American (the kind that looks on the dark side):
• Trump won. I get it, but it wasn’t as much of a landslide as some are saying.
• 2+2=7. The main reason Trump won may be that we have reached the tipping point for addressing disinformation spread on social media. Up is down and down is up, etc. As Maria Ressa (see note) explained in interviews and in her book, "How To Stand Up To A Dictator," the fastest way to spread a lie is to lace it with anger and hate. We’ve already had 9 years of Trump 101.
• Kamala startled us with hope. When Biden dropped out, Kamala was the jolt of optimism we needed. Around that time, the country’s mood seemed to mirror the Sounds of Silence (Disturbed version) and that’s a sad place to be. I also appreciated the Liz Cheney/Republican joint venture (although I don’t agree with them on most issues, especially the Iraq war).
• “They” Don’t Listen. Democrats talk to people every four years and don’t listen to people at all levels ever. Does any party listen? No. Republicans in states “know” what we want because they take their marching orders—and actual legislation2—from the highest bidders, including the Heritage Foundation and the Kochs. We pay the price by not paying attention (so you’re right about voters).
• Agenda 47/Project 2025 is Happening Now. If the Dems checked Trump’s campaign site in 2023, they would have found his Agenda 47 videos (see note) that draw from Project 2025. Or, they could pretend they’re average people and check out You Tube occasionally. That’s how I found them last July. At the time, I thought the Dems should have played Trump’s hateful words. Sadly, I now know these policies are popular with “the people.” That is, until they learn about things like no teacher tenure, stop and frisk is good, transgender kids are sexual criminals, “education choice” options will bankrupt schools, you can deport legal immigrants by changing their status, single mothers will no longer get benefits, climate change is a hoax, and on and on.
• Truth/Education Was/Is Available. Ali Velshi (Velshi show), Deadline White House, and other shows did try to explain/educate about Agenda 47. Velshi demonstrated that Trump had to know about Project 2025 because of things he did in his first term (like Schedule F to fire federal workers). Dems made some effort at the convention but the theatrics and focus on “democracy” overtook the facts and the horrors. My new favorite explanation is the Jason Kravits “Schoolhouse Rock” version ("The Project 2025 Song" available on You Tube). Great job!
• Missed Media Opportunities. Instead of bloviating about useless polls and other nonsense, MSNBC could have produced a series with Ali Velshi’s Project 2025 pieces. Or, some of the topics that Nicolle Wallace covers. In 2015, MSNBC/CNN showed Trump rallies all day with no full rallies from anyone else. Was this year different? Yes and no—profits are key. I’m sure the “Media Critiques Itself” show will be out by the 12th of Never.
• Too Soon to Say We Told You So? Mike Huckabee as US Ambassador to Israel. Betsy DeVos may be back if she’s allowed to close the Department of Education. Stephen Miller can set the policy to provide reparations to white men who face rampant discrimination. God knows what Elon Musk wants. Money talks and the politicians and Trump Supreme Court judges listen. Trump increased his support from white women. Today, women are getting emails/and public harassment: Your Body, My Choice from men. So much for women’s rights. Can’t wait for Christian Nationalism.
• The End or the Beginning? I’m 70, white, female, have owned cats, and could move to Ireland (my mother came from Ireland). According to JD, I’m not supposed to care about my country, the children, or the future. And yet, I can’t help myself, so it’s time for a chorus of When Irish Eyes Are Smiling...whether I’m ready to smile or not! (Although, I’ll happily take a refund of the school taxes I have paid since 1991.) Thanks for "listening."
1 Deadline White House, 11/07/2024 and the Velshi Show 11/23/2023
2 Mother Jones article 05/13/2021 “Leaked Video: Dark Money Group Brags About Writing GOP Voter Suppression Bills Across the Country” by Ari Berman and Nick Surgey.
3 Forbes article by Alison Durkee, 11/6/2024 “What Is Agenda47? What To Know About Trump’s Policy Agenda After Election Win.” Includes a link to Trump’s videos that he removed from his campaign site.
All of the pundits are glossing over the fact that 10-odd million Democrats just didn't bother to vote and Trump got less than a third of the number of registered voters. So hardly a massive mandate.
Right leaning voters have been pandered and lied to on an industrial scale for nearly 3 decades by the right wing media bubble. Even though they nominally have access to real news and even to the liberal side's points of view, they don't because the Orwellian party told them not to believe their own eyes.
Thomas Jefferson said that "a Democracy depends on an informed electorate". We don't have that, and have not had it for decades. Never mind the structural advantages that favor the right, with the Electoral College, 2 Senators per state regardless of population, and the ruthless gerrymandering in red states.
We're no longer a functional Democracy. We have not been for quite some time now and frankly it is only going to get worse.
Don't give up! We can still do ballot curing TODAY! Key downballot races - and at least one US House race - are still not called.
Tens of thousands of ballots are in limbo due to technicalities which can be fixed (a missing zip code on a mail ballot envelope, a sloppy signature). The voters need to be notified - that can be done by phone even if you’re out-of-state. These are races for Congress, also down ballot races which are very important.
This link tells you where elections are still in play. Click on a state and you’ll see a list that includes phone banking opportunities.
https://www.fieldteam6.org/ballot-curing?nvep=&hmac=&emci=f59be7e1-4e9d-ef11-88ce-000d3a98fa6b&emdi=ea000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000001&ceid=&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
Folks, please restack this so others will see it !
It's a good question...what allowed Trump to win a second time...not why did the Democrats lose? And anyway do the Republicans under Trump really represent the working people of this country in any real way aside from reflecting their grievances? Did they offer anything real to those who believe the Democrats abandoned them? Or did they merely offer a protest, a chance to blow things up in the hope that whatever emerges will help the working people?
Today any criticism of the voter is brushed off as looking down at people. It is ok to let a rapist, conman, immoral and incompetent person become president because there are imaginary people that "look down on me"
Four decades ago, Neil Postman prophesied an apocalypse of moral idiocy in the age of mass media. “When a population becomes distracted by trivia,” he wrote, in Amusing Ourselves to Death, “when cultural life is redefined as a perpetual round of entertainments, when serious conversation becomes a form of baby-talk, when, in short, a people becomes an audience and their public business a vaudeville act, then a nation finds itself at risk; culture-death is a clear possibility.”
Postman was prophetic, but he couldn’t have had any idea how bad things would get in the age of Donald Trump and Twitter. Faced with Trump’s behavior, America’s norms of decency and truth proved to be far more fragile than many of us imagined.
I have two theories fwiw.
First, Americans delighted in Walter White (Breaking Bad). I know I did. As he got worse and more narcissistic, the more attractive he became. I know I cheered for him as he overcame each obstacle until he met somebody worse and then.. a Gatling Gun did the trick. I guess it’s anti hero worship. But it’s not unusual. Just as I was fascinated that Walter did and said things I never could based upon the strictures of my life, so Trump, in all his glory thrills and delights those who are helpless and powerless and disappointed and resentful because,c’mon, it feels so good and powerful to be bad. I think that this antihero worship is a driving factor for a good portion of Trumpies. Peace, love, etc are just no fun. I never thought my Sunday school teachers were very interesting.
My second theory is basic laziness plus deficiencies in the Harris campaign (impossible to cure given the facts of a relatively unknown candidate and only 4 months to campaign). If undecided, it’s very human to prefer the devil you know ( blond, male, rich, former prez and tv star) to the one you don’t (and who is also female and brown).
I am one of the useless educated white women who supported and voted for Kamala. Now I have to put that useless education back to use to survive 4 more years and resist, when the opportunity presents itself.
Good to have you back, Charlie.
Interesting about Walter White or Tony Soprano. I didn't find them to be worthy of being cheered on. I was fascinated by them and their success and by their psychoses, but never did I find them anything but repellant even as I faithfully watched each episode.
I guess that doesn’t say much about me!!
It may, unfortunately, be easy to fall into stupidity and cruelty under 50 years of Neo-liberalsim: https://x.com/ENPancotti/status/1855659224551878970
"Jim Crow Election"
You’re asking the right questions. I’m already exhausted from reading Monday morning quarterbacking. We need to confront the far more important questions about what the American population has become. Thank you for beginning that conversation.
Thank you, Charlie. I wish we could make this required reading. I cannot bear to watch or read the post mortem back & forth b/c, until now, nobody has addressed what did work and how horrifying are the answers. You have given me some degree of sanity and I am grateful
We have to figure out how to reach voters buried in the reality Trump has created for them. He has at least 3 cable stations, hundreds of right wing podcasts & radio programs. They repeat what Trump says 24/7, without any criticism. Democrats don’t have propaganda networks. We must figure out how to match what Trump has created.