It's hard to do a political year in review when 2020 just. Won't. End.
THE GOOD
Sometimes (but not always - please see 2016), the person we need most for the times we are facing emerges, from our convoluted and messy presidential process, as President.
That is true for Joe Biden. He may not be the political progressive firebrand that I want, but he does have the experience and ability to lead us through the DEEP crises we are faced with. There is no one whose campaign style suited COVID times better than Joe, and there is no one as capable of reaching across our divisions to try to get something done.
For the first time in American History, we also have a female Vice-President, one who can step into the Presidency if needed. To me, what is most exciting about her is not the barriers she has broken, but that she is highly competent and qualified.
Plus, thanks to the Miracle in Georgia, she will be...
Woot-woot!
Mitch McConnell will no longer have a stranglehold on American power! Legislation will be voted on! Cabinet officials will be voted on! Judicial nominees will be voted on!
No, I never thought that I would be living the blue life in Georgia! I am so excited and proud! Biden! Warnock! Ossoff! The trajectory of the nation is changed, and my home state did it!
The Bad
74 million people voted for the worst President in American History. Despite the Georgia win, my home county voted 87% for Trump and 88% each for Loeffler and Perdue.
The Republicans gained seats in the House. Democrats retain control, and the number of Progressives increased (the seats lost were almost universally by Blue Dog Democrats). This will make legislation more of a slog. It's not impossible, but the level of vile and bile will not go down.
Although control of the Senate is absolutely vital for the Biden administration to achieve anything, the margin is too thin to guarantee much of anything. In my view, control of the Senate has passed from MITCH McCONNELL to JOE MANCHIN. The term is overused, but yes, he's pretty much a DINO - Democrat in Name Only. What can I say? He represents West Virginia, one of the reddest states we have.
Biden has many problems - he faces as deep a stream of crisis as any incoming President we've had. I appreciate his desire for cooperation from Republicans, and I pray that he gets it, BUT,,,
The Ugly and the Monstrous
With his behavior on January 6th and his well-deserved second impeachment, Trump has sealed the deal - he is by far the worst President in American History.
I won't even go into his behavior in prior years. For that, just review the dozens of posts I have about the Trumpocalypse (tagged for your viewing convenience). I can't even explore all the horrible things he did in 2020. I want to do a blog post, not a book.
I will highlight two things-
1) His reaction to the pandemic was a disaster that led to hundreds of thousands of unnecessary deaths in the United States. Who can argue with this - we have 4.25% of the world's population and 25% of the world's cases, and 20% of the world's COVID deaths. According to my Trump Premium calculation (please see related post), I hold him directly responsible for a quarter-million deaths.
His incompetence and ignorance have affected our nation's reaction from the start. He has been dismissive, having us turning the corner almost every week, wanting us to leave quarantines and lockdowns almost before they really begin, recommending we drink bleach, refusing to protect himself and others - turning mask-wearing into an effing political issue. Personal liberty TRUMPS social responsibility and public safety. I am as angry about this as I have ever been about anything in my entire life.
We are haunted by his incompetence even today, with the slow rollout of the vaccine.
The number of cases and deaths are higher than ever, and due to his dividing us, we seem incapable of responding.
It's one thing to live with the way people voted around here. It's another trying to survive their barbaric response to the pandemic.
2) His denial of the election results has led this country to a nightmare reaction and a true ripping apart of Democratic norms. We stand on the brink of fascism, and none of us can breathe easier until he is gone.
Left in his wake are millions who believe his lies, some who are so ginned up that they attacked the Capitol building, and the fact that they aren't more dead, including the Vice President, is just simple luck.
Most of us want to turn the corner and head into the light of democracy, of a functioning republic. But others only see it as a vast cultural war, where everything is on the line for them - that the most important thing is to hold onto white privilege and control, who want to turn the nation into a Christian Reich Theocratic State.
Donald Trump may soon be gone, but the hate he riled up and solidified will be with us for a long time to come.
2020 has left us broken and hurt. But, in the end, it did bring us some hope.
But it also brought us fear.
We must never give up. We must never surrender.
We must never sit out another election.
The number one lesson of 2020 is that we outnumber them IF WE ALL SHOW UP.
