Posting as infrequently as I do, there are sometimes some pretty wild developments between posts. There was 2020, when I posted in February and then in April - during which time Joe Biden wrapped up the Democratic nomination and the world was hit by a plague and shut down. Dizzying. I was not a Biden fan at the time, though I was happy to vote for him; and I think as president he has done a remarkable job, though he has gotten no credit. But that shift - the hopefulness of voting for Warren, to the grim acceptance of Biden - and the run of the world - yeah.
The last couple months have been almost as wild a ride, but in the opposite direction. When I posted in July, things were pretty bad. The Supreme Court had just disgraced itself, Trump was Trump, and Joe Biden was OLD. Then things got worse - someone took a shot at Trump, missed, but he rode it like a stallion - I almost got shot! Look! My Ear! The RNC happened, the GOP gloated, Peter Thiel's personal Renfield was picked to serve as Trump's VP - things were ugly in America. And just to top it off - Biden got COVID, again, somewhere in there. What could happen next?
What happened next was that Biden dropped out of the race, and he, and whoever else was in on the deal, orchestrated it like a Magic Johnson fast break. He endorsed Kamala Harris, everyone else endorsed Kamala Harris, and now she is the nominee, with Tim Walz, who gives all the signs of being an actual human being, as VP. It went like clockwork; and it changed everything.
It came like a breath of fresh air - a sense of relief. Not that I think Biden can't do the job - but I don't know if he can convincingly run for the job, and more importantly, lots of people didn't think he could run for it effectively. Harris hit the ground running: lined up the support, got Biden's delegates in line, went to work, brought new energy and en edge to the campaign. Going after Trump - everyone is going after Trump, and not just, Lookout! He's going to try another coup! but - laying into him for what he is. Laying into his policies, his oppression of women, his threat to democracy; laying into how he acts - his insecurities, his whining, his weirdness. "Weird" is the watchword of the day - and well deserved. Trump is weird. Vance is weirder. Most of their supporters are weirdoes. They can't seem to stop doubling down on their weirdness - attacking Harris' and Walz' kids, trying to gin up imaginary AI crowds, trying to order donuts. Trump whining that he thought he was going to get to run against Joe Biden! no fair!
We've seen the DNC: with the Dems dropping the old "when they go low we go high" talk for cheap shots and digs about couches and crowd sizes and everything else. Though it's notable that the Dems still manage to go high - they have policies that might help people; they do treat other people as though they have the right to exist. They have been celebrating all the things that Americans get sentimental about - the flag, military service, football, freedom, dignity, everything. They're claiming everything good about the country, while Trump and company disdain everything good. The contrast is sharp.
So here we are. Into the proper race, with Trump accumulating even weirder supporters like little RFK - there's a guy who makes JD Vance look like a well adjusted normie! It is enough to give you reason to hope. Sure, things can go to shit - but right now, if everyone keeps doing what they are good at - Trump being a freak; Harris being a leader; Tim Walz being a good natured guy who managed to gets laws to feed kids through the barest of majorities in Minnesota - we might manage to bring the Trump nonsense to a final end. Let's hope.
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