2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumLet 'em
Let 'em what, you ask?
Let 'em destroy America. I'm not saying we go down without a fight. Sure, the Dems in Congress should fight long and hard - no compromise. Journalists should investigate and report. Demonstrate when and where appropriate, which is all the time and everywhere. Fight voter suppression, fight redistricting, etc. It would be lovely if a handful of Democratic billionaires were to pledge their financial support to legal battles and local and statewide campaigns.
But . . .
The reality is that a crazy person will be in the Oval office, and Congress and the Supreme Court are in the hands of right wing extremists, aka republican, though, in some cases, actual right wing extremists. Christian extremists. And we - Democrats, rational people, and the like - are likely to lose most battles. It's going to happen. As noted, we should fight where we can, but the fact is that we are going to lose. The few republican representatives and senators who might be rational - Graham and McCain come to mind - are in fact not our friends and, frankly, can be tolerated by the rest of the party because they don't matter.
So, back to my premise. Let 'em. Roll back the ACA. (I will be one of the tens of millions who will suffer as a result.) Defund PP. Roll back LGBT rights and gay marriage. Make it all illegal. Impose tariffs. Align with Russia. Cause a war with China. Roll back environmental protections (and, yes, I realize there's no coming back from the damage caused by these measures). You get the idea.
If that's what it takes to return America to some sort of equilibrium, so be it. And if it only gets worse and worse, then so be that as well. If that's all it takes to pull the rug out from under all of us, we deserve no better. If it turns out we have to break up, then let's set those wheels in motion.
I know this is doom saying, but, let's face it, I think we've all been fantasizing since election day, what with recounts, and faithless electors and Congress not certifying the results. So, sure, let's fight. I'm not saying give up. But let's stop fantasizing that anything will change in our favor in the next four years. America elected a genuine traitor. Not a clown. Not a reality show host. A traitor. And more than 60 million Americans are fine with that. America elected a traitor who have demonstrated repeatedly in recent days that he plans to align with Russia. Znd more than 60 million Americans are fine with that. The hypocrisy of the republican party/Christian extremists is breathtaking. And more than 60 million Americans are fine with that.
brush
(57,394 posts)". . . but Hillary vowed to stand by the results of the election."
matt819
(10,749 posts)Had she fought it, it would be a never-ending battle. And, sadly, no one seemed willing to fund the recounts or legal battles, or so it seemed.
And if the money was there and she had contested it, then what? The RW propaganda machine goes into overdrive. Hillary responsible for the beating of the homeless guy in Chicago. Hillary running brothel in Little Rock. Bill having an affair with (fill in the blank). Bill and Hillary raking in money from drug cartels. Hillary bused in 3 million illegal immigrants to vote in California. It would have been endless.
NCTraveler
(30,481 posts)In the short term greater numbers of people will suffer. We must take political advantage of the narrative created over the next couple of years. Use this tragedy to weaken the GOP, strengthen our numbers, and come out of the other side stronger.