Brian Williams. 11th hour. Tonight.
Williams is interviewing Wilson, a ubiquitous GOP never Trumper guy, often on the revolving pundit-O-rama these days. And I have to admit, I have loved him hating Trump.
But tonight, his innate GOP blood came out loud and proud. First he started out with that hoary old and imo untrue supposition that “Democrats are known for snatching defeat from the jaws of Victory.”
Well first of all, get a new meme man, particularly when the Democrats are preparing to roast Trump’s nuts. And I think they will. Second of all, I don’t think history says this meme is true at all, but that’s for another diary.
But THEN, Wilson goes on to say the problem for the Democrats in 2020 is that they really have no true north, so to speak and my words. His words were that the Democrats have had only two great political strategists in recent times they could count on: Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. And of course, neither are particularly useful to them now.
He went on to say that the Democrats have no one near either of those two men on their current roster of candidates, and this may in fact, be the reason Trump triumphs in 2020 over every thing that has literally exploded over his head into the skies over this last week.
By this time I’m almost apoplectic. Where to begin except to say, just really?!? Oh boy, If I’d been sitting across from him instead of Brian Williams calmly nodding as if he was in the face of wisdom, I’d have torn him a new throat.
So here we have a president on the verge of almost certain impeachment from the house, with all his buddies being pulled into it by the minute, now including Pompeo and Barr and who knows how many others we’re yet to learn the names and roles of. (BTW, let’s just stop to note that it was the freaking WSJ, one of Murdoch’s babies, that informed us that Pompeo was in on the call to Zelensky. Anyone else thinking, like me, wow GOP, now the WSJ is reporting against your team?)
We have a president melting down by the hour and tweeting increasingly threatening and preposterous things. And I think we all know no one can rein him in and it’s just going to get a whole lot worse. Recent history tells us we can’t even imagine, even now, just how bad it might get.
We have republican congress critters quitting right and left.
We have a White House half staffed, and most of even those are “acting” not appointed. And who knows who will quit tomorrow.
And this deserves all caps---WE HAVE A CASE WHERE THE RESISTANCE NOW IS COMING FROM WITHIN THE ADMINISTRATION, NOT FROM THE OUTSIDE.
We have a president who thinks this is not a problem, because he’s got this.
We have a bunch of cowardly GOP reps shaking in their shoes and telling us they just haven’t had the time to read all this stuff.
And I could just go on and on and on, just about the last week! Yet it is the Democrats who are standing by to snatch defeat out of the jaws of victory. Again, REALLY?!?!
The other thing that made the steam come out of my ears is the very idea that Democrats are beholden to only two MEN, and without them, we’re lost.
Rick Wilson stated essentially, and w/great arrogance, that none of the current women on the Democratic roster were up to it, not to mention the men. And, not to mention the incredibly strong women of the Democratic Party, starting with Nancy Pelosi and working your way down, whether you agree with their every thought, vote, policy or not. Fact is, the Democratic Party is far ahead of the GOP in giving strong women a voice. Period. We are NOT beholden to just two MEN.
So I saw Wilson’s comment as incredibly sexist, and so very GOP of him.
Most importantly, I’m not writing this to pick on another pundit, or complain about Williams lack of push back---not his job at that point imo---or blame it on the media.
I’m writing this because we simply MUST STOP this meme that Democrats are pussy cats unable to find the litter box, shatting on their paws all over the place. And yes, I hear it too freaking much here.
Now, Democrats are vulnerable to imperfections like crazy, and some of them irritate the hell out of me too. I get that. But Holy Jesus on a ritz cracker, please tell me HOW we need to be put on the defensive as we all get rolled in Trump’s fucking litter box?!?!?
I’m all over disagreements about what we as progressives and Democrats should do about various policies, etc, etc. What I am NOT all over is guys like Rick Wilson talking about how Democrats better be quaking in their boots right now, because y’know, that’s what we do.
I totally get we have no guarantee as to where any of this is going right now. I totally get we have no guarantees about the 2020 election, so puleeeeeeze spare me the comments about fighting as if we’re behind, etc. etc. and not my point here.
My point is, we have every reason to fight as if we’re in the cat bird seat, to speak with confidence and belief in the resistance, backed by the facts that are coming in literally every hour on the hour---and FINALLY, YES, by those in the very administration we are fighting.
No, there are no guarantees. And it’s not just about the presidency in 2020, it’s about the senate and the house and the state governments too, all freaking down the line like always. And it’s going to be a battle one way or the other.
But for God’s sake can we just step forward and metaphorically slap the next person who says “Democrats are famous for snatching defeat out of the jaws of victory?” Like it’s some kind of accepted meme, like I saw tonight?
Because it IS NOT. And if we don’t say so, who will?