It’s Thanksgiving 2024, and we’ve got a lot to be thankful for.
Just a few weeks ago, Donald Trump was defeated in a landslide, with President Biden beating him 55% to 37%, and winning over 400 electoral votes. Third party and independent candidates took a small share of the vote, but were not a significant factor.
And in the Congressional elections, Democrats defied pundit expectations, and actually increased their majority in the Senate by 5 seats, and took back the House with a margin of a least 40 votes (with some still too close to call). A series of bold new initiatives — now possible with the Democrats’ newfound power (and the imminent elimination of the filibuster) — have already been announced on abortion, gun control, Social Security expansion, climate change, Supreme Court expansion, DC statehood, with other new ones coming almost every day.
Republican elected officials, devastated by the results, have finally begun to turn hard against Trump, with dozens even going so far as to leave the party and form an “America caucus” that will align itself with with either party on a vote-by-vote basis. In what will likely be the most iconic video of the year, several of them made their point clear, when they gathered around a pile of MAGA hats, and lit them on fire, while singing “God Bless America.” And with Trump now convicted on 17 counts and counting, and pardons off the table, he is expected to spend this Christmas and many to come in prison.
How did this happen? History is still sorting out the data, but few things are already clear:
- Democrats showed up, voted, volunteered, and donated in record numbers.
- Independents and moderate Republicans, alarmed by Trump’s fascist rhetoric, went overwhelmingly for Democrats
- The media dropped the “both-sides-ism” and accurately and forcefully reported on the threat posed by Trump
- Democratic candidates ran and ran hard in every state and every district, refusing to cede even the reddest of districts (some of which they actually won).
In short, people realized what was at stake, decided they weren’t ready to surrender their democracy and freedom to a dictator, and they fought back hard. And for that, we are thankful.
Happy Thanksgiving 2024!
(Now let’s spend the next year making this look into the future a reality)