It’s only March, and I’m already feeling like this year is going to be one hell of a roller coaster ride over how I feel about the future of our democracy. (Actually, I’ve been feeling like this for years now, but this year it’s coming to a head.) There’s a lot to be hopeful for, and there’s a lot to worry about (and they don’t all cancel each other out). Let me list some things and see if you all agree.
Why I’m feeling up:
- President Biden is going on the warpath.
- The economy is improving. And people are taking notice.
- People — women in particular — are up in arms of the increasingly open Republican misogyny.
- Democrats are outperforming the polls.
- Republicans are disarray. I’d go so far as to sat they are in panic.
- Trump is increasingly showing signs that he’s losing it.
- Along the same lines, Trump is constitutionally (small ‘c’) unable to keep his foot out of his mouth. In many ways, he is his own worst enemy.
- Trump is going to trial in New York this month. He has run out of delays.
- Trump will probably go on trial in DC before the election.
- Voters are starting to pay attention.
Why I’m feeling down (short term):
- Gaza is a disaster for all sides, the only exception being Netanyahu
- There are several disinformation campaigns going on, all aimed at taking down Biden.
- There is an active conspiracy to keep Trump’s failings from the public.
- Too much of our future is riding on an old man who has the most stressful job in the world
- Because of the electoral college, the election is going to be decided by a handful of people in a handful of states, and those states are looking iffy.
- Sonya Sotomayor needs to retire now, but it’s extremely unlikely that she will.
- While we will likely take back the House, we are likely to lose the Senate.
- If, as we all hope and as is likely, Trump loses, he will not accept his loss.
Why I’m feeling down (long term):
- Basically, what Trump has done is take a Republican party that was heading toward extremism and pushed it off the cliff.
- Trump has made lying so commonplace we don’t even care any more when he’s caught at it. And he has made violence, both the threat and the actuality, into acceptable political tactics.
- Trump has also stacked the judiciary, especially the Supreme Court.
- The Christian nationalists are riding high in the Republican party.
- Misogyny is on the rise.
- The extremists are getting better at their game, learning from each failure.
- Putin is behind this.
Each of these lists is a partial list, by the way. Feel free to add more to any of them. (I had originally each of these bullet points a full explanation, but realized as I as published it that it’s way too long.)
In short, we are in a battle for our lives. We have always been, but now it’s obvious. It may not be too late, but recognize that we will always be in battle. Evil never gives up, so neither can we.