Bipartisanship is impossible and must be banished from Democratic thought and speech. Not out of vengeance against the GOP, but from an assessment of facts. There is no honest partner across the aisle available to an incoming Biden transition and administration to be bipartisan with. The way to recover from Trump is much more akin to denazification.
Some say there are Republicans who opposed Trump to work with. But to only evaluate Republicans by who were in or out of Trump’s circle misses the core problem. The GOP, since Reagan at least, strove to create a political climate that made Trump possible. The Republican agenda has been building a Kleptocracy. How can government maximize the wealth of a few at the expense of everyone else. Republicans are essentially anti-democratic because they strive to win power with a minority of votes and fixed federal courts to build said Kleptocracy. Every GOP candidate, every consultant, every party leader since Reagan strove to create an authoritarian, white, racist, sexist, xenophobic base, weaponizing every prejudice in our country to win elections. Every GOP leader for decades across our country made Trump possible and none can be untangled from him today.
The Lincoln Project—chock full of enabling consultants, perhaps worried about getting into heaven now, cannot be redeemed simply by turning their authoritarian-honed weapons against Trump. Kasich—he was a Gingrich lieutenant back in the day and handed out cookies to friends from Ohio’s jar as its reactionary governor. Maryland Governor Larry Hogan—he crashed a multi-billion dollar transit line project, pushes a highway expansion for wealthy developers, while 2020 write-in voting Ronald Reagan. Never Trumpers—most were simply offended by how undeferential Trump was to them. Even the departed, bipartisan-sainted John McCain gave us Sarah Palin—the female Wal-Mart prequel to Taj Mahal bankrupting Trump. Any list of GOP corruption, deceit and hatefulness quickly grows very, very long.
Denazification is a model because this divisive and hateful GOP model for coalition building must be rooted out and destroyed. Bringing any GOP practitioners into a Democratic government legitimizes their authoritarianism just as Trump’s visit to North Korea did for Kim Jong-un.
Joe Biden often says "Never question a person's motive but you can question his judgment." So who on the GOP side anywhere has shown the history of judgement needed to bring our country out from our current COVID crisis? Which GOP leader has demonstrated any consistent judgement that would bring prosperity to the working classes? Is there any Republican who’s ongoing judgements would support providing health care to everyone? GOP leaders’ judgements, from the Senate to local township trustee, have only benefited the rich and privileged at the expense of everyone else.
A Biden win coupled with a Democratic Senate takeover would mean Americans want Democrats to govern and end Trumpism. If this happens, Democrats must methodically root out every corruption the GOP has advanced over the decades that created Trump’s wholesale thievery and Crimes Against Humanity. Every federal judicial appointment under Trump must be scrutinized. Anywhere Trump political appointees could shape the civil service and ongoing policy setting must be examined. Any trace of white supremacist groups organized efforts to be hired into U.S. law enforcement must be identified. The origin of the USPS electoral sabotage rooted out. The GOP effort to weaponize COVID response to their benefit must be exposed. Not for any political vengeance, but to show every American what happened so we never do this again.