A little Christmas cheer

by | Dec 17, 2021 | Editor's Blog | 13 comments

The conversations I’ve been having with Democrats lately are depressing. It’s not just that they are resigned to losing Congress in 2022, it’s that they are resigned to losing our democracy in 2024. They believe that Republicans are rigging the system through gerrymandering and rule changes that allow legislatures to undermine the electorate. They think that we are headed for an extended period of minority rule under an autocratic system that will keep the GOP in power despite the will of the people. They might be right. 

There’s little doubt that the Republican base believes The Big Lie that the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump. They’ve got an entire national propaganda apparatus that spreads the lie and justifies the actions of those who will subvert the electoral process to ensure GOP victory. They’ve downplayed the attack on the Capitol calling the invaders “tourists” or mocking the prospect of success. They’ve compared an attempt at ending our democracy with the riots that occurred in the wake of George Floyd’s murder.

Formerly responsible Republicans refuse to hold perpetrators responsible for their actions. The GOP leadership uniformly denounced Donald Trump for inciting the attack and then promptly refused to hold him accountable. Now, they say they want to move on. 

The assault on democracy is multi-pronged. Republican elected officials gerrymander districts using technology to carefully draw districts that ensure GOP success and limit competitive races. The outrage of the GOP base is reaching fever pitch with the distortions of the propaganda machine, ensuring high voter turnout and support for rule changes that will allow GOP elected bodies or appointees to overturn election outcomes. 

In GOP world, any Democratic victory is tainted by fraud. New Jersey, they claimed, was a stolen election when Democratic Governor Phil Murphy eked out a victory that he should have won by double digits. In Virginia, where Republican Glenn Youngkin pulled off a major upset, nobody questioned the results. It’s a world of delusion that enables the crushing of democracy. 

Democrats have yet to mount any sort of unified or effective response to what feels like a freight train of illiberalism coming down the tracks. None of their election reform bills can get through Congress. And while the GOP base seems increasingly angry and motivated, the Democratic base seems increasingly splintered and apathetic. The left lacks a propaganda network to keep them outraged or the leadership to show them a clear path forward.

The combination of a GOP united around a lie and a quest for power and a Democratic Party that can’t unite around anything leaves a feeling of hopelessness and despair. The future looks bleak. Gerrymandering will almost certainly ensure Republicans control the House of Representatives even if Democrats nationally receive a majority of the vote. Similar scenarios will play out in state legislatures like it has here. Evenly split electorates result in veto proof majorities for the GOP. 

I suspect the fears will come true, in part, because that’s the history of our country. Periods of expanded access to the ballot like we’ve seen since the Civil Rights Movement are followed by periods of reactionary illiberalism. In the wake of the Civil War, we saw an explosion of democracy in the South that was followed by a period of minority rule kept in check by violence and intimidation. Today, the reactionaries are not only armed, they are celebrating vigilantism, promoting people like Kyle Rittenhouse to hero status. Polite Republicans may disagree with promoting violence but they won’t do anything to reel it in. 

What those Democrats see coming is the end of democracy as we’ve known it for the past 50 or so years and they feel helpless to do anything about it. 

13 Comments

  1. Charles

    So what should be doing now as grassroots activists and voters? Responding like trained lab rats to every plea for a $1 or $5 from Beto and the like? Everyone busted their asses and delivered a Democratic congress and Executive. Now the ball is in their court. They need to deliver on Democratic initiatives, pass the voting rights bill and put every one of those traitors in the previous administration in jail. Oh and get rid of that undemocratic, not in the Constitution filibuster while they are at it. Let those loons on the right howl. They would do the same and more and at least we would do unto them legally.

    What we should be doing now as party activist is building the grass roots locally. Knock on doors, talk to your neighbors, be a precinct officer. Get organized. Being a political hobbyist by reading blogs, responding to posts, signing email petitions, and the like is useless. Mass protests are useless. If you are not working to get more Democratic voters to the polls 2022 and 2024 than the Fascist right, you are committing suicide. Take them at their word, they want you dead. If that doesn’t motivate you, I don’t know what will.

    • phoenix

      “Now the ball is in their court. They need to deliver on Democratic initiatives,”
      —-(NO ONE WANTS THAT GARBAGE. You are deluding yourself that they do)

      “Oh and get rid of that undemocratic, not in the Constitution filibuster.”
      —(senate makes its own rules, as per the Constitution)

      “What we should be doing now as party activist is building the grass roots locally. Knock on doors, talk to your neighbors,”
      —-(People cannot afford to allow democrats anymore chances to destroy them. Face it
      your policies are driving people away.)

      “they want you dead” —(obviously projecting.)

      Merry Christmas

      and Good luck.

      • cocodog

        Don’t take this personality, but Merry Christmas

        and Good luck, and have a nice day.

        • phoenix

          If you are talking to me. Thanks.

          I take none of this personally. Its just a discussion. I enjoy having it, so few places allow it now. Perhaps I speak too plainly and I’m not that good at writing. But I appreciate the opportunity to have a say, even if it rankles people. Its not intentional.

          Anyway,

          Merry Christmas to you and yours! Good luck in all you do!

          • cocodog

            So, enlighten us. Tell us why you are a conservative/ Republican. why you seem to believe Rep. Green has it going on? Are you a Trump supporter, what type of activism you prefer, do you believe Trump was deprived of reelection by fraud? Do you believe this country is going in the wrong direction?

  2. cocodog

    So much depends on the Two major voting rights bills being considered by Congress, including the sweeping voting reform “For the People Act “and the more narrowly drafted “John Lewis Voting Rights Act.” Even If Democrats bring our wayward Senators from Ariz. and West Va. on board, the problem presented by the open-ended filibuster rule has not gone away. From a historical perspective, this country did throw out Trump and his marry little band of followers in favor of a moral and levelheaded individual, Joe Biden. Joe and his team of competent administrators have efficiently addressed COVID and is currently working on what some have called the worldwide issue of inflation. If he can show tangible results in this area, Democrats stand a far better chance in 2022 and 2024.

    • phoenix

      Used to be 67 to get cloture, Now its 60 and you guys want to weaken it more.

      Bad idea. If anything it should go back to 67. The Senate is supposed to be slow and plodding. Its a feature not a bug absolutely supposed to be this way.

      Its gotten to the point where seemingly any bill supported by the Democrats is some sneaky way to:

      Spend more
      Regulate more
      take control something or someone.
      Or force something.

      All of which are bad.

      Giving the federal government control of elections is a very very bad idea. I can’t think of a single thing that has ever gotten better once the feds have control. Not one.

      The states can handle elections just fine, which they have, and its their constitutional mandate to do so. There was a lot of weirdness in 2020 all over hopefully a bunch of it has been fixed.

      As for Manchin and Sinema they are saving the Democrats from their insanity.

      You guys should thank them. They are doing you guys a huge favor.

  3. Mike Leonard

    The Republican Party started drifting towards fascism under Nixon with his cynical Southern Strategy. It finally arrived there by installing a Russian stooge in the White House. Millions of us knew damn well that Putin’s puppet was never going to leave, culminating a 50+ criminal career.

  4. Rick Gunter

    For the life of me, I cannot believe what has happened and is continuing to happen to this country. We always have been lucky somehow in great emergencies. Some event or some leader has emerged in the 11th hour to pull our chestnuts from the fire. George Washington was one of the first of these seminal figures. Lincoln was, too, and FDR. An entire generation saved democracy in the 1940s.Are the forces of history so immense now that those who still believe in democracy are going to let it die? Include me out! We all need to get a grip and fight back.

    I voted for Mr. Biden and would do so again. But I do wonder if his priorities until yesterday were wrong. He put these infrastructure bills ahead of voting rights. Yesterday, he said that there is no great priority than voting rights. Correct. But that has been the case from before his administration took charge. There is still time to enact legislation to derail the voter suppression and voter nullification in the states. We better damn well insist that Democrats do so. If the outliers continue to derail voting rights, meaning the party fails to deal with the filibuster, then we are doomed. But I think there is still hope. Our country depends on it.

    Those who believe the 2020 election was stolen need to show the rest of us some hard evidence. I challenge these people to show us the evidence. If the Know Nothings can’t come up with the goods, then they should be shut down and the country should move ahead. They don’t believe in democracy. They don’t like a country that is multi-racial and where whites soon will be the minority. They know they are on the wrong side of issue after issue. Those of us who have contrary views simply cannot give up, and we cannot let these authoritarians win.

    • phoenix

      I can tell you.

      You guys elected Biden. The politician formerly know as “The Dunce of the Senate.” Who has always been known as moron his entire career. Its also plain to see he is in cognitive decline and can’t do the job. You can tell from what he used to be to what he is now. It was obvious during the election, and he barely campaigned staying in the basement. When he went to rallies No one was there. A true zero.

      But you guys had (and still have) Trump Derangement Syndrome. (TDS) So you saddled us with the worst broken down horse in the stable. because REEE.

      Then Biden went and chose Obama’s crew to run things. Who when they were in charge did such a bad job that the country elected Trump.

      What is the definition of insanity?

      I know you guys consider yourselves to be the smartest people who live today, But you guys really are dumb sometimes.

      But don’t worry. The Republicans are eaten up with Progressives, Socialists, Communists, and Globalists too. The only difference is where you guys will force what you want, these guys will compromise our way there.

      So in the end you guys will get what you want, it will just take a little longer.

      Merry Christmas everyone.

  5. ctw

    Thomas, you put a new column out and right off the bat some ding-dong makes a pile of incoherent comments that illustrate the idiocy that turned us into a failing state. I don’t know how you do it.

  6. phoenix

    You know it was the American people through the exercise of Democracy gave the majorities to the Republicans right? Over the years drip by drip, vote by vote.

    And then the Democrats showed how insane they are with policies that upset the domestic tranquility. So much so that normal politically disinterested people were shocked and said “Not only NO, but HELL NO” That is what killing you guys. Your insanity.

    Use the time to fix your party. Purge out the crazies, Socialists, Communists, Fascists and progressives. They brought you nothing but misery and lost elections. Force them to start their own party.

    Maybe actually RESPECT the American people talk TO then instead of DOWN TO them. Perhaps love your country. Work to improve it not destroy it. Dump the climate stupidity people see right through it.

    LEAVE THE PEOPLE ALONE instead of forcing your will upon them, forcing the to live how YOU want them to.

    And if you guys say ” I going to move to a foreign country because …..Please DO IT. Really go be happy there already are many countries who already do all the things you want and they likely would LOVE your time and talent. and gifts. It has got to be better then living here right?

    But people who say that never do leave. So this time keep your word and go.

    But most of all it will be ok. What goes around comes around

    You guys are the doctor in this clip Everyone else is Joe.

  7. bremerjennifer

    I think maybe you’re talking to too many men. Women are hard at work–and have been hard at work for months–putting time, effort, and dedication into saving our democracy. Who do you see on the calls for initiatives such as All on the Line (combating gerrymandering), the New North Carolina Project, YouCanVote, Neighbors on Call (mobilizing voters for state races), the NC Black Alliance, or the New Rural Project? Not only are women the vast majority of the volunteers and donors supporting these and many other initiatives, but they hold top leadership positions as well. When the going gets tough, the tough get going, and nobody’s tougher than women. Man up, or should I say, “woman up”?

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