2016 United States Election

[Nin]

One of the perspectives in the German press which I read today (there is a lot more to read.... but i do have a job and a live...)

I know if any of you can read this, a it is in German:
http://www.zeit.de/2016/47/donald-trump ... ropa-werte

One sentence particularly caught my eye and mind:
"Und der mächtigste Mensch auf der Erde, der weder autoritär ist noch einen an der Waffel hat, heißt seit dieser Woche Angela Merkel. Das ist, alles in allem, keine gute Nachricht."

The most powerful person on earth who is neither authoritarian nor nuts (German expression: has something o the waffle) is, since this week Angela Merkel. And that is, all in all, not a good news."

I hope that there will be English versions of some of the German articles online soon, I think it could be interesting to some of you how the whole election is seen in Europe.

[yovargas]

I guess I wonder at the sudden sense of urgency reflected in this idea of helping those subject to Republican rule. The Republicans have been running the show where it counts for quite some time.

I don't recall a lot of talk about mass deportations before He showed up.

[Cenedril_Gildinaur]

Once the primaries were over there wasn't anything good I could say about this election, so I didn't say it.

But now that the election is over, if there are any Trump supporters here, congrats on your victory.

I'll just try to be happy that Johnson polled 3%, unusually high for a 3rd party candidate.

[Cenedril_Gildinaur]

On other forums I see a lot of people saying "what went wrong, why did we lose?" There are those doing the hard work of introspection, and others doing the easy work of blaming the hated other or the stupidity of the public.

Personally, I blame the Democratic Party for Trump's victory. As I wrote above, there hasn't been any good news since the primaries ended.

First off, there are times when you intentionally run a weak candidate, and other times when you intentionally run a strong candidate. For weak candidates, look to Mondale in '84 or Dole in '96. The incumbent is strong, you'll probably lose, but you have to put forward a credible candidate to keep the party going. That's Mondale, that's Dole.

Taking on an incumbent is difficult, but if an incumbent is weak you put forward the strongest candidate you can to beat that weak incumbent. That would be Reagan in '80 or Clinton in '92. The other time to run as strong as you can is when the field is wide open, such as in '88, '00, '08, or '16.

But the Democrats don't seem to understand that very well. Start with '04. Bush was not a strong incumbent. He could have been beaten. So did the Democrats choose a good candidate? Instead they chose a Dole/Mondale named Kerry.

The '12 election is harder to place as to Obama's relative strength, but the Republicans were also busy suppressing an internal revolt and had to settle on Romney. Plus Romney followed the GOP trad of "second in line is first in line next time".

The Democrats don't follow that pattern. They could have chosen anyone. But Hillary had been priming the party machinery since '00, and doubling down since '08. She conspired with Wasserman to make her inevitable, in spite of the strongly anti-establishment mood of the country. Bernie tapped into it in a safe way. Trump tapped into it in an ugly way. Hillary did her best to step on it. In a strongly anti-establishment year, she campaigned on her insider inevitability.

As such, she made Trump's victory possible.

[Impenitent]

I agree with C_G to an extent. At the start of the process none of the republican candidates appeared particularly strong or challenging, and it was Trump throwing his hat in the ring that was the game changer.

[yovargas]

I keep thinking that maybe he really, literally could have shot someone on 5th avenue and still won the election. I see so little logic in this outcome that I don't see how that would've stopped him.

[Inanna]

I don't think anyone could have stopped him.


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[RoseMorninStar]

Trump is a narcissist. Although there are problems in (both sides) of our political system, it is nearly impossible to beat a narcissist. They will say anything and they are very good at picking up on exactly what you want to hear. Trump did not/does not deal in realities or specifics, he deals in dreams and appeals to emotion not intellect. What I have a hard time dealing with is that his ilk (the wealthy who cheat the system & do not pay their fair share of taxes) is part of the problem. How could people not see that?

[Túrin Turambar]

I don't think anyone could have stopped him.


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I think in hindsight it's easy to overstate his strength. He won a narrow victory over an unpopular opponent in an election cycle when the generic Republican would be favoured to win. Even then he would have probably lost had the election been held a fortnight ago, or at most points throughout September and October. Had 1 voter in 100 voted differently, Clinton would be president-elect and the entire thing would look like a farce. Trump did remarkably well, but he was also lucky.

[yovargas]

I see some people taking some comfort in that Hillary won the popular vote meaning she lost due to an "antiquated technicality" (to borrow phrasing Lali posted on FB). But it just makes me more upset - you can add the electoral college to the giant pile of stupid bullshit that should be changed but will remain exactly the same no matter what.

[yovargas]

Yesterday, I didn't know what I was feeling. I spent most of the day in something of a daze.
Today, I woke up with a much clearer emotion: I feel really f**king angry.

This is not my country, this is not my government, these are not my people. I did not sign up for this, I want no part of it, I want out, and it doesn't matter one damn bit cuz I'm stuck amongst this vileness whether I chose it or not.

[Lalaith]

I won't tell you not to feel that way or try to offer you hope or anything like that. You're entitled to feel angry. I am angry. My grief yesterday was mostly anger. I am still very sad, and I felt very strongly yesterday that I needed to allow myself to feel all of those ugly feelings for awhile. I am going to try to move on today, though, but that is just me.

I will not, however, forget the look on my daughter's face when I had to tell her that Trump won. And that will keep me motivated to press on.

[Cerin]

I keep thinking that maybe he really, literally could have shot someone on 5th avenue and still won the election. I see so little logic in this outcome that I don't see how that would've stopped him.

It is not an illogical outcome. The half of the nation that voted for Trump was rejecting the status quo -- the global corporate agenda, an economy that works only for the wealthy elite. They were so determined to repudiate the ruling elite, it didn't matter to them how horrible Trump was. Hillary represented the way things are, and that is what she ran on -- continuity. But half of the country really, really, really did not want four more years of the same thing, even if the change they got was a man as awful as Trump.

[axordil]

Something I received from my Senatorial candidate today which hit the pause button on my research into getting out of Dodge:

This is the email where I’m supposed to thank you for all you’ve done for me, tell you how much it meant to me, and then say my goodbyes and wish you luck on your journey. I’m supposed to say something like, “Perhaps our paths will cross again.”

But that’s not how I roll. Of course, I am thankful to you and I’m forever grateful for this experience. But why wouldn’t I be? Let’s talk about something important.

We’re all disappointed about Tuesday night’s results. We lost an election. In fact, we – the Democrats – lost a whole mess of elections on Tuesday.

But please know that I’m going to be fine. My wife is gorgeous and brilliant, and my son True is my best little buddy in the world. We are not the people who will be hurt by these election results. So please don’t spend any time being sad for me. If you’re going to be sad for someone, make it the single mom who has cancer and is scared to death about being unable to keep her insurance to continue treatments without Obamacare. Worry about the undocumented student who has only ever known this country and is worried about what happens to her now. Worry about the minimum wage worker trying to stretch $30 into a full grocery trip. Let your heart go out to the college student saddled with enormous debt and unable to get help from a parent whose own graduate degree has forced him into bankruptcy.

I met each of those people, in real life, during this campaign. And it fueled me the whole way. But here’s the thing, that fuel is still in my tank. Why? I love this country and I won’t let losing an election force me away from the process.

Pick yourself up. Dust yourself off. Yes, Donald Trump is going to be President and the Republicans control the House and the Senate, but I need that to double your resolve, not cause you to give up on our politics.

Be proud of the campaign we ran. In a “red” state that Donald Trump won by 19%, we came within 3% of turning the Senate seat blue. And we didn’t do it by hugging the middle and pretending to be moderate Republicans.

I wouldn’t change a single day on this campaign. I’m proud that we took on some of the biggest names in Republican politics and darn near shocked the world. We fought for smart environmental policies, for unions, for LGBT equality, for commonsense gun safety, and a host of other important causes. I’m proud that we didn’t back down and that we demonstrated that the most important thing Democrats can do is make their argument.

If you were a part of this campaign in even the smallest way, you might feel like stepping away from it all to lick your wounds. Maybe you think you’re done with volunteering or donating or even believing in anything changing. Well, you won’t get a pass from me. Staying engaged has become more important than ever.

And this is the time to maintain that engagement. A new generation is stepping forward in America. Don’t let anyone tell you that this generation is selfish. This is a generation that cares more about ideas than ideology and measures patriotism not by a politician’s eagerness to go to war but by their willingness to do what’s right no matter the political cost. And this generation knows better than to let any politician – even a President – tell them that a changing country is a declining country.

I don’t know what I’m going to do next or even whether I’ll ever place my name on a ballot again, but I know I’m not leaving this cause behind. To truly care about this country is to demonstrate that you care about her politics the same when you’re winning as when you’re losing.

America needs you now more than ever. So don’t quit! This generation is patriotic, creative, selfless, and – most importantly – numerous. My campaign might no longer be the vehicle for your activism, but that doesn’t mean you’re excused from standing up and making your voice heard.

Take some time off...

Ok, was that enough time?

We have work to do. You in?

A little but he touches on something true--the electoral map for under 25 voters had about six red states. In four years they will still be voting, and many of those at the other end of the chronological spectrum will not. If there is anything resembling a fair election then we are suffering through the death throes of an antiquated and world view.

So I have to ask myself how optimistic I am about keeping elections fair, or at least fair in enough spots to turn back the tide.

[yovargas]

It is not an illogical outcome. The half of the nation that voted for Trump was rejecting the status quo -- the global corporate agenda, an economy that works only for the wealthy elite.

So in order to reject the wealthy elite they elected an extremely wealthy elite that has never in his entire life for one second shown the slightest bit of concern for anyone besides himself and his wealth and status? One that, BTW, said he wanted to lower the tax burden of the extremely rich, thus making the lower classes pay a bigger share. Bullshit. I don't buy that line of reasoning for one damn second anymore. Asides from vague talk about pro-US trade, Trump doesn't represent a rejection of the "wealthy elite" in any sense whatsoever. What he does represent is an open embrace of anti-intellectualism, pro-ignorance, and lots and lots and lots of wild fear mongering.

[Cerin]

I'm so impressed by that letter!

[Maria]

I do like Jason Kander.

[Cerin]

It is not an illogical outcome. The half of the nation that voted for Trump was rejecting the status quo -- the global corporate agenda, an economy that works only for the wealthy elite.

So in order to reject the wealthy elite they elected an extremely wealthy elite that has never in his entire life for one second shown the slightest bit of concern for anyone besides himself and his wealth and status? One that, BTW, said he wanted to lower the tax burden of the extremely rich, thus making the lower classes pay a bigger share. Bullshit. I don't buy that line of reasoning for one damn second anymore. Asides from vague talk about pro-US trade, Trump doesn't represent a rejection of the "wealthy elite" in any sense whatsoever. What he does represent is an open embrace of anti-intellectualism, pro-ignorance, and lots and lots and lots of wild fear mongering.

It's not going to promote a useful understanding for future campaigns if you reject the truth of what happened here, just because you yourself reacted in a different way.

People didn't vote for Trump based on the specifics of his policies. They voted for him because he spoke to their concerns, to their misery, to their anger, and with contempt against the 1% politicians for whom they had ceased to exist.

And don't think for a moment that Trump is part of the elite just because he's rich. Trump is despised by the elite. In fact, some believe that it was a moment, sitting in the midst of the elite, being laughed at by them as the President ridiculed him at the White House correspondents' dinner in 2011, that sparked his determination to be President.

[yovargas]

They voted for him because he spoke to their concerns, to their misery, to their anger, and with contempt against the 1% politicians for whom they had ceased to exist.

Yes, he willfully stoked their wildly ignorant world view with wildly irrational fear mongering and they liked it.

I do not deny "their misery", but I absolutely deny that Trump is in even the slightest way any sort of rational response to it.

[Jude]

And don't think for a moment that Trump is part of the elite just because he's rich. Trump is despised by the elite. In fact, some believe that it was a moment, sitting in the midst of the elite, being laughed at by them as the President ridiculed him at the White House correspondents' dinner in 2011, that sparked his determination to be President.

It's possible to be part of the elite while being despised by other members of the elite. The elite is not one single monolithic homogenous group.