Welp, I was dead wrong. Harris lost by a lot. I was wrong about the election results and I hope that I am wrong about how bad Trump’s second term will be.
I’ve had some time to reflect on the stinging disappointment and had these thoughts.
First, if you are one of those folks who just want to “Own the libs,” I have a simple message for you. Fuck you! Seriously, if you take delight in defeating your fellow Americans, then you are basically a unpatriotic asshole who might do well to reflect about what it means to be a real American. No one ever did that to your group.
What’s next?
Things are bad, but it ain’t all bad. Here are some bright spots:
Civil war did not happen. We probably avoided a guerrilla civil war. Had Trump lost, there would have been violence. It’s interesting to me that Democrats deal with loss via depression and anxiety, while Trump supporters deal with it via anger and violence. Same negative energy, but one focuses it inward while the other focuses it outward.
Trump actually has to govern now. And Republicans have proven time and again that they are not willing, or able to do that in any satisfactory way. Their policies are highly unpopular to the average American. For example, throwing tens of millions of people off healthcare is not a winning strategy. Cutting Medicare and Social Security will also affect millions of people. Tax cuts for the rich? The list goes on.
The Republican Party is still a divided group. Remember the Mike Johnson fiascos with his own party? That is still alive and well. Also, there are reasonable-minded Republicans who can still provide guard rails in the Senate.
The mid-terms are two years away, and it is likely that either the House or Senate, or both will flip. That would hamstring Trump’s power. At the time of this writing, the House is still undecided.
Trump lies. Trump made promises during his first term that he never followed through on. New health care plan? Nope. Infrastructure? Nope. Border wall that Mexico paid for? Nope. Lock up Hillary? Nope. None of those “promises” materialized.
So here’s a list of things he has said that I hope he does not pursue.
Mass Deportations – Not only would this tear families apart, this would have an immediate increase in the cost of construction and farming. The cost of housing would rise as well as produce in your grocery store. You and I would shoulder the burden.
Tarrifs. I personally think they make sense, but just implementing them would be disastrous for everyday Americans. Here is the explanation: Imagine you own a widget company and you produce widgets for $100 each, which you sell for $120 apiece. Now the US government tells you that they cost $120 each to produce. What do you do? Do you sell them at cost? No! You mark them up $20 and pass that along to the consumer. (That’s you and me if you are not taking notes.) That is why is is described as a tax on consumers. There are ways to avoid this, but they take time and money. Imagine walking into a Walmart where most of the store’s stuff was made in USA. That’s what we are talking about. And while I agree with that vision, it will take more than one administration to pull that off.
Dictator on Day 1 – That would be a great way to start your term. I think it would draw an immediate reaction from his own party. We welcome our fascist overlord!
Drill, Baby Drill. – Fuck the planet, and double down on fossil fuel. Have you seen our temps this year? Climate change is a hoax according to Trump. Wake up and open your fucking eyes, man!
Punishing His Political Enemies – This is a page straight from the fascism playbook.
Silencing the Free Press – Journalism is one of the hallmarks of our democracy. When it dies, so does our democracy. Show me one authoritarian regime with a free press. Just one.
Project 2025 – Trump never said he would not adopt it. If it is taken up, then our country does a very violent shift to conservatism. LGBTQ+ rights will be challenged, and there will probably be a nationwide abortion ban. There will be a big push to erode the separation of church and state. Huge numbers of civil servants will be replaced with Trump loyalists.
The Economy – This is the issue that Harris lost the election to. Trump has no plans to bring down prices. Just saying.
And a final message to the people who voted Trump into office, despite the grave threat to democracy that that he poses:
You reap what you sow.