Monday, February 18, 2019

What we need in 2020

Ever since that horrible night on November 8, 2016, we have been yearning for the day when the misanthrope who “won” the election would be out of office. Now that we’re halfway through the Trump administration, the battle to challenge him is heating up.

We can’t just settle on someone better than Trump. After all, any person who can construct a grammatically correct sentence would be better. Whoever replaces him has the dual challenge of running the country and repairing the damage that was caused by his kakistocracy.

Yet, while it’s necessary to make Trump a one-term president, we also need to fix the root cause of the dismal 2016 results. This means returning the U.S. Senate to Democratic control, reforming voting laws to make them more inclusive, and drowning out Trump TV (Fox News) with a positive progressive message aimed at all demographics.

It means supporting Senator Booker’s re-election (assuming he’s not on the national ticket) even if you disagree with certain aspects of his voting record, as I do. Voting for a third-party contender is a vote for a Republican, and voting for a Republican is tacit approval of Trump’s draconian agenda.

It means supporting good Democrats running for state and local office because they are the farm team for future high office holders, even if your favorite candidate fails in the primaries.

It means supporting progressive out-of-state candidates for the House and Senate because whether we like it or not, money talks.

It means getting involved in the political process, whether through the party or through advocacy groups.

It means setting a better example than the GOP does by purging the Democratic Party of those who engage in sexual misconduct and racist actions, even if these occurred years ago.


What Ousting Trump will require a presidential candidate who not only appeals to a broad base and who not only has impeccable unblemished credentials, but also who can inspire and motivate. Someone like JFK or Barack Obama. We shouldn’t settle for anything less.