It's clear, unless indictments from January 6th, or stolen classified documents, or voter intimidation, render the GOP presumptive nominee ineligible to be on the ballot, a feat that the Supreme Court does not seem capable of accomplishing, that Donald Trump and Joe Biden will be the two candidates of the major parties in November. This is the clearest, most obvious choice we have had for the Presidency in my lifetime, and in the scope of my ability to vote, which goes back to the 1976 contest between Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford.
The "he's too old" arguments more or less evaporated this week when it became clear, after Super Tuesday, that Trump would be the GOP nominee. If the GOP is willing to nominate Trump, then age isn't an issue for them, so it shouldn't be an issue for Democrats either, since the years rest better on Biden, obviously, than they do on Donald. Watching Republicans during the speech, it's clear from their demeanor, hunched over, eyes down, that they realized they're not going to capitalize on the President's age, or fitness for office.
About the only thing critics of the President's speech can say, at this point, is that "it was too partisan." Well, of course it was, the last State of the Union prior to his re-election campaign, though he successfully slapped the failure of the border legislation right squarely on the GOP and Trump, where it will be one of several failures they can cite in November as the reason for Biden's re-election. Quoting Ronald Reagan's statement to then-Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" and contrasting it to Trump's statement, "Let the Russians do whatever the hell they want," was brilliant. That will go down in history as one of the best SOTU quotes of all time. And did you see the looks on the faces of the Republicans in the room when he said that?
From the Perspective of a Democrat who is Also A Policy Wonk
Let's start with where this choice is obvious, from a traditional, policy versus policy perspective.
Unemployment has been under 4% consistently for over three years, the longest period of such low numbers since the 1960's. There are three million more jobs now than there were prior to the COVID pandemic. And we just got another solid, strong, jobs report indicating a strong economy getting better and not showing signs of slowing down. Gosh, it's just like Bill Clinton or Barak Obama were in office, low unemployment, massive job growth, a roaring, sustained economy. No Republican in the last 50 years has been able to sustain that kind of economic growth.
Wages are up. Hey, people, put on the thinking cap. Do you think the inflation we are experiencing might have at least something to do with increased prosperity and growth in wages? It's called basic economics 101. The combination of rapid recovery from COVID and job and stock market growth in a free market economy is being managed by interest rates. Being managed. That's a key phrase.
CEO confidence in the economy is running as high as it ever has. The stock market is soaring, a sign of healthy economic growth, also something we haven't had this consistently since the 1960's.
Drill, baby, drill is a reality, as the United States now produces more oil than it ever has, and permits for drilling are wide open. You won't catch the conservative media saying anything about it, but big profits for big oil, which is why the price of gas is so high right now, is a Republican mantra. Ultimately, Biden's energy policy will drive oil prices down, and with it, the price of gasoline.
Crime is actually down. The federal government doesn't really have much control over that, though the funding they provide for policing is also at an all time high, contrary to the "defund the police" nonsense that has been spreak around. It's hard to make that argument stick anymore.
Traditionally the leader of the Democratic world, under Joe Biden, and contrary to some Republican and MAGA claims, Biden has restored confidence in the NATO alliance and united it in its mission and purpose again, after Trump tried to destroy it.
From a Practical Standpoint
COVID cost 1.3 million American Lives. It was bound to be a disastrous pandemic, but let's not forget that what made it far worse than it had to be was the inept, incompetent bungling of Trump, who called it a hoax, and then became one of the biggest obstacles to effective handling of a serious pandemic anywhere in the world.
It was President Joe Biden whose actions expidited the development and distribution of vaccinations, who committed resources to fight the pandemic so that it didn't become another Republican profiteering venture, accessible only by those who could afford the treatment, and whose surgeon general provided the first practical advice Americans ever heard when it came to fighting the pandemic.
The Inflation Reduction Act is one of the most economically beneficial pieces of legislation ever passed by Congress and signed by the President whose promotion of it helped make sure it got through the legislative process.
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) ranks right up there with the IRA in terms of this President's legislative achievements. It is a reinvestment of American tax dollars back into the economy where they help people. It puts people to work, keeps people at work, increases wages, and best of all, is replacing decaying and crumbling infrastructure, from municipal water and sewer systems, to highways, roads and bridges, to port facilities and other economic engines such as the railroads and the air traffic control system, airports, and I could , of course, go on and on.
It is worth noting that Trump voiced opposition to both of these bills. Both of them.
Border Security is an issue on which I tend to think the Republican party has blown their chances. It's a big issue, made that way by a lot of publicity over the influx of people coming across the Mexican border, mainly from Central America and Venezuela. Forgetting that three million people entered the United States illegally under the Trump administration, as opposed to these immigrants coming in for asylum, it's a big deal. And the President and the Democrats were willing to go along with the proposal of Republican Senator Lankford, until Trump torpedoed that bill. And while the MAGA crowd is mostly not intelligent enough to realize how bad that was, and will vote for him anyway, those who are genuinely concerned about it have had a good chance to see what has happened, and how Trump was playing politics.
His move was a bad one. It will be one of the things analysts will point to when asked what cost Trump the election. Because it will cost him the election.
The Dobbs Decision and the overturning of Roe v. Wade has been a huge vote generator for Democratic candidates for office, even in deep red states. The party's string of electoral victories is due to a great extent to the increased awareness of exactly what is going on and what Republicans want to do about abortion. The motivation to pass legislation to codify Roe, and get around the Supreme Court, decision will carry a lot of Democrats to victory this year, including the President.
From a Moral and Ethical Perspective
Character has a lot to do with competent leadership, a statement from a quote by Senator Mitt Romney, who has ruled out supporting Trump, but hasn't yet actually endorsed President Biden. But he's not the only Republican who sees support for Trump as a quandary for a party that once claimed the high ground in the culture wars on moral values, but has now become the American political outlet for fascism, white Supremacy, Christian nationalism, Russian dictatorship and the openly immoral worldliness that is the chosen identity of the man they appear to be headed toward nominating for the third time.
No comments:
Post a Comment