Do you think that's an exaggeration? According to Sarah Kendzior, expert on the authoritarian states that emerged after the dissolution of he USSR, Trump has been following a well-documented pattern of undermining democracy since he was elected. In fact, the situation with the Trump family is eerily similar to that of Uzbekistan.
Still, Trump is historically unpopular. Shouldn't we take comfort in the fact that polls say that almost any Democratic candidate would be 8-10 points ahead of him in an election? Maybe. The problem is the increasingly vitriolic infighting that is going on between supporters of various Democratic candidates - particular between Bernie supporters and people I will refer to as Bernie-phobics (including those who say they will bring a barf bag to the ballot box if they have to vote for him).
If I were a Trump strategist, an obvious strategy presents itself. When you need to re-elect a divisive, unpopular leader, you need to aggressively deploy voter suppression techniques. Release damaging information (true or not) and make it appear that the candidates are cheating or employing unethical tactics to win. For Republicans, the path to victory is to get Democrats engaged in a bitter battle to the point where the loser's supporters stay home on election day.
If I could address Democratic supporters, I'd say this. First of all, stay clear of conspiracy theories. If you are spreading rumours about other candidates that even your own candidate doesn't repeat, you're not helping. If you're announcing that you will never vote for candidate x, you're not helping.
For the Obama/Clinton/Biden crowd who seem to be desperate for any centrist alternative to Bernie Sanders, I have to ask: what's so bad about universal healthcare and free post-secondary education? It seems to work pretty well for the Finns. If you're convinced that Bernie can't win, I invite you to read this insightful analysis that claims the opposite. If you think Sanders is a radical, here's what French economist Thomas Piketty had to say on the matter:
I think, first, that [Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth] Warren and Sanders are not radicals," said Piketty in response to one interviewer's question. "They are moderate social democrats by European standards....
Like many other economists, Piketty insists that, as happened in Sweden, sharing wealth more broadly will make the U.S. economy stronger, not weaker, and richer overall.And for those of you who consider Michael Bloomberg some sort of saviour who can stand up to Trump, I invite you to look at his own, very troubling past, particularly when it comes to racial issues. No, he's not Trump but he's not great either.
For Bernie supporters, I would say this. Yes, this is a historic chance to finally get a progressive in the White House and it will be a bitter blow if it doesn't happen. Still, there is no basis for the claim that Biden, Klobuchar, or even Bloomberg is "worse than Trump". Publicly declaring "Bernie or bust" is divisive and will encourage centrists to stay home or worse, defect to Trump. Your best play is to support Bernie but stay positive.
To everyone, I would say support your candidate. Keep it clean and remember that the ultimate goal in November is to have president whose name doesn't rhyme with "dump".
Good luck to the US and to the world.
No comments:
Post a Comment