I have not written anything in quite awhile, I have been holed up in my home trying to make sense of something that makes no sense. I fervently wished I could shut out the world and just return to normal, except I no longer know what normal is. But no one can hide forever, even trump had to come out yesterday. So I take to my keyboard and offer this humble opinion.
I was, like many of you, either glued to the television checking election returns, or monitoring my phone or computer from work on a regular basis. It was an anxious time. For those of us who were glad to see November 3rd finally arrive, it is now anticlimactic. Nothing is settled, nothing is certain, nothing has changed. It is as if the nation is caught in a time warp, some sort of worm hole in space, where we wake each day and face the same uncertainty.
One thing that is certain, the Covid-19 virus is winning. Everyday there is news of record-breaking new cases, and new deaths. The daily average of new cases is averaging over 100,000. Donald Trump was wrong about so many things, but the biggest thing he was wrong about was that the pandemic was going away, it is not going away. He said we wouldn't talk about it after November 3rd, but it seems that is all we do talk about, that and when will he give his concession speech.
This election, Republicans turned out in record numbers to vote, many for the first time and they voted for Republican Senators, Republican House Members, and their GOP state ticket, but they voted against the President. Republicans of all persuasions were tired of the lies and the constant drama, They were exhausted by the turmoil in the White House, so they joined with Democrats and Independents, and they put an end to the Trump dynasty.
I was jubilant, like so many others, and tears of joy came to my eyes, and I could feel the weight of Trump's four years of lies, racism, and bigotry being lifted from my spirit. I got out my American flag and displayed it on my patio. I reveled in the joy that so many people were exhibiting in the streets all across our country. The election was still close, but it grew more certain by the hour that Biden was going to win, and in the end he did win.
He restored the 'blue wall' across the Great Lakes, he won Arizona, Nevada, and he won Pennsylvania. Sure it would have been nice to have taken control of the Senate, but the nation showed that they still believe in certain conservative values. And I respect that. It means that the two parties will have to work together to get the job done, And Joe Biden is the man who can get that done.
Well, so much for the euphoria of the election outcome. It is more than a week hence and still the law suits and the accusations of fraud keep coming. Now Trump is doing what he accused Biden of doing, that is hiding in his basement (does the White House have a basement?). He is busy tweeting though, he is still proclaiming victory, and his loyal minions are encouraging him; the mad-dog Republican Senators, the bloviated right-wing broadcasters, and the wild-eyed militia.
And as all this carries forth, the nation is still gripped in the clutches of a silent killer that is stalking the countryside. In many states in the mid-west there are no more ICU beds and Covid-19 cases are being stacked in operating rooms. And where is our fearless leader, the president? He is playing golf, and avoiding the public and the press. Meanwhile president-elect Biden is drafting a virus taskforce, and putting together his transition team. Even as Trump has instructed the White House and the Cabinet Departments not to give any information to the Biden team.
This is beyond reason, it is unconscionable, the trump administration is risking national security for petty vengeance. There less than 10 weeks until January 20,2021, when the new administration will be sworn in to take up the reins of government. They, unlike the Trump administration, must hit the ground running. The have more to deal with than any administration in recent memory; the pandemic, the faltering economy, record unemployment, racial injustice, climate crisis, medical insurance, and rebuilding America's image around the world.
So what is the hold up? Speculation is running rampant that Trump is planning a coup of sorts. He is planning for his second term in office, unperturbed with the results of the election. He is firing and hiring cabinet members, and staffing the presidential office and proceeding as normal, well normal for Trump. Perhaps it is true that he is in full denial, but if that is true, someone close to him should break it to him, instead of placating him and playing along with his delusions and silly games. It is time for an intervention. Or are the people closest to him in on the plot?
Everyday that this goes on the knot in my stomach gets a little tighter, and the jubilation of last Saturday is losing its glow. We are talking about the end of our country, and I am not the only one supposing this outcome. The foreign press is fife with article purporting the downfall of democracy in America. Perhaps that is just petty jealousy, but there is something in the fact that the world's most despotic leaders have yet to accept a Biden win.
I am not a conspiracy nut, or a chicken little sure that the sky is falling. I am just a poor writer who sees things that I have never seen before, and I venture to say that no one else in this country has either. Not since 1860, then, for the first time since its founding, the country stood on the precipice and 775,000 Americans lost their lives. Are we there again? I pray to god we are not. But...
I'm just sayin
