POTUS
Joseph R. Biden & Kamala D. Harris Democratic
Donald J. Trump & Michael R. Pence Republican
Howie Hawkins & Angela Walker Green Party
Gloria La Riva & Leonard PeltierParty for Socialism and Liberation
Brian Carroll & Amar PatelAmerican Solidarity Party
Jo Jorgensen & Jeremy 'Spike' Cohen Libertarian
Why will at least 4 in 10 American voters still vote for DJT after all that's happened over his past four years as President? I suppose that's the question that scholars of American history will be trying to sort out for decades to come. Most devastating has been his head-in-the-sand response to the global pandemic. Perhaps the severe measures taken in China would not have been possible in America. But still -- much more national effort could have been made to secure masks and testing kits - instead of leaving each state to fend for itself in competition with all the others. And what about at least encouraging - instead of resisting - wearing masks, social distancing, and the business closures that are economically painful up front, but less expensive in the long run. Trump's response to the pandemic is no less short sighted than his - and the entire Republican Party's - response to global warming - whose ever growing effects will eventually make the pandemic seem like a brief case of sniffles.
Then there's his illegal suspension of financial assistance to an East European country trying to defend itself from the same predatory neighbor that has - and continues - to manipulate social media on behalf of DJT's candidacy. His impeachment was justified by the evidence -- his acquittal was achieved by that political death which every Republican office holder fears from that 4-in-10 electorate. And let's not forget his off-the-cuff assassination of a foreign military/political leader - and the criminal convictions of so many of his advisors, - including personal attorney and campaign managers.
The above issues are not especially ideological - by any notion of what might be called liberal or conservative. They're just about serious, rational, and honest public policy -- and apparently 4 in 10 Americans do not care one way or the other. A pervasive sense of angry alienation seems to be what they need to express. The worse Trump does -- the better he expresses it - and there does not appear to be any bottom to it.
Or perhaps it's more accurate to say that there is one ideological issue that does encompass all the others: American national sovereignty - as it has been attacked by a variety of opponents foreign and domestic - in an attempt to render it dysfunctional:
*The Russian regime in its quest to restore a lost empire
*American businesses that want to weaken regulation
*Southern nationalists who still resent the Civil Rights Era
*Evangelicals who resist secular, non-patriarchal values
*Federalist ideologues who want a weak central government (there's not very many of them
but they now have firm control of the supreme court)
Amplifying these interests is the decline of professional journalism and the rise of social platforms like Twitter and Facebook. The one tries to be objective (or, at least it once pretended to) - the other shamelessly proliferates misinformation targeted at its audience. And I don't see how this situation will improve until major newspapers return to the discredited ideals taught in journalism schools.
And giving this ideology a convenient target is the dysfunctional political philosophy of an academic left that calls for eliminating national borders, defunding police, and abolishing prisons. (I just saw the documentary "Time").
Trump is an awful person - but this election is not really about him. Why would any marginal party run a candidate that might draw even one vote away from the candidate who has the best chance to end this national debacle ? The Green, Socialist, Solidarity, and Libertarian parties - as well as the Republicans - have all disqualified themselves as responsible leaders.
There are several national Democratic leaders with whom I mostly disagree and I am not impressed by most of its local, self-serving office holders. But I'll be voting straight Democratic for the foreseeable future - beginning with all the other contests on this ballot. Now is the time for public minded Republicans to stand up and distance themselves from their party. And mostly they have miserably failed that test.
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.And one more thing! Looking into Biden's senatorial past - with the enormous advantage of hindsight - his record does appear quite mixed and sometimes incomprehensible. Why would anyone vote for the invasion of Iraq and then vote against the surge in troops to make it less a failure?
But this seems to be the moment in his life - coming not far from the end - when he really can make an important contribution to American life - and probably he feels the same way. He is Gary Cooper at High Noon up against the notorious Miller Gang. (no relation). That's why he won't back out of the debates - as ridiculous as they are. He wants to be a champion - our champion.
I won't discuss any of the other contests. Only Democratic candidates will get my vote this time. I won't even vote Green for the Metropolitan Sanitary District - and probably never will again.
But I will say a word about the following:
PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO THE ILLINOIS CONSTITUTION
QUESTION
Explanation of Amendment: The proposed amendment grants the State authority to impose higher income tax rates on higher income levels, which is how the federal government and a majority of other states do it. The amendment would remove the portion of the Revenue Article of the Illinois Constitution that is sometimes referred to as the "flat tax," that requires all taxes on income to be at the same rate. The amendment does not itself change tax rates. It gives the State the ability to impose higher tax rates on those with higher income levels and lower income tax rates on those with middle or lower income levels. You are asked to decide whether the proposed amendment should become a part of the Illinois Constitution. For the proposed amendment of Section 3 of Article IX of the Illinois Constitution.
I was a bit surprised about the Illinois flat tax
when I first moved here 45 years ago.
Finally changing it is a good idea.
Two percent of a poor man's income
is way more significant to him
than 2% is to the wealthy man,
and many people, like me 45 years ago,
make just enough to survive.
What's curious to me, however,
is the blatantly dishonest campaign run against it,
asserting, as it does,
that the Amendment will necessarily raise the taxes
on low to middle income people.
My wife, poor dear,
concluded that there must be
two tax amendments on the ballot,
one that made taxes more fair,
and the other that raised everyone's taxes.
It appears that our current President
has made the habit of outrageous lying
even more pervasive and shameless.
*****************
IN THE AFTERMATH:
Is the Trump era over now?
48% of the votes cast went for him,
despite the epidemic, despite the crashed economy, despite the impeachment.
Those people aren't going away -
they'll still be living outside the great cities
and mad as hell that the world is changing.
And who knows, maybe Trump will run again in four years.
But still, it's a relief that he will be out of office on January 20, 2021.
Not so much that he might do something crazy-
the only energy he has is for self promotion -
but that he will continue to be useless regarding the pandemic
or any other national emergency that might arise.
He's a clown - not a tyrant.
He's a PT Barnum - not a wanna be Hitler, Stalin, or Mao.
*****
Will Illinois ever have a graduated income tax?
It's hard to believe how many people voted against Trump,
but also voted against a graduated income tax.
Lying works in politics,
and big lies work even better.
