And by "you" I mean all within the community of the both decent and sensible who are fighting to preserve our democracy.
The challenge for those of us who ARE engaging in this fight is to enlist those who are not yet doing so. And that means, as you wrote, informing and educating. It also means maintaining a positive outlook. Defeatism can be self-fulfilling.
And most crucially, it means fortifying a BIG tent. I frequently call out to people "of all political leanings and none at all." Damon Linker in his Notes from the Middle Ground made this point specifically with reference to the body of voters, mostly within the Republican Party and some outside it, who have voted for Nikki Haley in primaries.
Linker issued a call to action directly for Haley. I would like to clarify in advance that one must distinguish between the GOP as a whole and individual members of the Republican Party. It is urgent that one not make an assumption about an individual based on the whole. THAT said, the Republican Party as an institution is a pernicious force in the United States and the world.
Stop fantasizing of a restoration of Reagan-Bush conservatism in the Republican Party. It isn’t going to happen. If you want to have an influence on our nation’s politics, it can only happen in the Democratic Party. Yes, there are Democrats on the left wing of the party you can’t stand. But they yell louder than they punch. And you’d be bringing a lot of voters with you—enough to pull the party noticeably to the center and anchor it there for a generation. Let “the Squad” rant and rave. Their faction is tiny compared with the throngs of formerly Republican suburban voters who will be accompanying you on your cross-partisan journey.
Look at it this way: Trump can only win in November if your unhappy, grumbling supporters hold their noses and resign themselves to voting for Trump despite knowing better. Don’t let them do this! At least not with a clear conscience. Tell them why it would be a mistake. Tell them that, whatever policy disagreements they have with Biden and the Democrats, at least they are still a normal political party, not a cult of personality built around a conman Mussolini cheered on and enabled by a bunch of grifters and aspiring fascists. The Dems will at least work with you, cut deals with you, compromise with you. The Trumpists will just turn you into their bitch and then leave you bleeding in the gutter.
Please, Nikki Haley: Have the self-respect, the civic-mindedness, and the courage to say out loud what you must be thinking. Trump is an abomination who must be stopped, and the only way to accomplish that goal is to ensure his party’s decisive defeat in November. You have it within your power to help make that happen. Don’t flinch from the task. Embrace it. Own the moment. Be the catalyst who sends the GOP the way of the Whigs.
Thank YOU for all you do!
And by "you" I mean all within the community of the both decent and sensible who are fighting to preserve our democracy.
The challenge for those of us who ARE engaging in this fight is to enlist those who are not yet doing so. And that means, as you wrote, informing and educating. It also means maintaining a positive outlook. Defeatism can be self-fulfilling.
And most crucially, it means fortifying a BIG tent. I frequently call out to people "of all political leanings and none at all." Damon Linker in his Notes from the Middle Ground made this point specifically with reference to the body of voters, mostly within the Republican Party and some outside it, who have voted for Nikki Haley in primaries.
Linker issued a call to action directly for Haley. I would like to clarify in advance that one must distinguish between the GOP as a whole and individual members of the Republican Party. It is urgent that one not make an assumption about an individual based on the whole. THAT said, the Republican Party as an institution is a pernicious force in the United States and the world.
Here is Linker, addressing Haley:
.
https://damonlinker.substack.com/p/burn-the-gop-to-the-ground
Light the fire that burns the GOP to the ground.
Stop fantasizing of a restoration of Reagan-Bush conservatism in the Republican Party. It isn’t going to happen. If you want to have an influence on our nation’s politics, it can only happen in the Democratic Party. Yes, there are Democrats on the left wing of the party you can’t stand. But they yell louder than they punch. And you’d be bringing a lot of voters with you—enough to pull the party noticeably to the center and anchor it there for a generation. Let “the Squad” rant and rave. Their faction is tiny compared with the throngs of formerly Republican suburban voters who will be accompanying you on your cross-partisan journey.
Look at it this way: Trump can only win in November if your unhappy, grumbling supporters hold their noses and resign themselves to voting for Trump despite knowing better. Don’t let them do this! At least not with a clear conscience. Tell them why it would be a mistake. Tell them that, whatever policy disagreements they have with Biden and the Democrats, at least they are still a normal political party, not a cult of personality built around a conman Mussolini cheered on and enabled by a bunch of grifters and aspiring fascists. The Dems will at least work with you, cut deals with you, compromise with you. The Trumpists will just turn you into their bitch and then leave you bleeding in the gutter.
Please, Nikki Haley: Have the self-respect, the civic-mindedness, and the courage to say out loud what you must be thinking. Trump is an abomination who must be stopped, and the only way to accomplish that goal is to ensure his party’s decisive defeat in November. You have it within your power to help make that happen. Don’t flinch from the task. Embrace it. Own the moment. Be the catalyst who sends the GOP the way of the Whigs.