Supporting Democracy

President-elect Joe Biden’s victory was officially confirmed by the Electoral College yesterday! Sadly, this is heartening news. Each state, whether Republican or Democrat, whether supporting Trump or Biden, carried out their duty to provide, guard and report a free and fair election. In any other year, the confirmation of the Electoral College would barely be a blip on the radar screen. But given Trump’s unabating and malicious actions to undercut the results of the election, the confirmation of the election results by the Electoral College was significant.

In a recent op-ed piece in the New York Times, Ross Douthat, a conservative commentator, drew a distinction between Republicans at different levels of government.   Republican officials at the state level have acted ‘normally’. They have resisted intense pressure from Trump and his allies to break the law and throw out votes. While Republicans at the national level have silently refused to acknowledge the legitimate results of the election or have joined in Trump’s baseless challenge of the election he lost.

‘The Republicans behaving normally are the ones who have actual political and legal roles in the electoral process and its judicial aftermath, from secretaries of state and governors in states like Georgia and Arizona to Trump’s judicial appointees. The Republicans behaving radically are doing so in the knowledge — or at least the strong assumption — that their behavior is performative, an act of storytelling rather than lawmaking, a posture rather than a political act.’

By one count, over sixty legal challenges to the election have been filed and there no major illegalities or irregularities have been found. Most of the suits have been dismissed with scathing rebukes from justices (both Democrat and Republican) about the lack of evidence and lack of even semblance of legal coherence. In all his hollering and complaining, Trump has neither presented, nor presumably found, any evidence of significant voter fraud.

Yet his destructive charade continues, supported by the fires of grievance he has so carefully tended throughout his time in office. The Congressional Republicans who have been following his lead must feel they have no choice. Most are silent, perhaps fearing to cross this malicious man and the passions he has fomented within the Republican Party and within this country. Crossing a vindictive and powerful man has consequences beyond what most of them are willing to bear.

Douthat goes on to compare Trump to a cult leader whose prophecy has failed:

Crucially, as in certain famous cults, the failure of these prophecies doesn’t undo the story. It just requires more elaboration and adaptation, more creative fantasizing — and meanwhile the gears of normal politics grind on, choked with sand but still turning steadily enough.

Trump will not stop. He laid the groundwork for this far-fetched challenge four years ago.   He cheerfully proclaimed ridiculous lies about the size of his inauguration crowds and claims that the only reason he lost the popular vote was due to massive voter fraud. The performative actions of Congressional leaders and the alternate reality he has so carefully crafted are what allow him to keep going. The majority of individuals who identify as Republican now believe, without legitimate evidence, that this past election was marred by a significant breakdown in our system of voting.

These baseless accusations will not, ultimately prevail. President-elect Joe Biden will, I believe, be sworn in on January 20^th. But his job of leading the country in dealing with the raging pandemic, the struggling economy, the ongoing systemic racism and the continuing environmental crises will be made even more difficult.

As Robert Hubbell often says, this is a generational struggle we are witnessing. The demographic, economic and social changes in our country and in the world have created fertile ground for the resentments and fears to blossom into an antagonism and distrust so deep that even verifiable events (the Presidential election) cannot be agreed upon.

The road back to a functioning two-party system at the national level will be a long one. We will all need to stay involved in both the performative and the normal political acts that foster the kind of democracy to which we aspire to. What we think, say and do matters. Let us continue to act with strength and compassion to use these times to move toward a country more fully realizes its highest ideals.