An Unsettled Time
Whatever happens, it will be momentous
The sun rises on the Sunday before Election Day. Our clocks, like much of the spirit of the country, feel off. We have gone back an hour, and we worry we are about to be set back in a profound and inescapable way as a nation of rights, laws, democracy, and hope.
Mixed in with feelings of disorientation are swells of anxiety and even fear. Many of us scour the news looking for clues as to what might happen — the polls, the early vote totals, what we are hearing anecdotally from family and friends. We grasp at data points seeking to settle the pit in the stomach or to confirm our dread.
What will be the results on Tuesday? Or will we even know? How long will it take for the votes to be counted? And even if those who deny our democracy, seek to undermine free and fair elections, and promote the Big Lie end up losing, what then? What more chaos lies in store for us as calamitous conspiracy theories continue to take root and flourish?
These questions rush forth like tributaries feeding an even bigger river of doubt — what will our country become? What does the future hold for the United States of America? Will we recognize it? Will our core tenets still remain as the foundation for our governance?
It is important to face facts. That too many of our fellow Americans refuse to do just that is a big part of what got us into this mess. And the facts are what they are. There is a sizable movement in this country that seeks to literally vote out democracy. This movement is fueled by a coordinated campaign on right-wing media. It exploits the frailties of our institutions. It weaponizes lies. And it leverages our fractured technologies to turn the very notion of “the truth” into a partisan attack line.
To write all of this to you who undoubtedly know it and feel it is to hopefully provide context for a broader perspective. In detailing the danger, we should not minimize the courage, resilience, determination, and grit of all those who are battling not only to save our nation but to improve it. The reason the would-be autocrats seek to lock in minority rule through partisan gerrymandering, court packing, and manipulating antiquated procedures like the filibuster is that they know that in a true vote of the majority of Americans they would almost assuredly lose.
They know that Republican presidential candidates have won the popular vote only once since 1988. They know that when policy issues like raising the minimum wage, expanding Medicaid, or extending voting rights to former felons are on the ballot, even in red states, they tend to win. They can see that labor unions are showing some signs of a comeback. They understand that major corporations recoil from being associated with hate speech. They know that their brand is unpopular with young voters.
In short, the flexing of power by the forces who would tear down American democracy is actually an admission of weakness. They are afraid that an America that prioritizes privilege over justice, that seeks to bask in a mythic past rather than embrace the future, that wants to stoke division instead of build unity is not an America in which most Americans want to live. For them, power is everything, and they fear they could lose it.
And they are right.
This is not to say that we aren’t in trouble. This is not to say that we can take the continuity of democracy as a given. This is not to say that the forces of anger and hate can’t wreak havoc and pain.
All that can be, and is, the case. But we should not count out the tens of millions who reject this dark future. We should not overlook the leaders, especially from younger generations, who are determined to push back. We should not diminish the larger arc our nation has taken, often by defeating, time and again, the entrenched forces that wanted to derail progress.
The polls are so close that they are irrelevant. Maybe they portray an accurate snapshot of a closely divided electorate. Or maybe they are missing something, in one direction or the other. There is a plausible future in which Republicans win big. And there is a plausible future where the Democrats somehow hold both houses of Congress.
Whatever happens, it will be momentous.
And yet the fight for the future of the nation will endure. This election is but the latest chapter in an unlikely narrative that stretches back centuries. The story of the United States is one of progress and regression, pain and hope, injustice and justice. Doing the work of improvement is often exhausting. But when one recognizes the strength of the movement and the millions of allies, it should never be considered hopeless.
Come what may Tuesday, the country will continue. It will be up to us to nurture a future of opportunity where America’s most noble values can thrive anew.
Steady.
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Dan - you have been part of my intellectual landscape for as long as I can remember, and I can’t thank you enough for continuing to write, to report, and to inspire with hand to plow. I am grateful that my earthly journey coincided with yours. May we all find peace in these moments. Steady.
One must note that voters of the extreme right are blind to the long term consequences of an authoritarian government. They can only see, and unfortunately believe, of some short term gain. In the long term only the ultra rich will determine the direction of the country. The average American will lose all their rights! Is it stupidity or naivety?! Regardless, should the GOP win control it will set American rights back decades☹️☹️