Left Ahead

Whither Dems After Not-Quite Win

Hillary Clinton pulled an Al Gore, with the popular vote but Electoral Colleage loss. The furious almost-haff of America wants Trump-style vengence. She was cool, gracious and Spock to his Kirk. Now what? Let's talk: The winning side's denial — of ahte, including racism, sexism, xenophobia, religious intolerance, and even homophobia. The 80-year pattern of GOP Presidents ruining the economy in all key area.Huge Republican backlog of judge appointments. Do Dems play nice and even allow Senate rules to change to avoid filibuser?Do we need to prepare for a Pence replacement if Trump goes infarction or stroke? Today's show will be the last weekly podcast after over nine years. As well to the many guests and listeners, I thank the two original cofounders in the early years, Lynne Lupien and Ryan Adams. The shows allegedly will available here, at the Left Ahead archives, and on iTunes.

Incivility, gender, race and hate

I spent many years in Virginia and still identify with the best of us there. Thomas Jefferson in Notes on the State of Virginia (XVIII: Manners), "Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just..." As this motley, churlish election cycle completes in less than a week, let's discourse on big themes, such as: Following the no-colored-Presidents-for-me tone, how deeply are we experiencing, the no-dames-for-President tone?Are 40% to 50% of us truly OK with a puerile, impulsive ignoramus as out leader?Are the judgmental Europeans right about us as bigots and socially retrograde?Can this election catapult us to a new America of tolerance and egalitarianism? We've had 8 years plus the campaign of "Oh, no, it's not that Obama is Black. It's that he's foreign; Muslim, a pinko. :Assuming POTUS Clinton the Greater, do we then get, "Oh, no, it's not that Hillary's a women. It's that she's a crook, a criminal, a pinko."? I can't believe 6% or more of the electorate is undecided, or so they claim. Then I"m an incredulous sort. Playing cards so close to your vest makes them tattoos. Bad form. Let's kick around the final days of a much too long, far too nasty season.

Whither the Tiny-Tent Party?

Let's play the game along with Republicans. They lost the POTUS yet again in 2012 and followed that with the promies and (dare we say) hope of the Growth & Opportunity Project (G.O.P.). That jocularly named autopsy detailed the failures, forecasted the demographic trends, and mandated what they needed to do to fill up a big tent of women, African Americans, Latinos, and, well, Democrats. The lameness of pary head Reince Priebus and ticket head Donald Trimp seem the antithesis of the autopsy findings. Assuming the obvious Hillary Clinton victory in two weeks, do Republicans: Accept that they can only get the voted of poorly educated white men?Cling to being "the party of Lincoln" even though the modern bastardization couldn't be farther from his ideals?Try to live with a splintered and split personality of far right extremists, bigots and other anachronisms?Do another deep dive and this time really try to follow the analysis findings? They really have become an asylum or other institution of dysfunctional quasi-adults. For the Democrats, if they can't geet control of at least the Senate (thus installing judges and preventing the Tea Party pledge of impeachment and other vengeance against Clinton, then what? Ideally, they could get control of most legislatures in the 32 states that let their local lawmakers do the Census Year redistricting. Republicans were brilliant and ruthless in gerrymandering. What is the Dem strategy?

Rigged Election Whining

For consistency, note that I called out GOP would-be POTUS Donald trump as a mommy's boy in June. HKe's still at it. Granted, Sen. Elizabeth Warren politically popularized "the sysetm is rigged" several years ago. Then realizing her weakness with progressive sorts in her campaign against Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton wore the RIGGED button figuratively at speeches. Now the deliciious irony is amoral Dem turned pseudo-Republican Trump overuses the term to tedium. The election is rigged. mass media and pols, even GOP officials, conspire against him in a fixed election. Let's discuss whether he has any case at all.I love that Okie Warren's word repeately comes from the fake donkey's mouth. Let's also touch on how the pathetic 35% to 45% who'd torch democracy for anti-woman, anti-lefty emotional voting will deal with the now-destined defeat. Some threaten rebellion, even assassination. The rotting husk of the Republican party chooses lizard-brain reactions right now. Can them come to democracy and the commonweal?

No Saleswoman, That Hillary

With relief, most of us look to Hillary Clinton's victory next month, and fending off Donald Trump's approach to the White House. What about the next go? Already, people are talk king about running for the Prez. Republicans like Paul Ryan sene her campaign weaknesses. Democrats are certain to have the we-can-do-better free-lances arming. One huge factor of the 2020 race would be what we have seen more in the debates than her stump speeches. She lets her intellectual pretense and lawyer training block her pitches. She makes a policy point or answers a pointed or nasty challenge, only to run on and on. I'll talk about the greatest ad salesman I knew and what his lessons were. That Trump guy boasts of his sales and negotiating prowess. His business record is not so supportive of those claims and his flaccid swats during campaigning contradict it. Hillary can outdo him and future contenders, not by changing her messages, rather her delivery.