I took my own advice. In my last
column, I advised readers to reflect
on the fact that a convicted felon was running
for the highest office in the country. I
didn’t watch the presidential debate either; I
knew I would get the highlights (and low
lights!) ad nauseam. With this column, I have
some more advice: Let’s stop obsessing over 45
and make sure he doesn’t become 47.
One stream of thought coming out
of the debates that continues to baffle me is
the call for Joe Biden to drop out of the
race. The call came from the New York Times
editorial board immediately after the debate.
It was echoed by members of the Democratic
Party. With all trump’s immoral, unethical and
criminal behavior for years, I’ve never heard
a chorus singing a similar refrain. It’s been
just the opposite. How to present the con man
as a world leader with all the protections
necessary.
Let me say a thing or two about
the weak-kneed, spineless Democrats. Instead
of some people blaming Gen Zs for Jamaal
Bowman’s defeat in New York, we can point
fingers at key Democrats like Hillary Clinton
who endorsed Bowman’s opponent. The OGs of the
Democratic Party have coalesced with Zionists
to put the “Squad” in their place - outside the Party. Their next
target is Cori Bush in Missouri who has been a
staunch pro-Palestinian congressperson.
Progressive forces must stop the
hand-wringing about our weaknesses. We are
stuck in analysis paralysis and obsessing
about the impending Armageddon. We talk about
the impending doom as if it won’t affect us or
as if we have no power to change the course of
the political trajectory barreling towards
authoritarianism.
We who believe in democracy
cannot afford to reduce this critical
discussion and our strategy to two white men
or two parties. This election is
consequential, and it will be us that makes
the difference. Our strategy cannot be merely
focused on an election painted as a choice
between the lesser of two evils. Our strategy
must be an aggressive and intentional
organizing campaign to build a united front
against fascism. One that goes well beyond one
undemocratic election.
Project 2025 should have made a
believer out of us. The right’s playbook to
take absolute power is no secret. They’ve been
unfolding the plan with gerrymandering for
supermajorities in state legislatures,
stacking the courts and rolling back
hard-fought gains like abortion and voting
rights. We’ve witnessed its implementation
over the last several years but a trump
victory in November will accelerate a brutal
dismantling of government as we know it with
an absolute consolidation of power.
The mandate in this next period
is to embark upon a mass education campaign
that actively engages the multiracial working
class in its future. We have to win big at the
November polls to show both parties our
strength and determination. The elections are
just a stop on the way to building a united
front against fascism because the threat will
still be there. This must be a protracted,
innovative struggle that taps into the might
of the working class to not just slow down the
right’s agenda but to dismantle it. We must do
all we can to preserve our Democracy.
