On Saturday morning, Nov. 7, we learned that Joe Biden was our new president and Kamala Harris was our new vice president. I was elated. Chris danced around the living room. Millions breathed a sigh of relief. Millions more wept tears of anger. I know how it feels to be on either side. I didn't weep when Trump claimed victory four years ago. Stunned, for sure. Despondent, yes. Fearful for the fate of my country.
I was right to be afraid.
What about the 71 million Americans who voted for Trump in 2020? That's 8 million more than voted for him in 2016. It's a good thing that Democrats and never-Trump Republicans spent the past year in GOTV efforts. We needed all of those 75 million-plus to elect Biden/Harris. We especially needed them in the battleground states of Pennsylvania, Georgia and Arizona.
So half of the country liked what the Democratic candidate had to say and half sided with Trump. There is no easy explanation. I know that some Republicans liked the expression of the T-shirt, "Make Liberals Cry Again," a clever twist on Trump's MAGA motto. They liked Trump because he hated the same people he did: liberals, experts, people of color, immigrants. That's not all of it. He made many people feel like they had a guy in charge who stood up for their interests when, in fact, he was doing the exact opposite. Evangelicals and conservative Catholics approved of his turning back the clock on abortion, the LBGTQ community, women. I don't attend church but I bet there was much wailing and gnashing of teeth in the pews on Sunday. Many Christians seemed content to support a leader who regularly practices the Seven Deadly Sins, who wipes his dirty feet on the Beatitudes.
I know that President-elect Biden tells us to have mercy on those who did not vote for him. I don't know if that's possible. Humility is at the heart of many of Jesus's teachings. Trump hasn't a humble bone in his body. He ridicules the meek, he lampoons the disabled. He shows no signs of empathy. His daily dealings give no evidence that he has ever heard of Jesus. The Old Testament of obedience and vengeance is more his style. That's why conservative religionists like him so much. They prefer to smite their enemies with a sword rather than work with them to make a better America.
The past four years have been a trial for me and fellow liberals. The next four will be a different kind of trial. Some Democrats might want to do some smiting of their own. When the oppressed depose a dictator, they often turn out to be authoritarians of a different stripe. The guillotine was made for such times. So much easier to say "Off with their heads" than to negotiate with that head while it still has a body. Maybe in our speeded-up lives we no longer have the patience to deal with those different from us. Social media make judging so easy.
I have no secret plans to share with Biden. He and his advisors will make some decisions that piss me off. We saw no negotiating in the last four years. It was Trump's way or the highway. When that changes, it will be a shock to us. But negotiation and compromise are American traditions. Let's embrace them again but be ready to stand fast on principles. Or, as Teddy said, "speak softly but carry a big stick."
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