Today is Election Day. Yay! I think. I hope. If you’ve been following the news at all you’d think we will be experiencing both a massive blue wave and an egregious polling error at the same time. So that’s always fun. Let’s unpack that a bit and talk about what this day means, or should mean.
For those who have followed along with the last several months of campaigning, their respective ads, and all the money that has been spent this election season, you’ve probably seen no shortage of polling favoring the Democratic Party to win the House of Representatives, and very likely the Senate as well. I am located in North Carolina, and I’ve seen polling for several months putting Roy Cooper well ahead of his Republican opponent Michael Whatley. North Carolina, of course, voted for both Donald Trump to be the President of the United States, and Josh Stein (a Democrat) to serve as the Governor of North Carolina. Thus you can see some of the dilemma we are facing here. The people are willing to vote a third time for Epstein’s best pal Donald Trump, while either leaving the rest of their ballot blank, voting for the self-described “black Nazi” Mark Robinson (his words), or somehow finding it within themselves to balance out their vote for the piece of shit person that is Donald Trump by voting for the nice guy that is Josh Stein. This has been something of a tradition now here in North Carolina for them to vote for Epstein’s best pal for president while also electing a Democratic governor, with Roy Cooper being the previous winner in both of the previous elections that also included Donald Trump.
These are the fickle ways of the American voter. Notably, though, North Carolina is seen as a foregone conclusion to flip for Democrats. There are also tight races elsewhere like Maine, Kansas, Ohio, Iowa, Texas, Nebraska, South Carolina, and maybe even Florida, Mississippi, and more beyond that if we really want to drink the copium from some folks among the media and polling circles. And on the flip side of that, you have plenty who would disagree and believe the polling is rife with errors that aren’t accounting for Republicans. This is certainly a possibility that we simply cannot rule out at this juncture. And this is why it is important to get out there and have your voice heard.
This doesn’t mean there is some existential threat looming if the Democratic Party doesn’t win a majority in both chambers of Congress. I am not a doomer of that sort, though I do see the obvious issues with a Donald Trump presidency that lacks any true checks. In the hypothetical scenario in which Republicans overperform, the people will be able to see their continued failures and their continued capitulation to both Donald Trump and the billionaire class that backs him. Some of them might not care, but there would be many more jaded by the blatant corruption of this administration while the people continue to pay top dollar for living their everyday lives. And there is something to be said for that continued experience, though it is not the experience I would prefer.
I prefer, of course, the one where Democrats do win a majority in both chambers to provide those much-needed checks on the president who grows increasingly erratic. It would make him a true lame duck, and might even give some Republicans an out when it comes to the MAGA coalition, should they choose to take that path as they jockey for position as the next GOP nominee for president in 2028. I won’t hold my breath, but it’s possible.
As far as those much-needed checks go, there needs to be investigations into those serving within the Trump admin, Trump’s family, and the corruption that has clearly taken place since he has returned to office and benefitted to the tune of over a billion dollars for his own personal gain. He has turned this into an oligarchy. His admiration for Putin and even Xi all these years appears more like jealousy now. Look at everything from Pete Hegseth being wildly underqualified, incompetent, and dangerous while being a yes-man for Trump, to Stephen Miller enacting his overtly bigoted immigration policy, to Russell Vought running afoul of federal law by simply withholding funds that were already set aside to pay for government programs. This current administration needs to be checked in every possible way. Add to that the current cost of living, elevated gas and grocery prices, rising inflation, employment uncertainty, and blatant racism… voting is your check on this bullshit.
Don’t be distracted by the culture war BS they are throwing at you in their ads and mailers. They’ve been saying that communism has been coming for years and years dating all the way back to the red scare days of McCarthy. They’ve been screaming about socialism for years and years dating back to the same time. Never mind the fact that the time they often hearken back to had some of the highest tax rates for the wealthiest Americans. Don’t be distracted by the “Sharia law” they’ve said is coming to America or how our country is being invaded by Muslims so they can take over our country even though they only make up about 1.1% of the US population. And don’t buy into the idea that they will suddenly get it right over the next two years, after years of constantly getting it wrong, dating all the way back to Nixon.
Get out there and vote. Have your voice heard. Let’s end this nonsense… hopefully.