Tag Archives: Biden

The Electoral College’s Consolation Prize

Trump loses Wisconsin case while arguing another one
The Supreme bitch-slap, karma style

I’ve yet to hear a cohesive, contemporary justification for the Electoral College. Defenders simply can’t get beyond this bottom-line reality: It creates a popularity contest in which the most popular doesn’t win. That’s like a dog show crowning a gerbil.

So it’s gotta go.

However, that doesn’t mean karma doesn’t occasionally bring a measure of equilibrium to the universe, and we would be wise to occasionally acknowledge that (what are the 24/7s going to do when they don’t have Trump to frighten viewers?). And karma fittingly bit Donald Trump in the ass when he discovered this week that the Electoral College is fucked up.

Consider: Joe Biden beat Trump by a hair’s breadth in Pennsylvania, Georgia, Wisconsin, among many other states. In some cases, by fractions of percentage points.

But look at the Electoral College tally: 308 to 232. Were it not for the all-or-nothing rules of the college, that margin would have been narrowed significantly.

In truth, at least 46% of the nation believes he should be president again. Do proponents of the electoral system still feel they were adequately represented? Because they got shellacked November 5, electorally-speaking.

Remember, George W. had to win only Florida in the college to secure the disputed election in 2000. Trump, though, would have had to win challenges in a half-dozen states. Imagine if the election hinged on just one state again.

How the 2000 Election Results Came Down to a Supreme Court Decision - HISTORY
Remember hanging chads?

So consider it the Electoral College’s consolation prize for progressives, and Irony’s sweet revenge for those accepting gift horses.

But make no mistake: We studied hard and eked out a passing grade from a capricious, illogical professor. It’s time to drop this class.

The Real Transfer of Power

Leadership & Continuity: The Peaceful Transition of Power | Eidson & Partners

There are two types of American president: the person you’d like to be; and the person you probably are.

Barack Obama was a president we’d like to be: young, eloquent, quick with a smile. Donald Trump was the president we probably are: aging, weight issues, quick to temper.

Physical and philosophical idiosyncrasies aside, the pattern tends to track historically, too. We wanted to be like Lincoln. We wanted to be like Kennedy. We wanted to be like Reagan.

The person we’d like to be.

Conversely, we probably were like Nixon. We probably were like George W. We thought we wanted to be like Clinton, but bitterly discovered that we probably already were.

The person we probably are.

It’s no mean feat, turning what you are into what you’d like to be. It’s easier to bitch about a problem than confront it. Victimization is a breeze. Aspiration is a bitch. Which is why the “transfer of power” is moving in fits and starts. It’s actually a transfer of mindsets.

And we’ve committed to change, like a New Year’s resolution to adopt a dog or join the armed services. In this case, commitment was in the form of 80 million-plus eviction notices for Trump. And like any deadbeat tenant, he and his roommates will trash the place before leaving.

That’s because Trump still represents 74 million-plus Americans who don’t feel like aspiration. Who knows? Donald Trump may have been the person they wanted to be.

And make no mistake: The reason Trump and his toadies are dragging their feet on change is because the people they represent are just as cold to it. Perhaps more so.

Regardless, the commitment to Biden is a tacit commitment to work: on COVID; on climate; on gender and race relations. All with a Senate that has a vested interest in proving to Americans the system is broken, rotted and irreparable.

And, regardless of party, is Biden not the type of grandparent we want to be? Active, still quick, forgiving, gentle. Don’t we want to be the genteel grandpa instead of the grimacing one?

5 Ways Biden Will Affect Your Finances As President – Forbes Advisor

But that’s the cost of transfer: sweat equity.

There are plenty of signs that 2021 is going to be a terrific year. Proud Boys and QAnon are out. A COVID vaccine and the word of science are in. Dreamer immigrants have a reason to dream again. American government looks more like America again.

It’s enough to make a body hopeful.

And who wouldn’t want to be that?