The Democrats have wrapped up their convention, and the ticket is set. Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz have their work cut out for them. They’re facing a divided nation, and the path ahead is rough. There’s no room for wasted breath or wasted time.

Here are five things they must do now:

depressingly 1. Speak Plainly and Truthfully
People are tired of polished speeches. They want the truth, even when it hurts. Harris and Walz need to talk straight about the state of the country.

Don’t sugarcoat it. America’s in a mess, and everyone knows it. Acknowledge it, and then lay out a clear plan to fix it.

They need specifics: raise the minimum wage, support unions, and implement a fair tax code. Expand the Affordable Care Act with a public option. Cap prescription drug prices. People need concrete solutions.

Jishu 2. Show Up in the Places That Hurt
It’s easy to visit the cities where the votes are guaranteed. But Harris and Walz need to go where the pain is real. They need to stand in the rusted-out towns, the farms that have seen better days, the places that have been forgotten.

When they’re there, they need to offer solutions: invest in infrastructure, support broadband expansion, and provide grants to small businesses. They need to deliver real improvements. These communities have felt left behind for too long.

3. Focus on the Future, Not Just Trump
Everyone knows the mess Donald Trump made. Harris and Walz don’t need to keep telling us. What we need to hear is what they’re going to do next.

Focus on climate change with a Green New Deal. Create millions of jobs in clean energy. Push for universal pre-K, free community college, and student loan forgiveness. On immigration, outline a path to citizenship. Secure the border humanely. The future is about building, not just undoing the past.

4. Embrace the Working Class
The Democratic Party has lost touch with the working man and woman. Harris and Walz need to change that. Talk about jobs, wages, and dignity.

Show they understand the struggles of working hard and still barely getting by. Policies like job retraining, apprenticeships, and strengthening Social Security will resonate. Protect Medicare and pensions. The working class needs to feel like the Democrats are in their corner again.

5. Lead with Decency and Strength
The country needs leaders who can be strong without being cruel. Harris and Walz need to show they are those leaders.

Be tough when it matters, but never lose sight of humanity. Push for criminal justice reform. End mass incarceration. Hire minority cops. Mandate body cams nationwide. Rebuild alliances through diplomacy. Keep a strong military as a deterrent. Decency and strength must go hand in hand if they want to earn trust.

These things aren’t a guarantee of victory. Nothing is in politics. But if Kamala Harris and Tim Walz can do them, they’ll have done what’s necessary.

And in times like these, necessary is all anyone can ask for.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has dropped out of the race. Finally. Good riddance.

It’s about time we put an end to this farce. Here was a man who had every opportunity to carry on the Kennedy legacy, to stand for something meaningful, to be a voice of reason in a world full of noise.

Instead, he turned into a walking conspiracy theory, a symbol of what happens when privilege collides with paranoia.

At first, it seemed like maybe, just maybe, he’d be a voice for reason and change. But then he went off the conspiracy deep end, swapping the legacy of courage and progress for the dubious honor of being the poster child for every nutjob with a Wi-Fi connection.

And now? Now he’s out. The guy who could’ve used his name for something good ended up using it to chase shadows and stir up fear.

It’s almost tragic, really. The Kennedy name used to mean something—a fight for justice, a push for progress. But Robert F. Kennedy Jr. managed to drag it through mud. This is the guy who:

This is the guy who:

• Claimed that vaccines cause autism, despite overwhelming scientific evidence to the contrary.
• Promoted the idea that 5G technology is part of a massive government conspiracy to control the population.
• Echoes conspiracy theories about fluoridated water.
• Expressed support for the notion that the COVID-19 pandemic was deliberately planned by global elites to exert control over the population.
• Floated the idea that Bill Gates and other billionaires are using vaccines to implant microchips in people to track them.
• Claimed that the CIA was involved in the assassination of his father, Robert F. Kennedy, without substantial evidence.
• Suggested that HIV does not cause AIDS, aligning himself with discredited theories that have been widely debunked.

So now we’re down to Donald Trump and Kamala Harris. Pundits are already claiming that Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s exit might help Trump, but you know what? That’s okay. Sometimes it’s best to keep the lucid and the loony on opposite sides of the fence.

And maybe we can focus on a real election, one where the stakes are high, and the choices actually matter. His departure could very well shift the dynamics, but at least it’s a shift toward clarity. And choice.

If nothing else, Donald Trump and J.D. Vance have at least taught us something: Republicans are no longer even pretending to engage in rational debate.

They’ve lost the intellectual battles on gender rights, minority rights, gay marriage, global warming, and the war on drugs. Instead of reassessing or reformulating their positions, they’ve pivoted to something far more insidious: they’ve embraced absurdity, not despite its dangers but because of them.

Let’s not mince words. The Republican strategy is one of gleeful ignorance, parading incompetence as a badge of honor. When Marjorie Taylor Greene spews conspiracy theories or when Donald Trump spreads demonstrable lies, it’s not a slip-up—it’s the playbook. This isn’t a party floundering in the face of complexity; it’s a party reveling in the simplicity of outrage.

Their leaders aren’t just out of their depth; they’re drowning in a sea of willful ignorance, pulling their supporters under with them. What’s worse, the base is cheering them on, not in spite of the nonsense but precisely because of it. The more unhinged the rhetoric, the louder the applause.

Why? Because the Republicans have nothing left but rage. They’ve lost the argument on climate change—science is settled, the world is burning, and they’re still clutching coal like a rosary. They’ve lost the argument on LGBTQ+ rights, with public opinion now firmly on the side of equality. They’ve lost the argument on race, as more Americans recognize systemic injustice and demand change.

So what’s left? They’ve decided to scorch the earth. To flood the zone with bullshit. If they can’t win a debate, they’ll make debate itself impossible. It’s a strategy of last resort.

This isn’t conservatism. It’s nihilism. It’s the politics of destruction, where the goal isn’t to win over the undecided but to make the whole thing so toxic, so utterly unbearable, that rational people simply throw up their hands in despair.

But here’s the thing: we can’t afford to give up. Because while they’re busy clowning around, the world is still turning. Climate change isn’t pausing for their antics. LGBTQ+ youth are still suffering from their bigotry. And the most vulnerable in our society are still paying the price for their ignorance.

Democrats must highlight the difference beginning Monday with the convention.

Republicans have chosen absurdity as their last stand. They’ve traded in competence for chaos, reason for rage. They aren’t here to govern—they’re here to burn it all down. And they’re laughing while they do it.

Time to reject Chaos Governance.