The Depths to Which We Have Plunged
A Relatively Normal Debate sends both Parties into Paroxism
For the moment, set aside the specific lies and disagreements of the VP debate: The fact that JD Vance refused to acknowledge that Donald Trump had lost the 2020 election; the fact that he is on the record supporting a national ban on abortion, but said that he had never favored a ban; that Vance claimed Donald Trump as the savior of the Affordable Care act, when time after time the former President sought to kill it and it was only saved through the good graces of the late Senator John McCain.
Set aside the Walz gaff over Tieneman Square or his rather stiff stage presence early on in the debate.
Set aside the missed opportunities for both parties to score points.
It was a relatively civil debate, reminiscent of how we used to be.
Yet the partisans are at wits end over the outcome.
If it shows anything, it shows the depths to which we have sunken in our public dialog and in the lack of faith in the independent role that the media SHOULD play in the process.
As a former politician I am not polyannish about politics. I know it is a contact sport but Donald Trump has taken it to new depths. That is the central issue, even in a debate among Vice Presidential candidates.
Granted, the depths to which we have sunken have largely to do with the person who was not on stage. The civility of the Vice Presidential debate highlights the deranged nature of the candidate who was NOT there: Donald Trump.
I won’t sugar-coat it. Donald Trump is very clearly a threat to our democracy. He consistently tells us so himself. I cannot stress enough how important it is to not only defeat him but to do so decisively. If anything, the debate highlights how important it is for us to move on. If there is any chance of the Republican party re-emerging after this election, they need to rid themselves of the cancer that has grown to a terminal stage.
In better times we could have counted on the “independent” media to parse the debate and call out the lies, half-truths and gaffs of the candidates; and from that process - the interplay of partisans, an independent media and a public hungry for leadership that provides us with hope and direction in service of American ideals, we the people would make our choice.
I sympathize with the Democratic partisans who fear that alarm is a key component to defeating Donald Trump; and I recognize that soft-peddling the dangers of the Trump/Vance. They will continue to sound the alarm, and they should.
I have faith in the people of this country when it comes to their final judgement. I hope it will lead us back to our noisy and sometimes chaotic democracy - without the heavy dose of crazy.
Images by Wayne D. King
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