With Election '22 a week away one thing is clear - the premise underlying my decision to start this blog more than two years ago has been proven correct. Most polls confirm my opinion that the electorate is so polarized that a tiny sliver of middle-of-the-roaders will likely determine the outcome of many races nation-wide. But I did not sit down to write this post today to crow about my foresight. It was not after all a difficult call to make. Rather, I would like to summarize the situation as I see it.
I understand that individual voters have opinions about the issues such as the economy, crime, abortion, gun rights, education etc. and may prioritize one over the others. However, I cannot bring myself to look past the elephant in the room. That this metaphoric elephant happens to be the symbol of the GOP is a coincidence. This elephant represents almost exclusively Republican candidates almost all of whom have failed to take a stand against former President Trump's positions no matter how extreme or outrageous they are. The few who did do so have been eliminated in the primary process. Those who have survived this process have resorted to a range of tactics from outright support of Trump's positions to varying forms of equivocation, depending on the make-up of their constituencies. To me the most objectionable of these positions is their denial of the legitimacy of the 2020 election and refusal to commit to accepting the 2022 election results unless they win. Regardless of where you stand on the political spectrum you cannot even consider voting for a candidate who will not commit to the electoral process. Ultimately these candidates fall back on the fact that they and their positions represent the majority of Republican voters. My response is that is still a minority of voters over-all. Also, the 2020 election results were extensively challenged and litigated often before judges appointed by Trump or other Republican presidents without a single ruling in favor of the challengers. Add to that the rise in voter intimidation by armed militia at polling places and ongoing measures to disenfranchise voters perceived to be in favor of Democrats in red states, and the decision is an easy one. We the voters must not allow ourselves to be seduced by any other issue as long the very basis of representative democracy is threatened by the extremists in the Republican Party. If ever there was a need for everyone to turn out to vote, this is it.