Its not up to Donald Trump.
Whatever the outcome of Tuesdays’ election, the way we as Americans respond, the steps we take to protect each other and preserve our future, do not depend on the selfish whims, dark fantasies, and conspiratorial delusions of Donald Trump.
It will be up to us.
We know how Trump will respond. Win or lose, he will lie, threaten, and cruelly demean other, better Americans. He will tear at the very foundation of our democracy, and he will attack the invisible chords that bind us together as Americans. He will place his personal interests above the well-being of the nation and of individual Americans. We know this, of course, because it is the way he has behaved every single day of his tragic presidency.
As Marine General James Mattis, Donald Trump’s first secretary of defense, wrote recently, “Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people—does not even pretend to try. Instead, he tries to divide us.”
But we don’t have to follow.
Our politics might be dysfunctional right now, and the threat of politically-inspired violence is growing every day. We are swaying on the very lip of the abyss, and once we topple into the void there will be no climbing back.
So, we – each of us, all of us – need to think about where we are and where we are going. We need to rethink our shorthand description of America as a collection of Red and Blue states and any notion we might hold that the third of the country that disagrees with us politically is somehow our enemy. No state is red, no state is blue. That’s not how we really live, and we all know it. No matter where you stand on important issues, no matter which party you support, you share your community with people who disagree with you. They are not your enemy. They are your neighbors, your co-workers, members of your church, and more. Even today, the things that connect us are stronger than the forces trying to separate us.
We need to reject the politics of fear, and we need to focus on the things we can do as a people to ensure that all Americans can share equally in the promise of American life. The idea that millions and millions of our neighbors somehow want to see our nation destroyed is absurd and is incredibly damaging to our national well-being.
Tomorrow I will be working at a polling place to help ensure that every American’s voice can be counted. As a precinct official I can assure you that the foundations of our democracy are protected. Careful procedures and processes are in place and will be followed to ensure that the election is conducted fairly and openly. We do not expect widespread interference with voting, although we have plans to respond if necessary.
While I have no role in the vote counting that will occur once the polls are closed, I am certain that election officials are prepared to conduct the count honestly and openly. Keep in mind that actual vote counts are never completed on election night, and, in fact, no state is required to do so. The true deadline for states to complete and certify their voting results is December 14, 2020. (US Code: 3 U.S.C. §6). For details see the Congressional Research Service paper “The Electoral College: A 2020 Presidential Election Timeline” at https://crsreports.congress.gov Archivist.
We are in a dark place, and it is up to us to find our way back into the light.
In his first inaugural address, delivered in the terrifying days between secession and civil war, Abraham Lincoln pleaded with his countrymen, north and south, “We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory will swell when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.”
We are not on the brink of civil war. The issues that divide us today pale in comparison to those that broke the nation in 1860. But Lincoln’s words can still guide us. Let us hope that they do.
November 2, 2020