So, what just happened?

[bigtree]

...looking forward, and that's the only direction really worth discussing right now, it's palatably clear that a weight has been lifted off of the party by the ascension of Kamala Harris as our nominee, and indeed, a barrier has been removed out of the way of millions of voters already, anyway, primed to oppose Donald Trump in the next election.

The barrier and weight has revealed itself to have been none other than our tireless warrior we originally tasked with carrying out this fight against the republican nominee.

For all of President Biden's historic accomplishments on issues and concerns like Covid recovery, economic growth, jobs, access to health insurance and care, the environment, and the entire panoply of issues and concerns that most Democrats consider necessary and vital, the president faltered in convincing many Americans that he could move from those achievements into the future.

Much of it is his age, as unfair and very likely completely wrong as that view may be; for all of Joe Biden's appeal, and there is a wealth of that on every level from political friend and foe alike; he couldn't move past his convincing argument that he had prepared the nation for the future, to the conclusion he wanted to get across that he was the best person to make that happen.

I won't belabor the point that Kamala Harris was right there the entire time for the political elite and the political class to present to us as an alternate option. It's not as if the Vice President crisscrossing the nation on behalf of the administration and her ticket, and raising the most money in the most appearances between the two on the road for most of the year, had ANY visible support from ANY political quarter to step in front of her mentor and assume the Democratic candidacy.

And I won't pretend that I could be included in those who believed that VP Harris could easily garner enough support to adopt most of Joe's delegates; at least not without a major fight in which I was certain she would lose out to a centrist, consensus ticket.

The shock over the instant erasure of votes and hopes in many quarters, including my own angst, gave way to a reflexive rationality across the board, that was, partly about the perfect solution to the unraveling of the Democratic process and our party convention, and mostly about the realization of the dynamism at the heart of the Biden administration from a contemporary political figure who has always looked and moved forward with action and determination.

You can take the Kamala Harris in 2018 advocating 'for the people' in 2018, and stand her up against the Harris of 2024 and you find an uninterrupted fight for the things she advocated for then, with a record now of realizing most of that agenda; but with the added bonus of the vision and energy to carry those interests, concerns, and ideals into the future.

God bless him, you can't take Joe Biden there, even though almost every one of us would have tried until we had no more to give to get him over the top in this election, and probably succeeded, in my view.

It's a little pollyannish, sure. Kamala Harris will be in her early 60's in a potential presidency, not exactly a new generation, and she won't exactly be posturing as a member of one, even though there certainly exists the potential that she'll be accepted to represent them.

But, she is a transitional figure who can bridge the understandings of the not so distant past struggles of America, with the promise of our new generations of Americans ahead in a way that assure she'll be right there with us.

Maybe that's more than many folks are actually thinking, but it's a sobering truth that there's only so far an octogenarian and a septuagenarian can take the nation. Hours ago, this was a contest between two aged men who could, would, work to shape the much of nation according to their own ideals, but couldn't really reside with those beyond their term.

This evening it's a sprint into the future; unbound by a valid but regressive debate about what we've accomplished, and firmly set on the future. No more tussling between political figures who are guardians and defenders of their past respective political landscapes.

What just happened?

There's an exhilarating sense that we've collectively opened a gate, stepped out with due haste and direction, and the world is wide open.

[Bettie]

1. I sure hope so

because losing this election....well, it would be the last one we ever have.

[Electrolite]

2. Well said. Seems so, I for one

was pretty hacked off at the way things were playing out. Probably more upset at the media dogpile, but the Democratic Party did not play it well. But, there was no easy way forward.

I feel better now. Way better.

[bigtree]

16. we got half of the ticket

...

[dchill]

3. Great post... However, Kamala Harris is 59.

But give her time. 🙂

[bigtree]

6. I muffed that

...but thanks to you I fixed it!

[WarGamer]

7. 60 in October

[dchill]

10. Like I said - give her time.

[WarGamer]

12. TBH, I had no idea she was 59.

I swear I thought she was in her 40's...

That youthful energy is FIRE!!!

[dchill]

14. Exactly.

[True Dough]

26. Surprised me as well

I could have believed 50-53. She has a youthful exuberance about her. It will be magnified if she ever shares a stage with Mango Mussolini.

[Dem4life1234]

36. She looks like she's in her late 30s

Such youthful energy and no wrinkles. Beautiful spunky lady!

[blm]

4. Well said, old buddy.

[Skittles]

5. what happened was, the enthusiasm wasn't there

and now it is

[Big Blue Marble]

21. It was there contained and waiting for the opportunity to break free.

Harris is the perfect remarkable one to harness all that energy and turn it into a November
Victory up and down the ticket.

[Skittles]

32. I remember thinking to myself last week

I'd vote for a cucumber over Donald Fucking Trump but I wish I could be more enthusiastic......the right decision was made; yes indeed.

[bucolic_frolic]

8. Joe had vast experience to work with, but was hampered by Congressional Republicans

Took him 6 months to fill out his cabinet. He inherited a divided country very uncertain politically in 2021. He put together a popular program to help people and grow the economy - infrastructure and manufacturing. He had a covid crisis to deal with. The need to toe the political middle made for moderate choices of AG, and no replacement of FBI director. Those choices reverberate today.

How's Comer doing these days?

[duncang]

9. My personal opinion

When all the bs came out and looked insurmountable Biden and Harris had a talk. The push seemed to want both of them out. They decided to make the big announcement with endorsement immediately. Pretty much okay you got it. What you going to do about it now? You say it’s because of President Biden’s age and electability among younger voters etc.. Here you go.

[dchill]

13. I can't disagree - I thought of that myself!

[J_William_Ryan]

11. "...a weight has been lifted off of the party by the ascension of Kamala Harris...'

That and a Republican party rattled and in panic mode, whose presidential nominee is now the issue and a liability.

[choie]

15. What changed my heart

was hearing Joe Biden speak to his campaign staffers at the Harris event yesterday. He exhortation to stand with her, him expressing that he thought he had made the right decision, said seemingly without a shred of acrimony or resentment, was the kicker for me.

[Beetwasher.]

17. Beautifully Rendered

Thanks.

[Goodheart]

18. Told ya.

[Metaphorical]

19. On 60

60 is the ideal age for a president. At 60, you have gained maturity and perspective, have experienced life and formed networks and friendships, have learned what works and what doesn't. At the same time, for most people, you are still quite vital at sixty (60 is the new 40, I suspect), maybe struggling to keep pounds off but at the same time seldom encumbered by serious health issues. The kids have probably flown the nest, you have a decent nest egg developed, and while you may be thinking about retirement, it's usually about doing the things you want to do rather than the things you were forced to do to survive.

Beyond his rather abhorrent politics, JD Vance is a baby, not even yet 40. It takes time to build up the connections needed for holding Federal office, time to gain a name, time to pay your dues. Even President Obama, who I thought was too young, was 48 when he became President. Biden was probably too old at 77, but I don't think he saw a choice. Trump had to be stopped. Trump ... well, Trump is now where Biden was then, and in far worse shape. Even that monstrosity on his head has thinned to the point where it looks like it's slowly disintegrating. He'll be bald soon. It must gall him that Biden has a better head of hair.

Kamala Harris is 59, will be 60 in October. She is hitting the peak of her life, and that's a joy to see. I am looking forward to casting my ballot this fall for her.

[bigtree]

20. at 63

...I wholeheartedly agree!

[SilasSouleII]

22. 1960 was a very good year

The age of Aquarius.

[Dem4life1234]

37. Definitely agree, I do think 50-70 is the sweet spot range

[Iris]

42. Even to 75 for some

[DownriverDem]

23. The demographic

change is going full tilt. They are pretty liberal and young. They have the voting power to change the country. I've been waiting for decades for this moment.

[malaise]

24. Deep

Rec

[bsiebs]

25. I'm with you bigtree....

I have been 100% behind Biden, but the amazing support and energy with Harris has convinced me I was wrong. Biden will remain the best president in my lifetime, but I’m now 100% behind Harris! Forward to the future!

[Iris]

43. I'm starting to think his lasting legacy may just be his making the way for his chosen VP

[elias7]

27. Well said, expressed my process exactly....thanks

[brewens]

28. Joe is like one of those Spartans that fought in teams. One guy out front that they swap out before he gets too tired.

Only for so long though. If they survived, they got to retire. Well done.

[Docreed2003]

29. K&R

[EarlG]

30. It feels like relief from fear

It’s been fear driving this whole thing, on all sides. My fear, and I think yours too, was that if Biden dropped out the consequences would be the loss of incumbency, an ugly fight over the nomination, and ultimately a disaster at the polls as we became the “chaos party.”

Others, meanwhile, were afraid that with Joe Biden at the head of the ticket, we would lose. Everyone was afraid.

And these were not small fears because the consequence of failure would be the first American dictatorship, headed by Donald Trump. It’s a terrifying thought.

In the end, big donors and party leaders decided for us. Enough pressure was applied to Biden — along with, as I understand it, his own realization that he was sinking in the polls — and he chose to drop out.

It turns out that my personal fears were unfounded. The party immediately pivoted to Harris. Joe Biden ended up looking like one of the greatest American statesmen of all time. And Trump is now solidly on the back foot. Ultimately, I don’t even feel resentful about my primary vote being negated, because in some ways it wasn’t. I voted for Biden/Harris, and I ended up with Harris. That’s okay with me.

Of course, we don’t know — and never will know — if this was the right choice. Either path was a gamble, and the election is not over yet.

But what HAS happened, I think, is that the real fear of a Trump presidency has been replaced by real hope that we can take Trump down. And after all this time living in fear, hope is a pretty refreshing sensation. It’s no wonder that so many people are basking in it right now.

[bigtree]

33. nice bookend

Last edited Tue Jul 23, 2024, 10:49 PM - Edit history (1)

...every word.



x.com/WisDems/status/1815918846072570251

[Skittles]

40. worthy of its own thread

HEAR, HEAR

[slightlv]

31. Thank you for writing this, BigTree...

I was in bed with a really bad lupus flare when all this came down. My grandson came in after work to tell me, before I could hit the news and find out myself. To say I was upset is an understatement!

I'm going to be around here, reading... but this will probably be my last overtly political post. Cats and repubs will get replies, but that's about it. I am SO disheartened, and I can't come up out of it. There is no joy in this political season anymore for me, and I'm tired of all the angst and worry. The moneyed people have made their decision with their $$$; once I saw all the media about donors withholding donations, well... the handwriting was on the wall. I detest that we're being manipulated, and that's how *I* see it. Obama was a lowkey Third Way democrat. It's going to be hard going up against the big money now that we've given in to them, but we'll have to try to out go for them once Kamala gets elected (and she WILL get elected). I honestly don't know where she stands vis-a-vis the FDR vs Third Way, but I can only hope that if Biden picked her as VP, then she leans more towards FDR. The one good thing, for me, is I'll live to see a female president in the U.S. before I die.

Like I said, this is probably the last I'll say on any of this stuff... I've wanted a place to cry... to rage... rage against the dying light that everyone seems to cast us "old people" into. I've been where Biden was in my own job; and no matter how "good" it is for everyone around you, it hurts like hell when you're pushed out. Joe's too good a man to have been put through that, and I feel for him.

I still have rage, and probably will for quite a while. My rage has descended into snark and off color comments around my house. No one is happy around here with the outcome. But we're all Democrats, and we'll for democracy rather than Fascism... but that's about it. Democrats up and down the ticket, regardless. I just won't be expecting other than what the corportacy allows. The money and the younger generation have spoken. I feel there's no room for people like me anymore; not in the world, not in the party, nowhere. My values are out of step with everyone else. And so, my disheartenment and grief.

[hunter]

41. I think Biden is going to shine brighter and brighter every day as the election approaches.

He's not sulking. Neither am I.

As Harris goes into battle against the Party of Trump, Biden will be doing what he does best, now unhindered by media shitstorms.

Trump is probably going to age ten years in the next few months. Come November Trump will be a wreck.

Come November Biden will be dancing.

Biden and Harris have got this. Everyone wins.

[Renew Deal]

34. I suspected that Biden was going to drop, but I never suspected the move to Harris would be so quick

I thought the most likely outcome was potential candidates trading cabinet positions for delegates in the back rooms of the United Center.

My personal feeling from watching her speak yesterday and today is that has created or released the kind of energy needed to run a presidential campaign. The change in candidates moved people, which is good. It became easy to forget in the last 5 years of campaigns that it was possible to do so. Part of the reason was that most of the 2020 campaign happened during Covid.

I'm hoping we can keep up the energy and that Kamala can keep contrasting herself with Trump. She's done a great job over the last two days.

[LastDemocratInSC]

35. A nice piece of writing, thank you.

The final paragraph just sparkles.

[summer_in_TX]

38. Yes!

I was angry with the media, the wealthy donors, and especially Democratic representatives and senators. I was sure they were wrong, that if we motivated people just got out and spoke to enough people we could overcome the weight of negativity on top of Joe's terrible performance at the debate and the awful optics I knew the Trump team would use endlessly in ads against Joe. I even knew "seeing is believing," which is why video is so very powerful at persuading. But I still thought we could get win.

An interview with one of the members of Congress who had gone public made me realize that he loved Joe but he was doing what he thought had to be done to save the country from dictatorship. I could tell from his voice that he wasn't being glib, he truly believed that. I couldn't be angry with that motive. I'd been assuming it was just a contagion of fear first and then realizing that the big money donors withholding money was against their political self-interest. But really, I had long been impressed with our Democrats for not being the double-speaking type of pol I'd always distrusted. I began trying to see it from the point of view of their genuine belief instead of assuming bad motives.

I spent days writing tweets trying to persuade others, and emailing the White House begging Joe not to drop out and sharing how much I wanted the rest of his vision to fix the country to be able to be completed. (I think I emailed three times.)

Fear was definitely there too, of a conflict between ambitious people when there was no time for that. Guess that "Dems in disarray" stereotype was hiding somewhere in my brain.

I've never been more thrilled – and relieved – to be wrong. The way the party came together in record time was nothing short of miraculous, in my view. Watching the energy and enthusiasm building like a geyser was catching.

Then there was Kamala's visit to the Delaware campaign headquarters to thank the volunteers and talk to them and the public. Her genuine love, joy, and gratitude were palpable. She was completely natural, didn't put on a persona now that she was the presumptive nominee. I'd forgotten just how charming and fun she is. And then Joe was on the line, and their genuine mutual respect, affection, and gratitude made me tear up. Then she delivered her remarks, beginning with her experience as a prosecutor in a county in California and I recognized how superb a communicator she is.

We are in good hands with Kamala and, I believe, the vast majority of Democratic leaders in the House and Senate. They were wiser than I realized, although I hated the public comments and having the President we love and respect have to deal with the loss of support for him continuing as the nominee. I know Joe doesn't hold grudges and has forgiven them. I suspect he's recognizing the personal advantage of being able to focus on being president and accomplishing more great things on behalf of us all.

Now we have a lot to do, not only to elect Kamala, but to ensure that she has a Democratic House and Senate to work with. She won't be able to do nearly as much for us if we don't get that accomplished. Part of how we do that will be to tell everyone possible about Project 2025. Personal conversations, not online. And of course, the other necessity is ensuring our candidates have enough money to run and get their message out.

I think of the Old Testament story of Joseph, whose brothers had sold him into slavery, and what he told them years later when they came to Egypt during a terrible drought hoping to find food to survive. Essentially he told them that though they'd had bad motives, God had used it for good. I don't think our people had bad motives although it sure seemed like it at the time. It may be that many of the donors didn't either. Whatever their motives, God used it for good. As MLK said, "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." After the assassination attempt on Trump, I feared we would be in for many long years before things turned around and resumed moving towards justice. But now I'm convinced we will prevail in November and be able to continue setting things right.

[summer_in_TX]

39. Yes!

I was angry with the media, the wealthy donors, and especially Democratic representatives and senators. I was sure they were wrong, that if we motivated people just got out and spoke to enough people we could overcome the weight of negativity on top of Joe's terrible performance at the debate and the awful optics I knew the Trump team would use endlessly in ads against Joe. I even knew "seeing is believing," which is why video is so very powerful at persuading. But I still thought we could get win.

An interview with one of the members of Congress who had gone public made me realize that he loved Joe but he was doing what he thought had to be done to save the country from dictatorship. I could tell from his voice that he wasn't being glib, he truly believed that. I couldn't be angry with that motive. I'd been assuming it was just a contagion of fear first and then realizing that the big money donors withholding money was against their political self-interest. But really, I had long been impressed with our Democrats for not being the double-speaking type of pol I'd always distrusted. I began trying to see it from the point of view of their genuine belief instead of assuming bad motives.

I spent days writing tweets trying to persuade others, and emailing the White House begging Joe not to drop out and sharing how much I wanted the rest of his vision to fix the country to be able to be completed. (I think I emailed three times.)

Fear was definitely there too, of a conflict between ambitious people when there was no time for that. Guess that "Dems in disarray" stereotype was hiding somewhere in my brain.

I've never been more thrilled – and relieved – to be wrong. The way the party came together in record time was nothing short of miraculous, in my view. Watching the energy and enthusiasm building like a geyser was catching.

Then there was Kamala's visit to the Delaware campaign headquarters to thank the volunteers and talk to them and the public. Her genuine love, joy, and gratitude were palpable. She was completely natural, didn't put on a persona now that she was the presumptive nominee. I'd forgotten just how charming and fun she is. And then Joe was on the line, and their genuine mutual respect, affection, and gratitude made me tear up. Then she delivered her remarks, beginning with her experience as a prosecutor in a county in California and I recognized how superb a communicator she is.

We are in good hands with Kamala and, I believe, the vast majority of Democratic leaders in the House and Senate. They were wiser than I realized, although I hated the public comments and having the President we love and respect have to deal with the loss of support for him continuing as the nominee. I know Joe doesn't hold grudges and has forgiven them. I suspect he's recognizing the personal advantage of being able to focus on being president and accomplishing more great things on behalf of us all.

Now we have a lot to do, not only to elect Kamala, but to ensure that she has a Democratic House and Senate to work with. She won't be able to do nearly as much for us if we don't get that accomplished. Part of how we do that will be to tell everyone possible about Project 2025. Personal conversations, not online. And of course, the other necessity is ensuring our candidates have enough money to run and get their message out.

I think of the Old Testament story of Joseph, whose brothers had sold him into slavery, and what he told them years later when they came to Egypt during a terrible drought hoping to find food to survive. Essentially he told them that though they'd had bad motives, God had used it for good. I don't think our people had bad motives although it sure seemed like it at the time. It may be that many of the donors didn't either. Whatever their motives, God used it for good. As MLK said, "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." After the assassination attempt on Trump, I feared we would be in for many long years before things turned around and resumed moving towards justice. But now I'm convinced we will prevail in November and be able to continue setting things right.

[JCMach1]

44. Biden was the pandemic comfort food candidate

I don't mean that as any kind of insult. He was just the right candidate at the right (very weird and unreplicable time).

2024 is just different.