Donald J. Trump and Joe Biden squared off tonight in the ugliest, most brutal, and cringe-inducing presidential debate I’ve ever witnessed. Many older journalists say it’s the worst such debate in U.S. history, at least in the history of television. The majority of observers pointed to one participant in particular for the emotional squalor and mean-spirited bullying, Trump, the man who kept harping upon his belief he “won” the 2016 election for president. Did he? A valid case can be made Trump usurped the American presidency. Trump hijacked the GOP as he bulldozed aside traditional conservatives, neocons, and libertarian Republicans alike. Trump barreled on to lose the popular vote by about 3 million people. The candidate and his Far Right base interfered with the Electoral College’s vetting of candidates, forced the states to ignore third party and independent candidates, and intimidated the Electors to vote for him. Faithless electors rebelled against having to vote for either Trump or the also-unpopular Hillary Clinton. Dr. Jill Stein of the Green Party attempted to get votes recounted in controversial states in an attempt to move the EC towards Clinton. The EC certified him the winner, Congress then declares whom the EC certifies as the winner, and then the winner is inaugurated. Trump apparently saw far more people out upon the Mall before him on Inauguration Day than actually existed. And all of this without adding in election tampering by ex-KGB officer Vladimir Putin and the Russians. Yes, Trump is the Usurper, the Goliath in the house, and Biden stands firm as the Biblical David, the Challenger with a slingshot firing stones of truths thru Trump’s torrent of lies and distortions.
I’ve never felt such weird, unpleasant anxiety before a presidential debate before. Such debates are politically vital to the campaign, and they’re also regarded more as drama and entertainment rather than a serious debate over policy differences as to what are the best steps to address critical priorities. There was so much more at stake tonight than media-driven personality dramas. Trump pulled out his dirty mob boss attitude while Biden dug into this working class, small town, and suburban roots. Tonight’s clash proved ferocious. We stand at the brink of our own dystopian apocalypse, so if you’re one of those who doesn’t give a rip, wake up! Stop running around so oblivious and pay attention. If and once a fascist dictatorship is established, the tyrant often devours his own minions early on. Are you a minion? Or of the Resistance? Choosing doesn’t make you a “radical.”
The Challenger stood up to the Usurper in the White House tonight. A global pandemic rages as a recession worse than the Great Recession chews up our economy. Human-driven climate change is destroying our habitats. Gun violence, social justice conflicts, a partisan Supreme Court struggle, severe income inequality, an opioid epidemic, homelessness, underemployment, and Black Lives Matter versus the Police rips thru our neighborhoods like wildfire.
Perhaps conflating Trump with Goliath does a disservice to the Biblical giant. The Usurper in the White House built by Black slaves violated debate rules, ethics, morals, and boundaries. Trump demonstrated a stunning lack of respect for anything and everything. The man simply did not give a shit and delighted in throwing metaphorical turds. Trump was dangerously infantile and out-of-control as he narcissistically made the election all about himself even tho he bullied everyone around him including the moderator, Chris Wallace. There were several moments when Trump was so disrespectful and shamelessly rude Mr. Wallace, a prestigious journalist from Fox News who spent years prior with NBC and ABC, would have been justified to terminated the debate and send Trump packing. Either way, the real losers were not only the American people but people from all around the planet who deserved to hear the candidates present their platforms. Instead the world had ringside seats to witness a bully in action as a most unpresidential president attempted to hijack the first debate.
Trump charged forth blazing, spewing forth fountains of lies and disinformation, and goaded Biden into losing his temper. Once Biden regained mastery of his emotions, he gave Trump the space with enough slack rope to hang himself. Trump spewed so much nonsense so quickly and interrupted so much Biden struggled with maintaining composure. Only when he did and allowed Trump to go off the rails being Trump did things tilt in his favor regardless of Trump’s deranged attacks. Biden performed best when he stayed solid. I find Trump’s tone annoying and infuriating to listen to. Trump makes things all about him, hyperemphasizes “I,” while Biden addressed we and us the American people. The Usurper doubles down on acting out like an overgrown, defensive brat.
Biden interrupted, and Trump interrupted so much more frequently the moderator, Chris Wallace, lit into the president. Biden told Trump to, “Shut up, man.” Good Lord, supposed one of these three old White guys gets so apoplectic one keels over with a heart attack or a stroke?
Felt disappointed Joe Biden is not for a Green New Deal. Don’t these politicians ever really get it? Don’t they get if we do not care for our environment and address global climate change then it doesn’t matter how well the economy may boom for a short time…and it will be for a short time as climate change will bury it. Any economic boom in the absence of serious efforts to address global climate disruption will be nothing but a delusional sugar high. At least Joe Biden knows the difference between climate change on one hand and pollution and forestry on the other. All are environmental, and are different distinctions. Trump couldn’t tell the difference apart and didn’t seem to understand there wouldn’t be any clean air and sparkling water if we keep using fossil fuels for energy even if they’re cheap.
Won’t people understand democratic socialism is not communist totalitarianism but an approach balancing out individual liberties with social responsibilities? What will it take for those who shout for “Law & Order” to understand it must apply equitably for everyone with justice for all? How much of the violence blamed on the rioters was triggered by militarized police forces? Where is Antifa? A ragtag loose network of anarchists in small numbers who stand up against fascism. How many do you see? Met? How many Far Right/Alt-Right militia groups have you met? There are more armed all-Black BLM militias than there seem to be Antifa rock throwers. The violence between Right and Left in our streets had yet to approach anything like that during the Ukrainian Revolution where civilians armored in a wild mix of Medieval and post-Apocalyptic garb battled each other and the cops with deadly melee weapons and firebombs.
Unlike Biden, Trump refused to concede to the results of the upcoming Election. Trump challenged if it would even be fair and hurled forth lies and discredited conspiracy theories over mail-in ballots. The President was an embarrassment for the whole world to see as he shouted HOAX this and FRAUD that so many times all one can see is the mob boss’s rage and cruelty as he distracted viewers by criticizing Biden’s sons. Biden, to his credit, demonstrated his meddle and toughness, not by being a bully but by standing up to the bully. He took the heat. He took the abuse, and dished some of it back. The moderator had his eight arms full when he only had two in real life to juggle the Trumpler juggernaut and “David’s” slingshot rocks. Trump hid behind a shield of verbal torrents as he spewed so many lies one after another and so quickly the fact checkers found the sheer quantity astonishing.
All major leaders in our democratic republic lie from time and time and, historically, usually for so-called national security reasons or from misunderstanding facts whether science or history. Nixon lies were crude in origin as he simply didn’t want to get into trouble for his skullduggery and campaign espionage. Trump’s lies, however, fall far beyond into a different category altogether, one of truly pathological lying. The man is unable to tell lies from facts. Besides, Trump do not care as he likes to make stuff up to tick people off. His followers, his red-hatted base, don’t care either as they love it when their president pisses people off. Trump’s outrageous and ridiculously stupid and vile behavior during the debate were so bad Joe Biden would be excused for refusing to debate this corrupt usurper any further.
Trump also refused to criticize White racism and White supremacy and their allied, Alt-Right armed militias. In fact, he told to “watch the polls” to help prevent Democrat Parety voter fraud and described the militias as “very nice people” again. Even told one of them, the Proud Boys, associated with the Portland Riots and other confrontations with BLM protestors, to “stand back and stand by.” The Alt-Right racists must have reacted with guns and glee.
We are already in a type of low-level civil war the mainstream media calls “violent civil unrest” and war analysts term LICs or “Low-Intensity Conflicts.” While I have high hopes for my country, I also fear for my nation. All-out revolution and civil war is a dreadful event with all sides in such conflicts prone to committing atrocities as chaos grinds on. I fear for my family and friends, for those I love, for our environment, for our planet. Humanity on Earth has not ever seen an all-out civil war within a complex, sophisticated 21st Century superpower awash in weapons of all kinds before. May peace prevail. We the People, however, must get to work if we haven’t already. Hoping things will blow over as bombast and hot air won’t help. Maybe things will blow over quickly and in another election cycle Kamala Harris becomes President and Trump becomes as forgettable a president as Warren Harding or Franklin Pierce. As midnight approaches, there is one thing for certain: the future Shakespeares of the world will have a field day from this dangerously tragic time in our history.
William Dudley Bass
Tuesday 29 September 2020
Seattle, Washington
USA
Earth
Also see the following articles by the author here:
“Trump Usurped the Presidency when the Electoral College Failed America,” http://williamdudleybass.com/electoral-college-failed-america.
“Civil War in 21st Century America? We would destroy ourselves,” http://williamdudleybass.com/civil-war-21st-century-america.
Copyright © 2020 by William Dudley Bass. All Rights Reserved by the Author & his Descendants until we Humans establish Wise Stewardship over and for our Earth and Solarian Commons. Thank you.