“‘Reconsider Any Belief In Innate American Goodness,’ Ken White advises at the Popehat Report. ‘A country that votes for Trump is broken in very complicated and daunting ways,’ informs the attorney and podcaster. ‘Fuck Civility,’ he declares, and for good measure, ‘Stay Tuned For Violence.’ They do sorta go together, eh? ‘Debate is preferable,’ he notes for the record, ‘[b]ut most Americans would agree with what Thomas Jefferson said about the blood of patriots and tyrants. At some point violence is morally justified and even necessary. Americans will disagree on when.’ Though, let’s all agree, not now.” (11/07/24)
“Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelensky, needs a way to lose the war with Russia. American voters may have just given it to him. In his victory speech early in the morning of November 6, President-Elect Donald Trump said, ‘I will govern by a simple motto: Promises made, promises kept. We’re going to keep our promises.’ He promised fixing our borders. He promised the greatest economic comeback. But there is only one thing he promised to do even before he took office and that is end the war in Ukraine. That will be the first test of his governing motto.” (11/07/24)
“While some voters were undoubtedly voting on democracy, or immigration, or race, or gender, most of them seem to have been participating in a pretty normal anti-incumbent election in which a telegenic candidate beat a weak opponent who was tied to an unpopular administration and following a suboptimal playbook. Obviously, that’s disappointing if you supported Harris and think Trump’s character is unworthy of the office. But it also means that in four years, you’ve got the normal chance of taking that office back.” (11/06/24)
“In 1937, it was said that a critical shift of one justice in a critical case ended the move to pack the Supreme Court by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. It was said that it was ‘a shift in time saves nine.’ In 2024, a shift in the Senate may have had the same impact. President-elect Trump’s victory this week means that absent a renewal of the court-packing scheme and other extreme measures of the left [sic], the court will remain unchanged institutionally for at least a decade. The expectation is that Justice Clarence Thomas could use this perfect time to retire and ensure that his seat will be filled with a fellow conservative [sic] jurist. Justice Samuel Alito may also consider this a good time for a safe harbor departure.” (11/07/24)
“In the coming days, much will be written about working class concerns — issues that have become familiar focal points for those seeking to understand Trump’s support. But while inflation and border policies will have no doubt played a role in the Republicans’ landslide victory, we might also want to look at the sentiments expressed by young male voters — voters who represent a new and emerging contingent in American politics. Nothing about the young men I spoke to appeared particularly conservative or ‘right-wing.’ Yet it was easy for them to explain why they voted for Trump. And if we zoom out and look at broader cultural trends, it should be easy for us to understand too.” (11/06/24)
“Despite a few bright spots, the disappointing returns suggest that the road to pharmacological freedom will be rockier than activists hoped.” (11/06/24)
“As you read this, it is now at least 24 hours since the polls closed on ‘the most important election in our lifetimes’ according to pundits and celebrities of all political flavors. Whether we believe that or not, whether all the races are resolved or not, we take a certain pleasure in having made it this far. If nothing else, most of the ads will stop. The mailboxes will be emptier, the neighborhood corners and empty lots will start to get cleaned up.” (11/06/24)
“Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg recently lamented how his company groveled to federal demands to censor any criticism of the Biden administration’s Covid policy. But is Facebook really launching a ‘Brave New World’ era of free speech? Facebook notified me on Sunday morning that eight years ago, I posted a link to my Washington Times article warning of Dictatorial Democracy regardless of whether Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump won the 2016 election. … I tapped the button to automatically send a notice on ‘Dictatorial Democracy’ to all my Facebook friends and followers. No such luck: Facebook notified me that they had banned sharing the piece because it violated Facebook ‘Community Standards.’ Maybe if I had simply howled about one of the current presidential candidates being Hitler, that would have satisfied Facebook’s Community Standards?” (11/06/24)
“Despite a consistent swing toward Donald Trump across the country on Tuesday, the House of Representatives is still — barely — within the grasp of Democrats. And the reason why is an ancient mystery that every national journalist seems to forget every two years: California is not on your schedule when it comes to counting votes. First, a word on why it would matter whether Democrats take the House. It’s true that Donald Trump has shown every willingness to extend executive power in whatever way he wants, armed now with a literal get-out-of-jail-free card from the Supreme Court. It’s true that a Republican Senate will allow Trump to seed the federal courts and executive agencies with all of his loyalists, who can then carry out his bidding. … And it’s true that the areas where presidents have wide latitude, like foreign policy and immigration and tariffs, are at the president-elect’s whim.” (11/06/24)
