True story: Many years ago I was driving north on Interstate 35 in Dallas when a commercial garbage truck a couple of hundred feet in front of me, the kind that picks up entire dumpsters and tosses the contents overhead back into the big box at the rear, began to fishtail. (I later learned the rear axle broke, causing the loss of control.)
At 75 mph it was a pretty exciting sight! First it swerved left, then abruptly right, then hard left again, back and forth, all while the truck was rapidly decelerating. The slower it got, the more dramatic the truck leaned. Right as it came to a complete stop it fell over on its side, spilling garbage all over the highway. What a mess!
For some reason this memory I still carry after all these years came back into focus when I thought about our current presidential election season. As I see events unfolding, the similarities are uncanny.
A year ago things started out as you might expect, nothing unusual, just your typical sunny day. A gaggle of the usual career politicians jumped into the presidential race along with a couple of oddballs, Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders. *Really? Snicker* Then, defying all odds, the oddballs (pun intended) showed they had tapped into some deep resentments in the population.
The process began to go off traditional course...the axle broke. The Democrats swerved hard left behind Bernie, and the Republicans hard right behind the completely off-the-wall Trump, all while their opponents pulled over to the side to avoid being squashed. (The opportunistic Hillary Clinton grabbed the steering wheel out of Bernie's hands at the last minute.)
Now the finish line is in sight, and the fishtailing participants are becoming more and more erratic. WikiLeaks publishes some embarrassing emails about Hillary, and Donald Trump somehow finds room for another foot in his mouth and doesn't hesitate to take advantage of the opportunity.
So on election day, November 8th, is the out-of-control election truck going to finally fall over on its side, either left or right, spilling garbage all over the countryside?
Here's my takeaway from all this: The candidates themselves are actually irrelevant, but the nerves they touched in the electorate...that is the real story this year...are here to stay, and will likely become more inflamed as time goes on.
Donald Trump will soon be a historical footnote (the polls say Hillary will win, but as she is so widely reviled she'll likely be an ineffective President), and Bernie Sanders will retire to his rocking chair as Provocateur Emeritus.
The big news in all this is America is being seriously shaken up. Those who actually run America, who pull all the important strings, have taken things too far some say, and the people are royally pissed about it. It's all coming into focus for many Americans. "Building a wall" and "Feeling the Bern" are more than just cute slogans. IMO they're going to be permanent movements that won't just go away on November 9th.
Regardless of who wins, it looks like there might soon be a lot of garbage strewn all over the place. We might should get our shovels ready.
S
That is an excellent and vivid analysis.
ReplyDeleteI just wish that voters would put the same amount of thought into lower races as they do the presidency. If we broke the axles of down ticket races, we could create real change in a hurry.
Oh Nasreen, wouldn't that be nice? We've held Congress in record low esteem for years, yet we keep sending them back. Why? IMO (and apparently yours, too) we need a national reset.
DeleteThe problem is always people think Congress is garbage but their district's Congressman (or woman) is great.
DeleteIt's a fair analysis except for you saying Hillary grabbed the steering wheel from Bernie at the last moment. In fact, there was never any doubt that Hillary would win the nomination and, faced with Mr. Drumpf, the election as well.
ReplyDeleteClarification Bruce: Until right near the end of the campaign Bernie was all the talk, he was drawing the BIG crowds, and many thought he had the momentum. He drew Hillary much farther left as she tried to convince Democrats she was as progressive as he was. Bernie was in it until the final weeks, sans the super delegates. It took her a LONG time to put him away. That's when Hillary clenched the deal, or as I put it, "took the steering wheel from Bernie".
DeleteI must respectfully disagree, Scott. Hillary had the super delegates committed from the beginning of the primaries and they never wavered. Bernie was only a fun sideshow.
DeleteWe must simply disagree on this Bruce. Why would the super delegates commit without knowing who all was running first? It's because they are the Democratic establishment wanting to support a fellow establishment Democrst. It's like being on a jury and voting guilty or innocent before even hearing the evidence.
DeleteThe presidency should be hard to come by. Hillary has run a traditional campaign, using tried and true method that have long worked for serious candidates. Her ground game will probably hand her the presidency. If Trump wins, the future of politics will be forever changed, with the richest, most blustery candidates stealing the show, with tweets and unsupported sound bites winning the day.
ReplyDeleteI (now) think Hillary will win because she has such an oddball opponent, not because she is so beloved. And you're right, she is a traditional politician. My point is I think the people are fed up with promises from traditional politicians. That's why Donald and Bernie did so well. All of the Bernie fans, the ones who showed up en mass for his rallies and gave their $27, will remember 4 years from now the dream Bernie showed them. Just because Bernie has stepped down doesn't mean his dream will die. They will IMO come back strong 4 years from now and support the same dream under someone else's banner, giving traditional politicians, even Hillary, a run for her money.
DeleteHow many representatives are up for re-election? I think that's where the focus needs to be now.
ReplyDeleteI've heard some Republicans say it was going to be tough for them to remain in control of both houses of Congress. What I've always been frightened of is either party having control of the House AND the Senate AND the White House. When either party gets a full green light, WE lose.
DeleteYou're right about that. Checks and balances.
DeleteI usually try to not pay attention to political races (yes, head firmly in sand, thank you), but this really is like watching a wreck. I can't turn my head away!
ReplyDeleteI really hope you're wrong about Hillary being ineffective, but you're probably right...