My wife, a US citizen, had stayed up to wait on the results coming in. She had been hoping for a Harris victory. I came down shortly after midnight, took a quick look at the screen, pronounced Trump the winner and went back to bed.
The result was something of a surprise insofar as it was only in the final days that I had come to believe that Harris could win. That was more down to the lack of confidence coming out from the Trump camp. As far back as Biden still being in the race as the Democrat nominee I was of the view that there was no chance of a Democrat victory. In his debate with Trump he achieved the impossible - making Trump look like an intellectual as he fumbled and stumbled through his lines. Harris replacing him when she had been virtually invisible for four years seemed an incredibly risky gamble. Yet, as the finishing line approached, I wavered in my belief that she was a lost cause.
I was disappointed to see Trump emerge victorious. In an election where my preferred choice was not possible - that both of the candidates would lose - I found it hard to be enthusiastic for Kamala Harris. I figure I was wanting Trump to lose more than I was wanting Harris to win. Her not winning did not greatly dismay me. Him not losing did.
As far as US presidents go - my memory takes me back to JFK, or at least to the night he died - there has only been one president I loathed more than Trump. That is Joe Biden. The reason for that is his role in the genocide perpetrated by Nazi Israel in Gaza. There is no mitigation - Biden is simply a loathsome bastard. Anybody associated with the Democrat Party that accuses Trump of being a Nazi is cruising on hi-octane chutzpah. Trump cannot be condemned for what he might do. Biden can be condemned for what he has done. He has been up to his neck in Nazi Israel's extermination policies, and lying on a Trumpian scale to cover for the horrendous crimes committed.
Not for a second do I feel that Trump will improve the lot of the Palestinians. In fact I believe he will worsen their plight. But until he does he cannot be accused of mass murder on the scale that Biden has made possible.
Kamala Harris was second in command in Genocide Joe's murderous regime. She has never yet distanced herself from Biden's genocidal urges, preferring instead to hold the line. I have not the slightest sympathy for her.
I was disappointed to see Trump emerge victorious. In an election where my preferred choice was not possible - that both of the candidates would lose - I found it hard to be enthusiastic for Kamala Harris. I figure I was wanting Trump to lose more than I was wanting Harris to win. Her not winning did not greatly dismay me. Him not losing did.
As far as US presidents go - my memory takes me back to JFK, or at least to the night he died - there has only been one president I loathed more than Trump. That is Joe Biden. The reason for that is his role in the genocide perpetrated by Nazi Israel in Gaza. There is no mitigation - Biden is simply a loathsome bastard. Anybody associated with the Democrat Party that accuses Trump of being a Nazi is cruising on hi-octane chutzpah. Trump cannot be condemned for what he might do. Biden can be condemned for what he has done. He has been up to his neck in Nazi Israel's extermination policies, and lying on a Trumpian scale to cover for the horrendous crimes committed.
Not for a second do I feel that Trump will improve the lot of the Palestinians. In fact I believe he will worsen their plight. But until he does he cannot be accused of mass murder on the scale that Biden has made possible.
Kamala Harris was second in command in Genocide Joe's murderous regime. She has never yet distanced herself from Biden's genocidal urges, preferring instead to hold the line. I have not the slightest sympathy for her.
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...if he makes it Jan 6th. They've already had a couple of goes at him so I'd be surprised if some other lone nutter or enraged group ( particularly Deepstate Military-Industry ) doesn't have another crack.
ReplyDeleteAnd if successful the US will tear itself apart.
Steve, 2 Trump voters tried to assassinate him.
ReplyDeleteThe majority decided they wanted to FAFO, I suspect any journalist or network critical of Trump will be the first to lose their press pass to WH briefings. Trump doesn't do anything that does not serve his interests so I suspect the people elected a trifecta president comprised of Trump, Musk and JFKjr... guided by Putin.
There wont be any more elections or the GOP will make the same changes to the law Putin, XI, Oban, and Erdogan made to ensure they keep control of elections. Trump is likely going to replace 2 more Supreme Court judges with sycophants ... and to make sure its not a third maybe Sonia Sotomayor should resign now and Democrats appoint Harris to the Supreme Court before its too late.
Christy,
DeleteI don't believe they were Trump supporters. Think about it, they release next to fuck all about the perpetrators, claim they couldn't get access to the phones ( utter lies) yet happy to tell you they were Trump supporters.?
Not buying it.
Steve
DeleteThey were registered republicans and at least 1 displayed MAGA/Trump paraphernalia on their lawn. Do you think Trump and MAGA wouldnt still be going on about them if they could link them to the Dems? Rather than quietly trying to distance themselves from their own crackpots?
Christy,
DeleteAlways consider the source of the information, the same people who said they were registered Trumps supporters are the same people who say they can't get access to the perps phones.
Khashoggi showed that is utter lies and all phones are easily read by Government agencies.
I don't think it was anything to do with the Democratic party and everything to do with Deepstate interests in the Military Industrial complex who were appalled at the noises from Trump that threatened their profits, namely Trump saying he will stop sending military aid to Ukraine and get Israel to stop...( using US ordinance by implication).
Threaten the money and it's a death sentence in the US.
UK Labour will be lucky to have fifty seats after the next G E ! They are no better than the Tories & are already behind in opinion polls .
ReplyDeleteAmericans opted for mediocre Trump partly because the Democrat elite are snobs who believe in limitless immigration & don't give a toss as to the consequences for wages & housing . The Libertarian party would of been my choice , unfortunately they only get 1 - 2 % of votes .
Ireland's woke out of touch Left will receive a similar message in three weeks .
Red Ron
Delete??? I think you've got things about face ... the GoP want tax breaks for billionaires and no gun controls etc -v- Dem tax billionaire, childcare and medicare for the working class, student load relief, support for unions etc...
Red Ron. Immigration does not take "our jobs or houses or our women for that matter." It is because of predatory capitalism and possessive individual ism that there is job insecurity and housing shortages.
DeleteRed Ron. I presume in Britain you would vote for Pound Shop Trump Nigel Shit finger Farage's Reform UK. Bunch of racist kuntz them all
DeleteDemocracy at work!
ReplyDeleteThe people have spoken. Each will have their story about what they done and why they have done it and each of us will shape our narrative as to why they collectively did what they did.
The people were free to choose and for whatever reasons they chose as they chose. They'll get another chance to choose again in 2028. Then there'll either be more jaw-jaw or there'll be war-war!
Genocide Joe and his cabal are gone. Good riddance to them.
There's a new sheriff in town now. Americans and the rest of us should 'Stay Calm & Chive On'. The Gaffer called it right above; "Trump cannot be condemned for what he might do. Biden can be condemned for what he has done. He has been up to his neck in Nazi Israel's extermination policies, and lying on a Trumpian scale to cover for the horrendous crimes committed."
That's it Henry Joy - parliamentary democracy in action. The people have spoken, the bastards as the saying goes. The outcome has to be accepted when it goes in a direction you don't prefer. Not something Trump would hold to but it would be churlish of his critics to start rummaging around in the ramshackle stolen vote box.
DeleteEven if, with much justification, they accuse him of being a racist and rapist, they still need to explain why he was more preferable to the electorate than Harris.
Genocide Joe and his cabal are gone. Good riddance to them.
Amen to that even if I preferred a different outcome.
I hear your need, your need for them to explain. To me it's simply like the reason a dog licks his own balls; Rover does it because he can! In the final analysis, that people had the opportunity to choose is in itself the victory. Long may it remain so.
DeleteThe swing vote swung as it did for a myriad of reason but we can't dismiss Trump's ability to communicate at an instinctual level. It's erroneous to think that buying/voting decisions are rational or altruistic. As you have pointed out most of us, whether we admit it or not, are motivated by self-interest. Our decision making processes are largely instinctive and driven by emotion rather than reason. Hence what wasn't reasoned in can't be reasoned out. The Democrats relied too much on reasoning whereas Trump appealed to more base instincts.
I'm not sure I agree with frankie about him being a comedian but he is a skilled communicator. He connects with his audience at their level and simply tells them what they want to hear.
Will he be able to deliver? I doubt it.
And the Democrats need to become cleverer in opposition.
I don't need them to explain at all. They are not accountable to me and there will be so many different reasons for people voting as they did that a wide range of explanations would be the result. That would be of little use in helping us to understand. Something like Robert Nozick's Anarchy, State, and Utopia would probably be the sort of explanatory framework to emerge. I would never feel the need to explain why I voted in a particular way so don't expect that others need to explain either.
Deletethat people had the opportunity to choose is in itself the victory.
That's a crucial point. Somebody said to me last night voting is a waste of time. The inference being that it should be replaced. But with what? The thing about the US election unlike say the Russian election is that somebody other than the incumbent can get in as was demonstrated in 2020 and 2024.
He didn't deliver last time and I can't see him doing so this time around. He fires everybody and puts incompetents in position. There is talk that he is considering Marjorie Taylor Green as head of Homeland Security. That is her of Jewish space laser infamy. Full on whackjob.
Whatever his warlike instincts (I am not convinced he has them - unlike Biden) the fact remains that he is head of a party that has been responsible for some of the worst wars since the 1940s: Iraq; Afghanistan; Vietnam; Cambodia; Laos. The party that produced Nixon, Kissinger, Bush. Is that gonna change? It is not the individual appetites of leaders that lead countries to make war. Leaders are just the head on the boil that erupts.
There's a lot of nitpicking going on within the Dems with much merit ... but ultimately the blame lies with the spineless attorney general Merrick Garland -he was more worried about his image and did not want to be the first AG to prosecute a president. Had he acted 2 years earlier then the world would not have this lunatic in control. All commentators and observers were pleading for Garland to act in a timely manner so Trump likely wouldn't have been on the GoP ticket --but Garland's timing just made more of a martyr out of the manchild.
DeleteTrump represents the extreme of what happens when the social elite have no accountability and can get away with anything.
Ooops! I see it now; his critics need to explain/understand how, despite his short-comings, he was preferable to the electorate.
DeleteYeah, if they're to be an effective opposition they really need to get their heads round that.
Christy,
ReplyDeleteWhat are you smoking? Whatever it is, I want some.
Frankie, It's being cognitive -if you haven't got it, you haven't got it.
DeleteLol
DeleteChristy, you are spot on. The guardians of US democracy like Merrick Garland and Mitch McConnell failed in their duty by failing to convict Trump for his violent assault on the US Constitution on 6/1/21. More I'm my next TPQ piece.
ReplyDeleteBarry
DeleteDidnt mention McConnell because he repulses me and I expect nothing better from him. I expected Garland to step up and he didn't because he wanted to maintain the lack of accountability enjoyed by the social elite, in this case a former president. I thought it despicable that the only reason he did not pursue a prosecution was out of concern for his own reputation=his reasoning is public knowledge. The January 6 Committee forced his hand but unfortunately that came 2 years too late as we now see.
Look forward to reading your next piece.
Steve, looking past the guff about the Deep State, do you seriously want the US to stop supplying Ukraine with the tools they need to finish the job against Putin. The existing supply of ordinance is insufficient as it is and cannot be used on Kurch.
ReplyDeleteBarry,
DeleteI'd rather there was a peace deal worked out. "Finishing the Job" against Putin is utter madness. If he's defeated and loses face then what do you think he's going to do? Go quietly into the night? Off for a smoke of a pipe and a shot of vodka?
He's been blatant about wanting to resurrect the old Rus Empire, and if the West thinks it can force him down then they are foolish in extremis.
I suspect Ukraine will cede Russian speaking areas in the East and give assurances they will not join NATO. The US under Trump will push this as a 'signature' deal under his new administration.
And this "Guff" about the Deep State you think is bullshit, what exactly has been US foreign policy do you think since WWII? Eisenhower warned of exactly this, that the Military Industrial complex will gain hidden power and advocate war for profits sake. Surprised you can't see this.
Steve, I am well aware of the discourse around the military industrial complex but we are about to enter an era of US isolationism in which the old assumptions about America may not hold true. If Putin is blatant about resurrecting the Russian Empire then why force a Munich style peace agreement on Ukraine? Such would mean that Ukrainians would have sacrificed their lives for nothing. Ukraine has been the victim of unprovoked aggression and Europe should stand up for it and tell the Rapist-in-Chief to fuck off. Slavia Ukraini.
ReplyDeleteUnprovoked? Putin was saying for years that NATO expansionist ideas of bringing Ukraine into the alliance was his red line, would the US accept Mexico forming a military alliance with China? Of course not. The writing was on the wall from Crimea, yet the west didn't pay heed. Yes it was an illegal invasion by putin but let's not kid ourselves that it was unprovoked.
ReplyDeleteCrimean take over illegal under international law as was full invasion of Ukraine as states are not allowed to take territory from other sovereign states. Why should Putin be allowed to veto the foreign policy choices of independent ex Soviet bloc nations? No provocation.
ReplyDeleteNo one is arguing that it's illegal Barry and I'm not saying otherwise, but are you seriously saying you believe Putin ordered this for no reason?
DeleteSteve - having a reason does not mean having a good reason. A right wing capitalist government - it seems natural that it will try and expand and exert influence. How else does capital grow? Is there anybody seriously believing that for the first time in history a right wing capitalist government made a humanitarian military intervention?
DeleteThe US and NATO is not involved in Ukraine for any good reason. If Israel was bombing Ukraine Biden would be arming it and trying to prevent international arrest warrants for its leaders.
In my view Ukraine has a right to be free from Russian interference. But I will not pretend that the US or NATO are driven by that imperative.
I was never convinced that NATO was ever gonna let Ukraine in. I think it was playing Ukraine for its own destabilising objectives. Putin has set in motion the enlargement of NATO on Russia's border. But prior to that the US was trying to humiliate Russia in a regional power play aimed at increasing its own sphere of influence. Russia has responded to that in the hope of expanding its own sphere of influence.
Barry - the US has effectively told the world that international law is irrelevant; that it is not there to be respected or obeyed, being a mere instrument of Western domination. Is that a lesson to be teaching Putin or any state leader for that matter, particularly those with autocratic tendencies?
DeleteI don't disagree with anything you've said Anthony, and can see how my answers seem like I'm excusing Putin which I'm most certainly not.
DeleteSteve - far from it. I don't think you are trying to excuse Putin at all but are seeking to create a plausible context in which the West is not allowed to pull the wool over the eyes of everybody observing the war.
DeleteThe Gaza genocide has exposed the West even more so than the Rwandan one, where the French played a not insignificant role whereas the US pretended it was blind. It was in fact colour blind - black guys killing each other in a tribal war was pretty much how they defined it.
The Western values are fine but don't expect the West to uphold them. Israeli genocide has turned the supposed terra firma of Western moral high ground into a noxious swamp from which it might never extricate itself. What value can Western democracy have if it can only be defended by systematic infanticide and genocide?
None, Western Democracy is theatre dressing for the masses, while it's becoming more and more evident who holds the real power. Those who profit from War.
DeleteAll yesterday 's questions as Putin and other autocrats have an incoming ally or patsy in the White House.
ReplyDeleteSteve, your comment about war profiteers holding the real power in Western Democracies has a very familiar, historical ring to it. A certain religio-ethnic group has often been accused of dominating it. Any idea? Answers on a postcard if you wish. I am no friend or ally of any military-industrial complex or armaments industry, they have been the recipients of Keynesian largesse from governments for far too long. But sometimes they can be a necessary evil. How else could Hitler have been defeated without it performing at full pelt. Ergo, the threat of an expansionist Putinist RuZZia?
ReplyDeleteThe problem with reductionist views of the power of arms industries or other populist corporate folk devils is that it can be the pathway of descent into certain conspiracist rabbit holes.
"Steve, your comment about war profiteers holding the real power in Western Democracies has a very familiar, historical ring to it. A certain religio-ethnic group has often been accused of dominating it."
DeleteBarry that's beneath you come on.
"The problem with reductionist views of the power of arms industries or other populist corporate folk devils is that it can be the pathway of descent into certain conspiracist rabbit holes."
The older I get the more lies the main stream media get caught out telling the masses. Slinging shite at those who point out facts to muddy the waters is an oft used tactic I might add.