In November, Americans should not accept getting what they deserve “Every nation gets the government it deserves” -- Savoyard philosopher Joseph de Maistre For those unfamiliar with de Maistre, he was no liberty-loving revolutionary. According to Wikipedia, he was, “A key figure of the Counter-Enlightenment, Maistre regarded monarchy both as a divinely sanctioned institution and as the only stable form of government. He called for the restoration of the House of Bourbon to the throne of France and for the ultimate authority of the Pope in temporal matters. Maistre argued that the rationalist rejection of Christianity was directly responsible for the disorder and bloodshed which followed the French Revolution of 1789.” Wow, heavy stuff. If you bring up de Maistre’s name and background at an otherwise happenin’ party, don’t be surprised if your fellow guests make a polite excuse and leave your presence to seek out a sunnier disposition in some other reveler. There aren’t a whole lot of folks these days who would argue for a return to monarchy in order to inspire more stability in government, but nevertheless, de Maistre’s observation -- “Every nation gets the government it deserves” -- is a salient one. And, his final point -- that rejecting Christianity led to the bloody French Revolution’s aftermath -- well, it’s hard to argue in that case. There’s a lot of lack of belief going ‘round these days, too. Nevertheless, with some polls showing Democrats primed to not only defeat President Donald Trump in November but also maintain or increase the party’s hold on the House of Representatives -- and take the majority in the Senate -- there are a lot of sensible people thinking that if America is be dumb enough to vote the liberal party into power across the board, then maybe we deserve what we get. Yes, things have gotten that bad. As would be expected, some feckless congressional Republicans are among those squawking the loudest about the coming ballot box catastrophe. In a piece titled, “Republicans fear disaster in November,” Olivia Beavers and JulieGrace Brufke reported at The Hill, “Republicans are privately fearing the worst possible outcome in November, one that could leave them without the White House or a majority in either chamber of Congress next year. “House Republicans face numerous, almost insurmountable obstacles: a cash shortfall against the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, 27 retiring lawmakers and a Republican National Committee that is more focused on reelecting President Trump and protecting the Senate GOP majority. They also need to pick up a net 17 seats to win back the House. “While Republicans noted the political landscape appears to change by the day, some are expressing a growing sense of doom.” Of course the “doom” was predicted by anonymous lawmakers who were so sure of themselves (not!) that they wouldn’t lend their names to the record. (To be fair, both House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Minority Whip Steve Scalise weren’t nearly so cynical.) Most of those interviewed seemed satisfied that Trump would turn things around soon and, if so, there’s at least a fighting chance for good things on Election Day. For the naysayers -- shocking, isn’t it? Hard to imagine (again, not!) establishment Republicans being pessimistic about their chances in an upcoming election, but remember, they aren’t Democrats. If it wasn’t obvious already from observing liberals since the days of Jimmy Carter, Democrats always think they’re going to win. It’s a type of hubris that’s ultra-contagious among lovers of big government because they automatically assume everyone loves “free stuff”, amnesty, abortion and the LGBTQ agenda and wouldn’t dream of rejecting checks from Uncle Sam even if they realize deep down that their grandchildren’s grandchildren will be paying it back. Likewise, liberals bet on Americans being drawn by the millions to the cause of Black Lives Matter and the “largely peaceful” street demonstrations while turning the other cheek to rioting and drastic boosts in street violence. For weeks after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, hordes of “woke” young adults and hip oldsters marched side by side with signs and slogans about “justice” and “change” and… well, you know. Get rid of the police and everything will be hunky-dory! If you don’t believe it, just ask the former residents of CHOP (or was it CHAZ?). Confidence -- or a lack thereof -- is a funny thing. It’s like a certain professional football team in the Buckeye State that’s enjoyed year-after-year of high first round draft choices. Fans figured such a regular infusion of great talent would equate to success on the field. The only problem is the other teams weren’t so sure that pedigrees were as important as team chemistry, selfless attitudes, hard work, great coaching an organizational structure built around winning. Today’s Democrats think they’ve got the best candidates pitted against the most hated of all presidents in history, and that the top of the ticket will drag the rest of the Republicans down with him. Their pollsters tell ‘em it’s true. And those professional prognosticators also rave about how scared people are of their own mortality due to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP, or Wuhan, if you prefer) virus, and that voters blame Trump for a purportedly slow response that’s cost tens of thousands of lives. The vast majority of establishment media members are perpetuating the myth because they want to see Trump founder (even though he’s a ratings and readership generating machine for practically everyone in the industry, regardless of ideology). Democrats’ strategy is transparently simple: keep Joe Biden muzzled and out of the spotlight so the uninformed can still envision him as the same ‘ol back slappin’, mask wearin’, hairdo sniffin’, child repellin’, nude swimmin’, shoulders massagin’ and sexual assault denyin’ great guy he’s always been. So what if he’s visibly failing and supplies truckloads’ worth of gaffes whenever he opens his mouth. Last week, for example, Joe said to a group of Hispanic and black journalists, “By the way, what you all know but most people don’t know, unlike the African American community with notable exceptions, the Latino community is an incredibly diverse community with incredibly different attitudes about different things.” Huh? This is a direct quote. Any nation that elects Joe Biden as its leader deserves what it gets, a politician who’s so beholden to ethnic groups and spreading racial divisions that he can’t get it straight even when he’s pandering to them. Do we really want four years of this? Electing Democrats will have consequences; people who vote should hear about them But this isn’t a personality contest and the election is about more than the difference between Grampa Joe and the always quotable Donald Trump. The media would love for Americans to consider 2020 as a single-issue referendum on four more years of Trump’s tweets and quirky interviews versus the affable and likable Biden, even if the man can’t seem to stop sticking his foot in his mouth. Trump hasn’t made it easier on Republicans by constantly picking petty fights with cultural figures and never letting well-enough alone, but the onus is on everyone in the conservative universe to make it a choice between worldviews instead of “he’s offensive versus he’s old and stupid”. Trump can do his part by returning time and again to the big themes he championed in 2016 -- stopping illegal immigration, law enforcement, safe streets, national security, lower taxes and regulation, getting the government out of business decisions, energy exploration, America-first trade, safeguarding every American’s right to bear arms, protecting the unborn and vigorously defending religious liberty. And appointing originalist judges who interpret laws rather than make them. This is what nationalizing the election looks like, and down-ballot Republicans should stick to the big items as well instead of engaging in nitpicking and criticizing their own leader. If Democrats win, their policies will destroy the country. It’s been said a lot lately, but with Joe Biden in the White House, another congressional term with Nancy Pelosi as Speaker and an upper chamber led by the always on the verge of tears “Chucky” Schumer -- sans the filibuster -- liberals will run roughshod over constitutional rights and traditions as well as explode the budget deficit. As a test case, the Trump administration recently pushed to make the big tech giants stop filtering and censoring conservatives’ free speech; this would be replaced by bureaucrats enabling the liberal robber barons to do whatever they want in the name of banning “hate speech” and obedience to the thought police (the only police liberals tend to like). Democrats don’t want people to speak freely or advance opinions contrary to the prevailing elitist wisdom. A Biden presidency would mean constant kowtowing to leftist organizations and accepting the dictates of the LGBTQ lobby even when the vast majority of Americans either don’t care or oppose what the interest groups stand for. If voters don’t wake up to the realities -- and Republicans don’t vigorously campaign on what the legislative outcomes would be -- then it could be said we’ll get what we deserve. Who would’ve thought we’d prove de Maistre correct two centuries later? In football, run for yards, throw for miles, but a political ground game is essential It's often said of quarterbacks that they should always think pass-first and leave running as a last resort. The old refrain, “Run for yards and pass for miles” was somewhat disproved last year by Baltimore Ravens’ MVP-winning quarterback Lamar Jackson as he threw for 36 touchdowns and ran for seven more while setting an NFL season record for rushing yards by a signal-caller. It may sound strange, but this year, Joe Biden’s campaign is analogous to the old line of thinking, committing his campaign to “airwave” communications and contacts rather than doing it the old fashioned way -- through an effective door-to-door, human-to-human pitch. Tyler O’Neil wrote at PJ Media, “Joe Biden and the Democratic Party may have seriously hobbled their election prospects in November by refusing to send out staff and volunteers to campaign door-to-door, building the essential ‘ground game’ that helps win elections. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump’s campaign and the Republican National Committee (RNC) claim to have volunteers and staff knocking on 1 million doors a week across America. “The Biden campaign and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) claim that they are not committing political suicide but merely adapting to the coronavirus pandemic. They told Politico that they can compensate for the lack of in-person canvassing with phone calls, texts, digital organizing, and virtual meet-ups with voters.” This is an interesting hypothesis that will certainly be tested in the ensuing months. From a distance, this seems to indicate a couple things. First, though the Biden campaign appears to have plenty of money for everything it needs to do -- including a blitz of TV and internet ads that we can’t crawl away from -- it doesn’t look like they have a big volunteer force. Even polls that show Grampa Joe comfortably ahead usually have Trump’s base as dramatically more enthusiastic and ready to go to the voting booth to support their candidate. Biden’s backers are primarily people who can’t stand Trump. They’ll hold their nose and vote for Joe but it won’t translate to people taking the time and expending the energy to do the less exciting grunt work of walking communities and speaking to people personally. I think if this were the case the Biden leaders would find a host of people who will vote for him -- but only reluctantly. Second, it shows Democrats and Biden are betting people are more scared than they actually are regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. If citizens are really so worried about catching the virus that they won’t open their door to representatives of a candidate they support… it says something. And it’s not like the Trump campaign’s door-to-door effort is akin to a mosh pit full of sweating, virus-transmitting humans. Hardly. The grassroots movement is following strict guidelines including social distancing. They’ll also be wearing masks… so no need for the Kens and Karens of the world to toss coffee in anyone’s face! (This is a MUST SEE video.) O’Neil concluded, “While the coronavirus pandemic is serious and Americans should expect their president to take precautions, they should also expect their president not to cower in fear. Campaigns should take precautions to keep staff, volunteers, and voters safe while canvassing, but that does not mean they have to cancel ground game operations. Biden may have an edge in the polls, but this ground game gap may sink him.” Let’s hope so. Otherwise, decent people might be forced to endure the government the country deserves, like de Maistre prophesied. It doesn’t take a 19th century French philosopher to suggest that Americans should consider the whole picture this November when they head to the voting booth to choose between Republicans and Democrats. Liberal party members and the media would prefer to make it all about Trump, but somewhere along the line, folks must realize there’s a lot more to it.
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