I'm feeling good and hopeful about November.

[cilla4progress]

Anyone else?

[HarlanPepper]

1. You will likely be attacked or pilloried for being optimistic

But I share in your good feeling. We just need to keep our eyes on the prize and do the work. Everything else is meaningless.

[cilla4progress]

3. Yep!

Most positive I've felt about our politics since...well...

I know there is much work to be done. But I'm going to relish this feeling as long as it lasts!

Biden is no HRC in many ways. He has never suffered the same backlash and vitriol. For many reasons.

He was also, I believe, one of the least financially well off Congresspersons, while in office, for a long time.

And they already blew their Burisma wad!!

[Sherman A1]

2. Happy that you do

I will not attack your optimism, but I do not share it at all and am exceptionally pessimistic about November.

[cilla4progress]

4. I think it's going to take all of us,

with our differing perspectives, to achieve success this election!

[Sherman A1]

10. I will certainly vote for the nominee in November

however, I remain very, very pessimistic about his chances.

[Dream Girl]

12. Do you think Andrew Yang would have a better chance?

[Sherman A1]

14. Yes, I do

and I believe he would have won vs Trump in November. I liked him for his ideas well beyond the signature UBI and his ability to win in vs Donald Trump.

[blue cat]

15. I don't n/t

[Sherman A1]

16. Okay

everyone is entitled to their opinion.

[Dream Girl]

19. Do you really think people would have gone for that? You don't know America

They are many people that can’t at abide the idea of black and brown people and poor people getting anything. Socialist would have been the rallying cry. I’m sorry if you viewed Yang as a serious candidate. He want not. He didn’t even expect to win.

[Sherman A1]

23. I am sorry

that you did not view him as a serious candidate, He very much was with ideas that were 5 steps ahead of the rest of the pack.

[Dream Girl]

27. I liked them and agree that ideas were two steps ahead. He was ahead of his time

I thin this run to done to raise his profile. We haven’t seen the last of him..he will be back. You must be young. I rember falling in love with a candidate and refusing to understand that he was never viable.

[Sherman A1]

44. Nope

I'm a retired senior so you guessed incorrectly. Yang was well ahead of the pack in ideas. Perhaps some of them like UBI will come out of this current mess, perhaps not. But we really don't have time for a re-set presidency.

[redstateblues]

38. He couldn't even make a competitive run for the nomination.

I like him but he seems more like a cabinet secretary.

[Sherman A1]

45. I disagree

but, time will tell.

[at140]

28. President Obama changed that viewpoint forever.

JMHO.

[Dream Girl]

30. I saw a guy on tv with liver failure in Tennessee. He was was okay is not getting Obamacare

He was clearly poor but didn’t want “his taxes” going to “welfare queens”. He was literally ok with dying

[at140]

39. Sounds like his preference was financial, not racial

The election of Barack Obama proves to me that racial bigotry is much less now than just 20 years ago.

[Demsrule86]

53. No he didn't. Sadly.

[at140]

63. I think Michelle Obama would win by a huge margin over Trump in 2020

but then I was wrong about Hillary winning comfortably in 2016.

[Demsrule86]

68. She is not the nominee. Biden will beat Trump. Unless we get stupid and let the GOP start their

shit.

[at140]

69. Correct, but election is 7 months away. Lot can happen?

Both Biden & Trump will be the oldest ever running for president in 2020.

[Demsrule86]

70. I really think that is a bad way to think of things...how old was Bobby Kennedy...

Biden's mother was over 100 when she died...and Trump is too mean to die.

[brush]

5. The economy will not magically bounce back by Nov and neither will the virus magically...

disappear by November as trump likes to say, not to mention the huge uptick in unemployment, so please explain your pessimism. Do you actually think trump's daily press conferences are making him look good and not idiotically inept?

[Sherman A1]

9. I agree that the economy will not bounce back, in fact I see a depression in the offing

Are the press conferences of the "Esteemed" Mr. Trump making him look good? Well, no they are not. As to my explaining my feelings about November.... Well, they are my feelings about November. I really do not have to explain them to you or anyone else.

I will say I don't believe the presumptive nominee will carry the day, nor did I believe that during the primary or debate season. That is why I chose to support and vote for another candidate.

[brush]

11. Why post here if you're not willing to explain your ideas. It's discussion board you know.

And one other thing, when was the last time an incumbent president president who presided over a massive economic downturn with skyrocketing unemployment has been re-elected?

Never.

And then there's the matter of his poor response to this virus and the resulting high death toll and illness.

[Sherman A1]

13. Okay, here ya go

I don't think the presumptive nominee will win the general election.

Does that work?

[brush]

18. After what you posted before what you just posted follows. You think trump will win.

It goes against history though since an incumbent presiding over a massive recession has never won re-election.

[Dream Girl]

20. Seemed liked someone have that $1k basic income already spent and they're unhappy about that

[brush]

21. Not clear on what your post means but I'm optimistic that trump will lose.

Oh, I get it now. The poster is upset that Yang didn't get our nomination. I didn't get your point until I read your earlier post.

[Sherman A1]

22. I do believe he will win

an I don't believe history will make any difference at all. We live in the present, not the past.

[brush]

24. I don't agree, but you do you.

[Sherman A1]

26. Everyone is entitled to their opinions

[brush]

33. Will you be voting for Biden?

[Green Line]

47. Gone silent, guess the answer is no

[brush]

50. Guess he's one of those. Sad.

[Demsrule86]

43. It is hard when your candidate doesn't win. But there is every reason to be optimistic IMHO.

And those who supported other candidates need work towards our common goal of removing Trump.

[Sherman A1]

46. I completely agree that we need to work towards removing Trump

I just don't see the Presumptive Nominee as able to do that. Hence my pessimism.

[Wounded Bear]

6. I have cautious optimism that what has happened would derail any presidency,

but this Presidump is a special case, and the Repub Pary has gone full power grab mode nation wide.

It will take all of us, and quite a few "never voters" joining in to overcome this.

[cilla4progress]

7. Yep - and I'm

FIRED UP AND READY TO GO!!!!!!!!!

[Sinistrous]

8. I am terrified about November. December. and January

when I consider what that raging psychotic monstrosity will do before it is finally evicted from the White House.

[at140]

40. I don't think Trump will make it through the stress of dealing with covid-19

He looks haggard, tired, drained. He does not look anywhere near healthy and looks fatter than ever.

[Lulu KC]

17. Yes, if the p.o. stays alive

If we have a vote, we will get to better. November-January will be wild and crazy. Keeping the faith here.

[Celerity]

25. far, far too much Δ (delta) observed during my perambulations around the electoral environs to make

any sort of call, for the good or the bad.

[WheelWalker]

29. Not enough delta-9.

Recommend boosting your dosage to elevate optimism.

[Celerity]

31. Assuming you mean weed, I'm not a smoker at all, I hate it, BUT I am profoundly for its legalisation

Surprisingly (to most people) Sweden is even more draconian in regards to marijuana (especially via its school educational efforts and a widespread societal paranoia about it as damn near the same as shooting up heroin) than many parts of the US. The coppers here can walk up to you on the street and do a forced blood test if they think you are under the influence of drugs, and the ramifications can be dire if you test positive. One of my friend's ex BF's was walking with friends on the street in Spånga (an inner belt Stockholm suburb that is next to one of the worst neighbourhoods, Tensta, in the entire nation) several years ago and was forced-tested, came back weed positive, and he lost his commercial driving license for 5 years, and thus his job, as he was a truck driver, and had spent over 50,000kr (at the time around 7,000 USD or so) getting certified less than a year before.

[WheelWalker]

48. I understand your personal position regarding usage. Not everyone is Vitamin-M deficient.

What a horrible story you relate from the drug wars. I share your view on legalization; however, I am profoundly opposed to commercialization and sale. People who want to use should be permitted and encouraged to grow for themselves, and to share with family, friends and others with need. My personal history as a user ended last October after 52 years of daily consumption. I still grow my permitted allotment, however, retaining on my path a measure of the evil ways.

[Celerity]

51. the drug wars in Sweden go back to early post WWII and a huge methedrine epidemic

that became extremely widespread here throughout the youth back in the 50's and into the '60's. Swedes have a tendency to abuse alcohol (massive problems before, during and after the incredible rapid urbanisation and industrialisation 20 years before and 20 years after the fin de siècle 120 years ago and onward, that partially led to rise of huge temperance movements, our state liquor monopoly Systembolaget, and also the modern Social Democrat Party, but that history is beyond the scope of this short reply) and drugs, often in a mad rush (binge drinking on the weekends for example) as they are so controlled in their emotions and subserviant to widespread social norms. Lots of generalisation there, but there is deffo a lot of truth as well.

The government freaked at the youth drug scene and instituted a truly hardcore anti-drug curriculum in the schools, amd marijuana got lumped into it as hard drug, almost equal to heroin, coke, etc, a view which has permeated the zeitgeist for decades.

[Bleacher Creature]

32. Cautiously optimistic, but still freaked out because the stakes are so high.

I think Trump's plummeting approval in the suburbs probably dooms his chances of winning, but even the slightest possibility that he could win absolutely terrifies me. It's not hyperbole to say that if would truly be game over for this country if that happens.

[Baked Potato]

34. Yes, I am too.

[Aristus]

35. Yes.

I'm encouraged by Joe Biden's likelihood of the nomination. I'm encouraged by the way he reached out to Bernie Sanders and his supporters, and by the way Sanders responded positively to Biden's overtures.

There's an immense feeling of relief that comes with speculating that this nightmare could actually be over in seven months (there's the transition period if Biden wins, I know, and I expect it will be hideously ugly for the country, but it's time-limited to noon on Inauguration Day.)

Now we need to get out the vote like we never have before. We need to make the Blue Tsunami of 2018 look like ripples in a pond by comparison.

[Demsrule86]

42. Sanders is out Biden has won. I feel relieved also.

[samnsara]

36. me too and now that Joe is the presumptive nominee I feel even better

[Squinch]

37. Yes. I think we will win, and then we can slowly build back to sanity.

I can't wait.

[Demsrule86]

41. I am feeling very good about our prospects both presidential and Congress. and yes

this includes the Senate.

[DFW]

49. I have no doubt we'll win the presidential election. I'm only nervous about the counting.

There are two real challenges. One is overcoming Republican electoral fraud. They have gotten away with it in three out of the last five presidential elections. That is not a good track record. Only massive turnouts for Obama made the numbers impossible for them to overcome in 2008 and 2012. The Republicans have gotten more sophisticated at voter suppression, so we need a greater turnout than ever to compensate.

Second--we MUST once again have a majority in the US Senate. Notice you don't see massive public support for Trump from such Republican Senators as Tillis (R.NC), Ernst (R-IA), Gardner (R-CO), Collins (R.ME) or McSally (R-AZ). That is because their Senate seats are anywhere from endangered to perilous (from their point of view). Even Moscow Mitch McTurtle is starting to see Amy McGrath in his rear view mirror. THAT would be a major victory in itself.

[Drunken Irishman]

58. You're the definition of a self-fulfilling prophecy.

And I hate it. I think it's destructive and awful and anyone who posts it should be banned from here for it. Not to be rude, but it's exactly the type of rhetoric and underhanded bullshit I'd expect from the right to dispirit voter turnout.

Your whole post is just awful because it sets up failure from the start.

You've already convinced yourself they're going to steal it through cheating - so, I guess, why even vote?

Do you not see the lunacy of your own post? You think it'll take overwhelming turnout numbers to overcome the cheating, but you don't see that happening, so they're going to steal it anyway ... which means the election is already a forgone conclusion so why waste time turning out in an election that has already been decided anyway, therefore not getting anywhere near the turnout we need to win.

It's crazy.

If we lose - it'll be because of people like you. People who see no reason to vote in November because it won't make a lick of difference.

[cilla4progress]

59. Unfair.

Dems should not be the target.

Many unfair assumptions in your post, DI. I feel like my OP has been highjacked.

I hope you will reconsider.

[Drunken Irishman]

60. It is not unfair.

Nothing is more discouraging and dispiriting than saying 'it doesn't matter'. It's a divisive tool used to discourage turnout and, IMO, no different than those saying Biden is no different than Trump.

It's all under the same pretext and that pretext is that voting doesn't matter.

It doesn't matter either because both candidates are basically the different side of the same coin or it doesn't matter because the outcome has already been determined. Either way, it discourages people to vote.

Reading that post makes me not want to spend my energy even caring about politics and this election. That's exactly what the GOP wants - defeatism.

Imagine that message being on display in November when we might be still going through this pandemic. What kind of narrative are we wanting to send that could be twisted by voters in areas we need their support to not risk their lives to go out and vote because, gosh, does it matter?

To be honest, if I had that perception, if I truly believed the election was going to be stolen again, and I lived in Wisconsin, or a state where I had to physically go vote, I probably wouldn't risk my life, if we're still fighting this pandemic, on something I've already decided is predetermined.

That is a very dangerous charge.

People like to talk about being too confident but the flip side is having no confidence. Both lead to apathy.

In 2016, I bet a lot of voters voted third party, or stayed home, because they thought Hillary was going to win.

In 2020, I don't want to lose, and find out we lost because some voters decided to stay home because they thought their vote didn't matter anyway.

[pnwest]

61. I'm going to refrain from answering you the way I'd like, because the member-banning police have

itchy trigger fingers lately, and I don't want to give them fodder. I never said I wasn't going to vote.

And I apologize to cilla4progress if you feel like I hijacked your post, I was answering with genuine feelings. I WISH I felt optimistic. I'd LOVE to feel optimistic. I'm glad there are people who do, and I pray that I'm proven wrong.

[Drunken Irishman]

62. The problem isn't you - it's the mindset.

And the avenue you take spreading that mindset. It's great that you're going to vote. But how many people, who believe like you do, who read what you write, are as committed to voting as you are?

Do you think it's motivating for fence sitters to vote if they hear it's not likely to matter anyway because they're just going to steal the election?

How is that motivating - especially for people in say, Wisconsin, who may be forced to physically stand in lines during a pandemic for hours to cast their vote? If that mindset is contagious, and people start actually believing this election is going to be stolen regardless, what's the incentive to vote if it doesn't really matter?

You plan on voting - great.

Now what about the other millions of voters who sat out 2016? We need to give them reason to get to the polls and telling them that it doesn't likely matter, Trump is going to probably steal it and win anyway, is not the message.

[cilla4progress]

64. No, I'm sorry,

it was the hostile response to you.

All done now.

Thanks!

[pnwest]

65. All good :)

[LiberalBrooke]

54. I am too.

All don the con needed to do was make a minimal effort to combat this pandemic and he would have been applauded as wonderful. He failed every step of the way losing support that I think could have been his for saving lives.

[malaise]

55. Yep

Send them packing!

[redstatebluegirl]

56. I am afraid to think that way.

If the polls show Biden winning by double digits a lot of people will stay home, just look at 2016.

[GulfCoast66]

67. No way in hell. No one is sitting this one out. 2018 should have taught that lesson.

We normally get smoked in midterms yet totally kicked ass. A prelude to a larger deluge in 20.

[Marrah_Goodman]

57. I am hopeful

but not confident. Too many stupid people out there who vote for idiots or don't vote at all. I worry the virus might keep people from voting and that never benefits our side.

[BigDemVoter]

66. Sure Am.

I won't feel entirely comfortabe until that fat, orange-tinged buffoon and the rest of his clowns are out of the WH.

The shame of the entire thing? Too bad we cannot impeach EVERY single motherfucker that hog appointed, starting with the drunk, frat-boy rapist, Brett Kavanaugh.

[a kennedy]

71. No, I am not......Nov 3rd IS WAY TO FAR AWAY......

to much time from now until then. ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN.