Trump's Big Lie is changing the face of American politics
Trump's Big Lie is changing the face of American politics
Analysis by Stephen Collinson, CNN
Updated 9:43 AM ET, Thu September 16, 2021
https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/16/politics/trump-big-lie-gop-election/index.html
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"Relentless efforts by former President Donald Trump and his true believers in politics and the media have convinced millions of Americans that Joe Biden is a fraudulent President who seized power in a stolen election.
This deep-seated suspicion of last November's vote, which threatens to corrode the foundation of US democracy, mirrors the message adopted by the ex-President months before he clearly lost a free and fair election to Biden.
It has immediate political implications -- the lie that the last election was a fix is already shaping the terrain in which candidates, especially Republicans, are running in midterm elections in 2022. And the widespread belief that Trump was cheated out of power is building the former President a 2024 platform to mount a GOP presidential primary bid if he wishes.
Longer term, the fact that tens of millions of Americans were seduced by Trump's lies about election fraud poses grave questions about the future of America's democratic political architecture itself. Ultimately, if a large minority of the population no longer has faith in rule by the people for the people, how long can that system survive? And if the will of millions of people is no longer expressed through voting, what other outlets are there? Already, the January 6 insurrection has shown what happens when aggrieved groups -- in this case incited by a massive lie -- take matters into their own hands."
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more at link
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MUCH MORE in the Article about democracy being on trial in America with great quotes from Gavin Newsom ""Democracy is not a football. You don't throw it around, it's more like a, I don't know, antique vase. You can drop it and smash it in a million different pieces." and Eric Holder "I think about ... those democracies that were lost in the middle part, the early part of the 20th century where democracy was not adequately defended and authoritarian regimes rose, And it wasn't because democracy was unpopular. You know, democracy was strong. But the reality is the defense of democracy was weak, and we cannot allow that to happen in this country."
Collinson also suggests that Trump would almost certainly be renominated if he decides to run and that ambitious Republicans will support his Big Lie to maintain their standing with Trump supporters. Basically the danger of Trump's Big Lie threatens American democracy itself, and once it falls apart it will not be easy to reconstruct it.
pwb
(11,261 posts)So there's one not changed.
Bayard
(22,061 posts)Hard to believe such a self-centered sociopathic loser could have this much sway over people. Still!
Maybe its because many were ready to clutch at any kind of cause that fell in line with what they already wanted to believe. Their, "values",. TFG was the polar opposite of Obama, who they hated with a passion, and Biden even more so.
I've learned the hard way over the years that the person who yells the loudest, and tells the biggest lies, usually wins. We thought we were safe when Democrats took the Presidency, Senate, and House. A lot of people--good people--don't know how fragile democracy still is right now, and that you have to fight for it.
And this really goes beyond mere policy differences. Policy will be decided by the authoritarian leader in a fascist state, should we be unlucky enough to fail to stop Trump and his successors.
Moebym
(989 posts)Likened democracy to a fragile vase that must be handled with care. Best analogy I've heard yet.