Every important race for the House, the Senate, even some Governors’ races are a dead heat.
If you haven’t voted yet, do it now.
Stand in line for as long as it takes to uphold our democratic system of government.
Many years ago, I read in a book about political philosophy that the great strength of a Constitutional democracy is that the losing side knows they can try again next time. They take their loss in stride, shake hands with the winner, and vow to do better next time.
The thesis behind this scenario is that losers graciously concede. They know that they will not be imprisoned or murdered. At worst, they will be remorseful and brood over what they could have done better.
Our system of government depends on gracious losers and magnanimous winners.
When Al Gore lost the presidency by 537 votes in Florida, he pursued his legal remedies to the Supreme Court. When he lost there, he conceded.
When Hillary Clinton won the popular vote in 2016 but lost the electoral vote, she promptly conceded.
Trump is the first president who lost—decisively—but refused to concede. He pursued all legal remedies for two years and lost in every case. Yet he still lies to his followers and complains about election fraud when none has been found.
He is a whiner, a spoiler, a sore loser. He would destroy our electoral system of government rather than admit he lost.
Stand up for our democratic system by standing in line as long as you have to. Don’t let the Big Liar prevail over our Constitution.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
“When Al Gore lost the presidency by 537 votes in Florida, he pursued his legal remedies to the Supreme Court. When he lost there, he conceded.”
What else could he have done?
The supremely partisan Republican hacks in the Court Majority had him over a barrel. Once they ruled (which was not a “decision” but an outcome predetermined by the Republican majority when they accepted the case), there was no higher legal power to go to for redress.
The ruling that stopped the recount and effectively installed George Dumbya Bush was one of the most profoundly UNdemocratic court rulings in our nation’s history.
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The problem is the Court’s claim to judicial review, which always gives the Court the final say.
And unfortunately, the current Court Majority make members of that Majority look downright objective.
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Not incidentally, there are legitimate reasons for challenging results.
But there is a fundamental difference between refusing to accept the outcome even after recounts have taken place in close cases and disallowing recounts entirely in such cases.
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Had there been a legal precedent before Gore v. Bush? Indeed, stare decisis should have prevailed—if there had been a precedent-setting case. (?)
Jump ahead 20 years . We see now the huge implications that Court compositions have—regardless of level. The Supreme Court was salivating about overturning Roe v. Wade. Legislating from the bench has never been so apparent.
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Did you forget that it was the REPUBLICANS who got the Supreme Court involved in a case that it obviously had no business getting involved in? The Republicans are against all recounts if they win and for all recounts if they lose.
The Republicans knew that a Florida recount would likely mean they lost, so they demanded the Supreme Court ban it. The case was brought to the SC by Republicans.
Contrast that with morally superior Democrats who had no objection to the ballots in Pennsylvania and Georgia and other close states being hand-counted in a recount. That’s just a fact. The Democrats believe in fair elections. The Republicans don’t.
Abraham Lincoln and Dwight D Eisenhower wouldn’t recognize the current Republican party that would have expelled them from their party for being too honest. Even Richard Nixon was far too honest to be acceptable to today’s Republicans. Barry Goldwater would be another Liz Cheney – a right winger who didn’t lie on demand for the Republicans, so would never be welcome. Unfortunately, David Duke would. In fact, I suspect if we look at the worst stuff that David Duke said, it would probably seem tame by the standards of Trump and many of today’s Republicans.
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All that is true about Gore and the Court, but my point was that when he exhausted all options, he graciously conceded. He didn’t spend the next four years running around the country and saying that the election was rigged by GWB’s brother Jeb.
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Diane—
Thank you for writing the specific margin by which Al Gore lost the 2000 presidential election: 537 votes. (You beat me to it.)
For perspective, that’s the # of people who live on my street. My street.
Vote as if our lives depend on it. They do. All the best, America.
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On my way to vote now.
You ain’t kidding, Diane. It is a BIG deal.
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As much as I’d like to, I can’t blame just the former guy (TFG) for this. He lit the match, but millions of others provide the fuel. You mentioned Al Gore’s & Hillary Clinton’s concessions. If either of them had responded remotely in the manner of TFG (ignoring for the moment it would have been impossibly out of character), would they have gotten the same rousing, overwhelming, unquestioning support from their voters as he did? People who accepted, even in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary, that the election was “stolen”?
There might have been a few (not even certain of that), but most would have been disappointed & embarrassed by the behavior of their candidates. Support would have waned, quickly or gradually, until the candidate’s influence & credibility in the party was gone. Tell me I’m wrong.
But OK, those were our side, the “good guys.” What about a Republican under those circumstances? Let’s take George H.W. Bush, who, in an earlier era lost his bid for a 2nd term during a trying time for the US, just like TFG. Say what you will about his policies; can you imagine if, by some incredible stretch, he behaved in such an openly shameful, undignified manner, his supporters remaining unflinchingly behind him, no matter what? I guess we’ll never know, but frankly, I doubt it, even considering that some of those Republican voters were the same individuals who voted for TFG in 2020. The difference between now & then? One word: internet. (Don’t think that requires any elaboration.)
Of course that group, & most of the candidates they voted for, were very different from today’s “Republican” (I prefer “Neoconfederate”) Party. Today most of them would be summarily dismissed as RINOs, writing memoirs about the GOP’s glory days.
TFG is just functioning as a central rallying point for a movement that, now that it’s coalesced, is developing steadily beyond, & independent of, him. The only response I can think of is to continually shine a light on it, keep confronting it with truth & logic, no matter how many times they deny it. Point out every evasion & leap of reason without letting it slip past; & diligently avoid falling into any of those lapses ourselves. There are some so thoroughly immersed in the alternate reality that communication is impossible, but I believe there are others who are essentially decent people who will communicate if addressed respectfully. Seek them out.
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You are right about the Bushes. They would never have acted like the TFG. They made plenty of mistakes, did much to criticize, but they had dignity. Trump has no dignity, no class. I read somewhere yesterday that he loves the adulation of his crowds but on a personal level, he hates them. They are beneath him. He’s the perpetual outsider, and he would never sit at a kitchen table with his admirers.
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Florida is done. 100% failure of registered Democrats to show up and vote.
(I posted this earlier but it didn’t post.)
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Orange County Schools (Orlando), the 9th largest district in America, appears to be putting a M4L backed candidate on the board. While this was not a countywide vote, overall, the county is solidly blue, voting D for all statewide positions and US Senate. Despite “Don’t Say Gay,” Orange County Schools acknowledged October as LGBT month while Miami-Dade chose not to. The M4L candidate was over resourced with huge signs with her face everywhere. I mean everywhere….
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“Anti-CRT school board candidates sweep in Hamilton County, Ind.”
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Wonderful news about the school board in Hamilton County, Indiana. More sanity!
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“anti”
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