BBC said it was the “night American democracy hit rock bottom.”
The Guardian dubbed it a “national humiliation.”
Deutsche Welle defined it as a “clusterfuck.”
They were all referring to America’s first presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden. Their observations counted as the consensus for most people who aren’t diehard Trump fans. Trump, of course, was the one blamed for this national tragedy.
“[V]voters learned — and learned and learned and learned — that Mr. Trump has nothing but contempt for the values and norms that are essential to democracy: among them, truth, civility and respectful disagreement,” The Washington Post editorial board collectively wrote in a fit of anger. “Mr. Trump’s lies about mail-in ballots were poisonous, and his attacks on Mr. Biden’s family were particularly vile. But the lowest point came when the president would not commit to accepting legitimate election results or to tell his supporters to refrain from causing civil unrest. Instead, he said that he is “counting on” a Supreme Court with a new Trump-appointed justice to ‘look at the ballots.’ He called on his supporters to swamp polling places to look for ‘bad things,’ a recipe for chaos. The violent hate group Proud Boys, he said, should ‘stand back and stand by.’”
The Post editorial board demanded that future debates force Trump to follow “decorum and decency” or not have them at all. The Washington Post, which endorsed Biden, could only offer forced praise near the end of its editorial screed against the president.
It was a good sign for Trump that every commentator bemoaned the debate rather than praised Biden. Nobody thought Biden did a good job. He appeared old, weak, and utterly reliant on canned lines supplied by his handlers. Trump was smart to interrupt and bully him. If he didn’t, all the press attention would’ve centered on how Biden delivered a scathing rebuke to the dangers of Trumpism. Instead, we’re treated to the same old wails about the loss of “civility” and “norms” we’ve heard over the last four years.
There is something to be said about how the silly, Jerry Springer-esque debate represents rock bottom for American democracy to the chattering class. There are many things that could be counted as a low point for American democracy. The include rampant voter fraud, open ballot harvesting, importing foreigners to win elections, widespread distrust in the institutions tasked with handling the election, powerful tech corporations suppressing speech that threatens the elite order, and shadowy agents plotting coups against properly elected leaders.
Wait a minute . . . that sounds like all the things Trump laid out in his “offensive” response to whether he would accept an unfair election result. Maybe he had a point there . . .
The real low point of American democracy is not Trump’s trollish behavior nor the president making fun of Biden’s corrupt, shit-for-brains son. It’s the forces arrayed against Trump.
The insistence on norms and decorum are stupid, and Trump is right to discard them. Civility and mutual respect are hallmarks of high-trust, homogenous societies. 2020 America is far from a high-trust homogenous society. The pretense of civility pulls the wool over Americans and deludes them into thinking a multiracial America is just like 1950s America. Whether black, brown, gay, trans, indigenous, we’re all Americans! And we can respectfully debate the replacement of the historic American nation.
It’s a complete sham. Trump’s disruption of this silly facade is actually a highlight of American democracy. He’s giving the people what they want and pushing the nation’s inherent divisions to the forefront of public discourse. The media and elites can no longer pretend we’re one big happy country and our citizens share the same values. We’re a polarized nation–and it’s good our politicians reflect that.
There were low points of the debate, but they didn’t emanate from Trump.
One obvious example was the discussion over political violence. Trump pointed out the growing problem of left-wing violence and rioting in this country. In response, both Biden and debate moderator Chris Wallace demanded Trump disavow “white supremacists” and the multiracial Proud Boys. Trump said sure and demanded names to condemn. When offered the Proud Boys, militiamen, and white supremacists, Trump told these groups to “stand back and stand by.” But he made sure to emphasize that the violence is not a right-wing problem–“this is a left-wing problem.”
That drew derision from Wallace and Biden, both of whom couldn’t believe that Trump didn’t fully disavow alleged white supremacists. They both cited Trump’s own FBI director claiming white supremacists are the greatest threat to America. Biden also refused to disavow Antifa, saying it’s an idea not an organization. That same argument can be easily applied to white supremacists, however. Apparently, Biden believes all white supremacists belong to an organization known as W.H.I.T.E.S.U.P.R.E.M.A.C.Y.
He also made sure to call Trump a racist during the debate. Even though Trump’s insults were treated as a defilement of the Constitution, this statement was treated as a bold statement of truth.
Biden also brought up Charlottesville as the worst thing to ever happen to America, clearly ignoring the far worse violence the nation has seen in the last four months. On the current riots, Biden said violence is bad but didn’t bother to condemn anyone for it. Wallace certainly didn’t press him to denounce the Left. An ambiguous disavowal of rioting, which implicitly blamed the Right, sufficed for the Fox News anchor.
The whole thing was an insult to voters. The Democratic presidential candidate and the debate moderator told America that white supremacists are causing all the violence and are the greatest danger to the country. They were told to not believe their eyes and trust the Deep State’s analysis instead.
Outlets dub Trump’s message as “anti-democratic” because he refuses to trust the experts. These are the same experts who tried to topple him through the Russian collusion hoax, told him coronavirus wasn’t a big deal, and insisted open borders and Left-wing riots don’t spread a deadly virus. No wonder he doesn’t listen to them.
According to liberal elites, democracy only occurs when they have total power and their authority remains unquestioned. Former FBI assistant director Frank Figliuzzi said the quiet part out loud this week when he insisted the Deep State must vet all future presidential candidates to ensure we never have another Trump. The CIA determining presidential candidates is not a threat to our democracy, but interrupting your debate opponent is.
If we were a healthy republic, we would worry about the ballot harvesting going on in the Somali community, prosecuting intelligence officials who launched a coup against an elected president, and ensuring that no non-citizen votes in our election. Sadly, none of these generate much interest in the people who matter. There are just ordinary parts of life in modern America.
Our republic was rotten to the core long before Trump rode down the escalator. The president merely exposes the corruption for all the world to see. That’s why Big Tech, the Deep State, the media, and the military-industrial complex all want to take him down.
The real low point in American democracy will come in November if the historic American people are told to accept their own dispossession in the wake of a rigged election.
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9 comments
“The insistence on norms and decorum are stupid, and Trump is right to discard them. Civility and mutual respect are hallmarks of high-trust, homogenous societies. 2020 America is far from a high-trust homogenous society. The pretense of civility pulls the wool over Americans and deludes them into thinking a multiracial America is just like 1950s America . . . . It’s a complete sham. Trump’s disruption of this silly facade is actually a highlight of American democracy. He’s giving the people what they want and pushing the nation’s inherent divisions to the forefront of public discourse. The media and elites can no longer pretend we’re one big happy country and our citizens share the same values. We’re a polarized nation–and it’s good our politicians reflect that” – This is so well said, and it must be repeatedly driven home to Whites every chance we get!
It should cause each and every one of us to refuse to say the ‘Pledge of Allegiance,’ to wave the flag or to have anything to do with promoting the false notion that we are a happy and united nation.
Good Lord, our people need to wake up from the American dream (or nightmare!). If you think that the current American freak parade is what our Founders envisioned for their posterity, you are mistaken beyond hope!
Don’t you all feel like this dog-and-pony show, the debates, the charades, and the etiquette, all feel increasingly out of place and dated in the current zeitgeist, in which the world is burning? There’s no room for debate, no point in lighthearted politeness and frivolous traditions, no Al Smith Dinners in this era of political extremes. The quarrels we have as a culture cannot be settled in debate, and are instead settled outside, in street war. Without civility there is no use in maintaining this air of faux-benevolence when both sides would rather behead the other instead of shaking hands and cracking jokes. The jig is up. The masks are off. To put them back on now would be the epitome of futility. It truly feels like we’ve all moved beyond any semblance of order and normality already, and we should be changing our traditions accordingly.
Millions still have to get into that mindset, though. They’re still going about their lives, obediently wearing their facediapers thinking that if they just hope hard enough for all those immigrants to get well-paid jobs, it’ll turn out alright in another 50 years time or so.
It is the fight between good and evil, wherever you look, and evil is winning big, for the time being that is.
I was appalled as a middle-class, older woman, by Trump’s performance, and I thought this would surely lose him the election — and that was before the announcement of his Covid-19 diagnosis. But I have to say, I had never heard of the Proud Boys, and their being ‘White Supremacists’. I had notably not heard of any destruction or other upsets during the past FOUR MONTHS of looting, burnings or other destructive acts carried out right along by BLM and/or Antifa, that involved “White Supremacists”. Maybe I’ve been dozing during four months of 6:00 p.m. newscasts. But, all the vitriol of BLM was concentrated on “The Police” and/or other ‘racists’. But no mention of any organized ‘White Supremacists’, so I was taken aback by Biden’s insistence that Trump renounce White Supremacism. When and where did they cause any trouble? As I mentioned above, I may have been dozing, but can someone clue me in to how I could have missed this during ALL the relentless lootings , especially of small businesses and high-end emporiums, from New York’s 5th Avenue to Santa Monica’s ocean storefronts. Mind you, I am not supporting White Supremacism and their idiot hopes of ‘ruling’ over other races. That is nothing I believe in, and would be incapable of carrying out — I can’t even rule over my wild birds in the back yard. I think these people were at least wise enough to keep a low profile. I’ll give them credit for that.
Wether Trum win or lose there will be a rodhesian future unless somehow the anti white paradigm is broken.
If we are to agree with the opinions of the American founding fathers, quite assiduous students of history, in their assessment of “democracy”, — mob rule by ballot box —then this event was not a low point but simply water seeking its own natural level.
Some not so random thoughts…
“White Supremacy” is a term which was not in general use a mere four years ago. Today it’s all the rage. But what exactly does it mean?
Is there some organization out there called “White Supremacists of America, Inc™?” Do “White Supremacists” collect annual dues and issue membership cards? Is there a “White Supremacist” Manifesto?
Of course, “White Supremacy” is a scare term, used to attack those opposing the prevailing globalist-egalitarian world order. The term gains increasing currency as third world peoples flood into first world countries, evoking as it does the bad old days of segregation, colonialism and civil order in the USA-Europe. It’s brandishing is always good for another round of mass hysterics and stampeding towards leftist pols.
There are people who call themselves White Nationalists and National Populists and, once upon a time, Alt Right. But let’s assume for the sake of argument that there are people who can be termed “White Supremacists.” Does this mean they do not have their Constitutionally guaranteed rights? Because that is where this line is going.
The debate moderator showed the perennial horror over the Unite the Right demonstrators of 2017 marching with torches and chanting slogans on a university campus. Maybe I am missing something here, but aren’t carrying torches and chanting slogans protected Free Speech activities?
The horror over the UTR torch bearers is all the more odd given that the current BLM/antifa insurrectionists have been carrying incendiary devices and actively deploying them to start fires. Not to mention their ongoing looting, pillaging, iconoclasm and out-and-0ut homicides. And there is the ritual hagiography of a career criminal who died while under the influence of controlled substances and resisting the lawful orders of a police officer.
Meantime, Kyle Rittenhouse, Jake Gardner and other citizens exercising their right of self defense can be demonized as “White Supremacists” and railroaded into the goolag.
It’s anarcho-tyranny taken to the next echelon. Free speech and self defense are being criminalized for the Right, while criminal violence is being normalized on the Left. And this is something that law enforcement needs to consider. Under the expanding system of anarcho-tyranny, police who shoot criminals in self-defense (re Darren Wilson vs Michael Brown) now become the Bad Guys.
Look at the flip side of this. Is anyone asking, “What do you think of Black Supremacy?” Or “Leninist-Trotskyite-Maoist Supremacy?” The latter ought to be considered given that many marching members perpetuating the current round of mayhem openly proclaim themselves to be Leninists et alia. It comes down to the Left trying to control the parameters of the debate. And this may be one reason that the Left has gone bonkers over Trump.
He doesn’t play their game.
One final comment:
Apparently, Biden believes all white supremacists belong to an organization known as W.H.I.T.E.S.U.P.R.E.M.A.C.Y.
If there is just such an organization, is their symbol the Flash in the Pan? I’ll leave the answer to that one to Jef Costello!
“White Supremacy”, like “racist”, lacks a definition capable of universal application.
Does it mean one who prefers to live in Europe as opposed to Africa? Then the millions of Africans crowding the southern shores of the Mediterranean waiting for boats are white supremacists?
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