View From Here
David Mark Greaves
A nation in tatters is what we are as we begin 2021. The exiting president leaves a government at war with itself and with the citizenry and the citizenry at war with the government and with itself. People storming government buildings were scenes on television from other countries, not from the capital of the United States. We thought we were special, transferring power peacefully after every election. It was impossible not for it to be otherwise, until it happened. The chanting march of hate through Charleston and the breaking of windows in the capital building Wednesday, both came from the same the dark spot on the American soul and I do not think it will ever be gone.
No administration will have had to hit the ground running faster than Biden and Harris when they take office January 20th. They start off with the Trump believing mob of thousands tens of millions out of work and hungry. They have to rebuild Federal agencies that had been shaken and tilted toward failure in their mission. And that’s probably the easy stuff.
We will all have to be aware that even more intense voter suppression efforts and gerrymandering will be high on the Republican agenda. They know they can only win if they cheat and they don’t care that we know it. Two things we know will be true: Appeals will be made to the Republican base by people smarter than Trumpand therefore more dangerous, and Republican voter suppression efforts will become more insidious and will need a big-time Justice Department pushback.
So much to do and so little time. Setting a goal to make Covid vaccination just like a flu shot: a walk-in at Walgreen’s, CVS, Duane Reade and the local pharmacy by the end of the year. Invoking the National Defense Production Act for all manufacturers in that supply chain.
The new administration needs to pump lots of money into the economy, from the bottom up across all racial and political lines. They know all this, and the starting gun goes off at noon, January 20th.
We just have to get through the next two weeks, trapped in the house with the abuser.