Hey, everybody! I need a favor. I have opened the Comments section to everyone today. It is important that everyone be able to express themselves during this difficult period.
By opening the comments to all, I expose this comment section to trolls. Because of the volume of comments and my other commitments on Saturday, I won't be able to monitor the comments section continuously.
If you see an offensive comment, (a) don't respond, (b) send an email to rbhubbell@gmail.com with the subject line "Troll" and quote the first few words so that I can word search the comment and delete it. Thanks!
One can also click on the 3 dots underneath the comment on the far right. You'll see the word, REPORT. Just click on that, and I think substack will take care of it.
I blame two things, neither of which Democrats are responsible for. First, the underlying continued misogyny and racism in this country, which Trump allows people to express, especially young men. But too, and wildly important but incomprehensibly ignored is the incredible level of lies, misinformation, stories made up out of whole cloth that have been consistently promoted by Fox News and even worse Right wing media for a good 20 years now. When vast swathes of the public exist in an information bubble that keeps them profoundly, ignorant and misguided, it is very hard to see how the truth breaks through. I wonder whether, even when their relatives start getting deported and the price of everything jumps, they will figure out that it’s their vote that did it.
I understand your point, but it's backward. Disinformation is false information deliberately spread to deceive people. Misinformation refers to inaccuracies that stem from inadvertent error.
Ultimately, it does not matter which term people use. We all mean that people who need to know the truth were not hearing it.
It may seem like splitting hairs, but FOX News is spreading MISINFORMATON (they damn well know that they are lying), so Marti is correct!
If their listeners further disseminate the information to their friends and family, repost on Social media, etc. then it can be considered disinformation, because they didn't intend to lie - unlike the RW media.
Remember all the documents from Fox News that came out during the discover phase of of the lawsuit by Dominion Voting Systems??
“ Misinformation is false or inaccurate information—getting the facts wrong. Disinformation is false information which is deliberately intended to mislead—intentionally misstating the facts.”
Thanks for this, Marti , and Robert. In addition to systemic racism and misogyny, and vast and deceptive FOX , X, “Truth” Social, etc, Kamala Harris’ powerful opponents included SCOTUS, the earth’s wealthiest individual, unfettered immorality, and many more such elements. No Democrat would have prevailed. FOX viewers never even learned what tr&‘s former chief of staff, generals, +, had to say about him. SCOTUS MAGA SIX deliberately prevented timely public awareness of J6 culpability. Tired of those decrying “her” failures. Robert and comments like yours, Marti, are keeping me calm and girding for the challenges ahead. Thank you!
The thing about DISinformation is that as it spreads through social media and the like it becomes MISinformation. And because one's friends are spouting it, and truly believe it, it becomes that much more convincing.
Susan, you make a good point. There is a chain of reactions that starts off with a single act of disinformation (intensional lying) followed by a sequence of acts of unknowingly spreading misinformation. Thank you for helping me to better understand what's going on.
When you see information in a comment you can exercise your judgment to decide if it's disinformation or not. If it is, don't click on "like." That would only pass it on. You can state the truth in the matter by clicking on "reply." That would pass the truth to others. Information – whether true or false – can multiply on the internet like viruses in living systems.
And behind it all is money, billionaire money. This is Lewis Powell on steroids. Everything for big business nothing for anybody else. Brought to us by people who do not believe that all people are created equal. And do not believe that government is there to serve, all the people.
Spot on Martin! This IS who we are. Billionaire money has bought us and the media to believe that all are NOT created equal. It's the Civil War states' rights thinking that BIG government is evil (thank Reagan!). Heather Cox Richardson, Robert Hubblell, Joyce Vance all caution the blame game. We have been "bought" to think such limited thoughts. Stick with these voices of reason! Now, what do we do next?😱
You’re on to something, Derek: Heather Cox Richardson’s next-to-most-recent book is “How The South Won The Civil War”. It’s a very penetrating, subtle analysis (and yes – sobering, too!).
Sadly, this appears to be true, Marti! But we will go on. I just saw Jon Meacham on Ali Velshi's show on MSNBC. Ali gave a brief but beautiful editorial on his experience as a child growing up in South Africa. It was a history lesson of all of the periods of disappointment and despair that have occurred in our country, from moments during the Revolutionary War when it looked like we could not win, to the movement in the South to secede from the Union, and more. Ali said, as an immigrant to this country, that America has gone through some terrible times in its history and survived. When asked by Ali what he would say to Americans who are feeling despair in this moment, Jon Meacham quoted Frederick Douglas, an escaped slave, who said that American soil was a more propitious soil in which to fight against the South's dishonor than any other place! This, from an escaped slave! It was a VERY beautiful segment on a show I do not normally watch, but I am renewed in my decision to continue to fight! We are bigger and better than this moment!
Yes. Billionaire misanthropy has also been characterized as a form of techno-feudalism, largely wrought by juvenile tech bros who basically got lucky capitalizing in the earlier days of internet and media platforms. And then there are the Kochs and their ilk, who slowly planned radical socio-political capture for decades, as N. Maclean has traced in Democracy in Chains.
We have become their subjects. Cory Doctorow and Yannis Varoufakis both explore the fallout from tech bro feudal domination, among others.
You’re absolutely right. Heather Cox Richardson’s Substack addresses this today. Apparently a lot of Trump voters are finding out that a lot of what they believed to be true is anything but.
And they need to find this out. Jonathan V. Last of The Bulwark wrote that Dems should let Trump be Trump, and not rescue Republicans from their actions. This is to the ends of helping Americans understand better who is behind their miseries.
There is a part of me that hopes that Republicans keep the house, and control all three branches. That way they have no one else to attach blame to for the coming chaos. I remember too many times when they blamed problems on "Democrat obstruction" when we had a divided government; and the right-wing media amplified that message.
But I genuinely fear the unshackled results. They will no doubt believe God is on their side, thus the complete rout of Democrats, full authoritarian steam ahead. Regardless, they will continue to blame Democrats, even far into their administration. Then there's FoxMusk.
It will also be a good opportunity for people to figure out whether they want to live in the US. I am considering on writing about some other options. I realize many feel fight to the end. Others may want to spend more of their lives living in a place where they have fewer disagreements with the people in charge, and the public in general. Reading in Spy Talk today about those who believe a civil war is coming and are preparing for it.
I understand your feelings - and in fact I DID leave South Africa - which I still feel I would do again. BUT - this country has too many really good and bright people; and this is the country that is worth and in fact demands fighting for. And --- as I've thought about the moving thing - to where? I don't want to learn a foreign language - and except for New Zealand - where would you go. We don't know the depth of problems and challenges in other countries - I mean - the UK is not doing so well.
I speak German since it is my second language and mother's tongue. Whatever is wrong with Germany, all of the Americans that I know here through Democrats Abroad feel like we avoid a lot of problems that we have in the US. It is cheaper to live here, I can drink safe water from my tap, groceries are way cheaper, and there is good transportation access. Housing tends to be cheaper and better protected. Everyone is required to have health insurance, so the public health insurance cannot turn you down for preexisting conditions. So, for all the things wrong, it has a lot of benefits.
My daughter goes to university in a major city, and we don't pay tuition. We paid a fee of 299€ this fall. I do not have to worry about her being on her own in the city, because she has city smarts and people are not walking around carrying guns. As a parent it is a relief. She went by train to visit good friends in Vienna for the weekend. She is used to getting around independently without having to own a car. That is a plus for her, for us, and for the environment.
By the way, Ireland is great for English speakers. Also, I know a lot of expats now who do not speak the language of the country they live in well or at all, just like there are people in the US in the same situation.
The problem is that there is no "safe haven". What happens in the U.S. has reverberations elsewhere and will further support right-wing movements in Europe and elsewhere.
Even if there will be reverberations everywhere because countries don't live in a vacuum, there are safer places. I think one has to be flexible. I will ask you to look at pages 8 and 9 of the global peace index. The US is at #132 in 2024. I will be interested to see if that number goes down in 2025 with the advent of Trump taking office.
As you can see there are 131 countries who are considered safer. Many of them are in the African continent. However, with global warming that might change. I am more north on the planet in the EU than I was in the US.
I will respectfully disagree. I am a follower of John Dewey who wrote Experience and Education. His philosophy on which the school I used to teach was based is that people learn best from meaningful experiences with real consequences.
For the MAGAs who believed Trump was going to save the economy they did not learn anything. Protecting them from it will not help them learn lessons we need them to learn for everyone's survival in the US. People can move to Blue States where governors are already pledging buffers.
I do not blame the people, I blame the corporate and social media. Many people apparently live in deserts of accurate, insightful media. They have neither the time, know-how or resources to find it. They don't read, they pick entertainment over information. But, if they rely on locally available media they don't have it.
I do not want petty revenge, I want people to learn lessons that will help them to do better informed voting. If they felt that they could just focus on earning a living and throwing in some occasional fun times, they will see that more is required of them to avoid what will probably happen. If they feel that God will swoop down from heaven and save them and any suffering they have in the meantime is deserved, well there is no helping them.
I’m not talking about the people who need to learn their lesson. I’m talking about the people who will be collateral damage. Pick any bad consequence, it will affect us all, not just his voters.
I agree! It will effect the entire planet. Global warming will be sped up to new levels we cannot return from. However, some will be affected more than others. Just look at education alone. With plans to dismantle and defund the department of education and put special education in Health and Human Services, while they put regular education into the Department of Labor as students are funneled into the jobs immigrants used to take before being deported, instead of high school or college.
I do not have an elementary education child. I am affected on that less than those who have children who need child care or primary education. In my family there is one child in undergraduate studies and the other working on his PhD in the US. The junior might finish her education before her funding is totally destroyed, but I will advise her to leave rather than take on the kinds of predatory loans that they are planning on to finish.
I am counting on parents across the country, to realize that the most important thing about primary education is not whether or not the government gives gender reassignment in schools, but whether or not schools even exist any more. It is a very anti-intellectual third world making agenda. It will be effecting those who are not in the know more. Those who are not US citizens more. Those who are undocumented more. Those who are female more. Those who are non-White more. Those who are not Christian nationalists more. Those who Trump doesn't consider allies more. Change won't happen over night, and we should not be giving in to it already. We should be planning our survival.
However, until his voters, and the 93 million who did not vote, actually feel the consequences of his policies, they may not make the effort to inform themselves enough to change them, together with us.
Ruth, it's so poignant. What Robert and HCR are uncovering for us is that the 1/3 of Trump voters either a) listened ONLY to Fox lies and swallowed them hook, line, and sinker with no thought whatsoever; or b) did not listen to either side but just voted as a knee-jerk--"oh, I like his pretty orange hair." Now, they are going to have to suck up the results, having used the power of their vote like a child would use a Colt 45. In ignorance, however innocent, of the deadly result. We are going to have to drag them out of Trumps Nazi ditch along with ourselves. We must act going forward with unprecedented toughness, clear vision, and absolute love. It ain't gonna be easy or pretty.
I think you're largely correct in your assessment of the damage done by right-wing media. It has left voters swimming in disinformation, and we have been slow to recognize the power of lies and distortions, since we live in reality. We need to ramp up our efforts to reclaim some of the spaces on social media. We also need to get some sort of access to talk radio. When all you hear is Rush Limbaugh, it's no wonder you turn into a vengeful, fearful idiot.
True. Rush Limbaugh is dead, but his acolytes are marching on. Two years ago I was driving in Texas and, not finding a NPR station, I listened to local stations. Scary!!
I was having a gathering of Democrats Abroad at my house last night and we are all of the opinion that a lot of people do not realize what they were voting for. That is evident by states voting for Republicans but also for abortion protections and worker rights. I hold the corporate media responsible for that.
At the same time in the Bulwark one of the writers was saying today that the Democrats have protected the American population from many of the consequences of their actions. He said, the Dems should let them do what they do without stepping in to fix it was the advice of this writer.
He said let Blue state governors protect their people and let others see what their governors are really like. Toxic Texas is a hot mess with Abbott in charge. I never visited my friends while they lived there. I have had 2 sets of friends that moved there, who are now in California because they could not stay in Texas because of its politics. I think just because of Abortion laws we will see some population shifting within the US, as well as those who will leave. A national abortion ban should push many young women out. The independent media needs to help them figure out where they can go.
People do need good media options. Of course we have to choose them. I am excited that The Guardian will be adding a section on Democracy now that one can sign up for. Our job is going to be sustaining the independent voices in the media. Let the corporate press deal with Trumps' nastiness on their own. They earned it. Bye bye Bezos.
My family is already feeling the consequences. My beloved only son and his partner are planning on moving to another state. We live in VERY red Idaho. They would like to have a family and won't consider living where a woman can easily die if she has complications with her pregnancy. I am supporting their decision and hoping that national bans won't become a reality. My heart is breaking for them, for all young women, and for all the other "others."
You can support the Media and Democracy Project's challenge of several Fox TV stations' licenses. Hit them where it hurts them! To find out more, go to https://www.mediaanddemocracyproject.org/.
Thanks Linda, I agree that MANY who voted for Trump were so brainwashed with disinformation that did not understand or know the truth about his policies. I predict they will not be happy with what they get. One question I have is: Can the pendulum swing back the other way in 2026 if the disinformation continues or in the worst case ramps up?
Robin, I believe the pendulum can swing back, but I don't know what it will take. One thing to help it will be clear reporting on what is going on. The Guardian has pledged to do that, and to do a section on democracy, which I have signed up for. My Democrats Abroad Project 2025 Book Club has decided that after this election we are going to be reading about Democracy. I would like to see The Guardian be rewarded for this if they do it well, which I believe they can continue to do. I hold the corporate and social media responsible for the outcome of this election. People are wallowing in ignorance. Many live in information deserts, and do not have the time, know-how, resources to get better information.
Here is Heather Cox Richardson talking about people who are now realizing that they voted for the wrong person. I have been reading many articles in the past 2 days saying the same thing.
Hooray for HCR - one of the best! Anyway, largely I agree with you but also we need to somehow get our people better educated from the get-go, and stop banning books, dammit! When I think about how much I learned about history from reading YA novels, not to mention tolerance and respect of others … of course, that’s the long game.
I can not be sympathetic to the brain washed masses. I have tried with no success, to discuss this with former friends and relatives only to find 'my mind is made up, don't confuse me with FACT' I
I worked remotely with Texas people throughout the state for 5 years. Also worked with people from 13 other states at the same time. Texans were by far the stupidest people I ever worked with. Seriously. People from the other 13 states thought the same as me. Ted Cruz is a perfect example of it. The majority of Texans voted to re-elect him! I have no pity for them. Voting for Cruz certainly is against their interests. But I think racism prevented them from voting for the better man who would actually DO things for them in the Senate.
I do not have the source at hand, but in addition to the increasing infant and women's deaths related to Texas abortion laws, rape has increased astronomically, thanks to the resumption of women's handmaiden role.
Useful idiots as well. Useful to the ruling class. Racism, misogyny and blaming the other were amplified until Americans turned on their country and their own best interests. How to recover from this state of affairs is the answer. Media must be held accountable for spreading disinformation. Maybe the next 4 years will be a wake up call to all of us.
Yes, I agree. Robert, Simon Rosenberg, national treasure HCR, and many other bloggers and SM figures are providing factual information. I think they should join to create one powerful Left-wing organization to push back against Fox. I have NO idea how to do that, or even if it's desirable. maybe having dozens of individuals working toward the same goal but doing it separately would reach more people? Perhaps Robert could address this in an upcoming post?
I would add laziness too. I want to throttle everyone who keeps saying, "They didn't know anything about Harris or what she stood for." REALLY? These dweebs can "research" every conspiracy theory plus hydroxychloroquine but can't type Harris into their web browser? If they wanted to know what Harris stood for all they had to do was listen or look.
In addition to the massive amounts of disinformation dispersed by Faux Noise, Russian bots and Trump himself...I'm guessing that fully three quarters of the people who voted for Trump have no real idea just how tariffs work. MAGA voters take in every word Trump utters as truth and since Trump himself seems to be clueless about tariffs, so too are they. Also there are many, many Republican voters who never took Project 2025 seriously and have no clear idea of the sweeping restructure of our government that Trump's aides are gleefully preparing to execute. Such as getting rid of the Department of Education...Many of of Trump's voters need and depend on the special education services and disability grants that the DOE provides. Say goodbye to most of those services, folks. Unfortunately, too many of the folks to whom knowing more about Project 2025 would have made a difference in their vote, either didn't have the time, the access, or the interest to find out about Project 2025. The implementation of the Project will be a very unpleasant surprise for many Trump voters.
TL, I agree with much of what you wrote but vehemently disagree with the idea that they didn't have the time or the access--perhaps what disappoints me the most about this election cycle, though it doesn't really surprise me, is how such a large percentage of the population doesn't take seriously their role as "citizen." Of course earning one's daily bread is going to take priority for just about everyone--not having the interest to spend the limited amount of time over a many-month campaign to educate oneself a bit (and that is really all that was necessary to get a pretty clear picture of 2025, Trump and Republicans) is inexcusable, in my view. I do agree that the next four years could yield some very bad results for many of our Trump voters and non-voters and, although I am not happy about the rest of us suffering in various ways as well, I can't say I have any sympathy for them.
Your comments remind me of Martin Niemöller's poem, "First They Came." No doubt Trump supporters feel invulnerable, especially if they are white and wealthy. But once the list of undesirables starts to peel off one populace after another, their turn will come. As someone wrote elsewhere, "What happens to Latino male voters when their friends and family start being deported or sent to camps?"
You are spot-on. In my comment today I didn't want to go into details, but here we go. Trump in his first administration institutionalized lying and misinformation with the concept of 'alternative facts' practically in his first week in office. Right out of Goebbel's playbook. Bannon knows his history. It was always my fear that an irresponsible and unhinged interpretation and thus instrumentalisation of the 1st Amendment (throw in the 2nd one, too) might contribute to the eventual failure of the democratic system in the US.
I blame the fact that too many are comfortable and apathetic or uncomfortable and apathetic. Thus we get the figure Robert mentioned of 93 million eligible voters who did not vote.
Marti, you are spot on. Did you read the article by Michael Tomasky? He said essentially the same thing with a lot more detail. The disinformation propaganda machine overloaded people with stories about the economy in shambles, the migrant crisis and other issues. I don’t know how we fix that if we are to change the narrative.
Yes, I don’t think we have yet come to terms with how democracy is threatened by bots, disinformation and social media. When Fox News and others tell millions of people an election was stolen and social media algorithms promote one’s own world view exclusively, we end up where we are. And 100% about misogyny and racism.
I agree with the role of right wing media because I saw it with a couple of family members. It was difficult to have conversations because we came from a totally different set of facts. When we were discussing Trumps comments about immigrants eating other peoples pets, I was met with retorts like” he didn’t really say that. The fake news used AI to alter his words.” My niece has not vaccinated her 9 month old because she has immersed herself in that media world. For me, I’ve decided that I need to continue to do the work of community building and caring for people throughout my day. I’m involved in presenting Human Libraries in my community. Human “books” representing people who are stereotyped and labeled, tell their stories to “readers.” Time is slotted for deep questioning and dialogue. People leave with new insights and perspectives. You can learn more at humanlibrary. org. I don’t have the political power or judicial power to stop Trumps actions but I can help to change how people think about themselves and others. I can bring light into my area of influence. If enough of us do what is ours to do, we can mitigate the darkness that is surely to come. If you have another way to eradicate what has happened, something pragmatic the ordinary person can do, I’m all ears!
Thank you Marti, I agree 100%. Bernie and others want to blame the Democrats as it's just a very hard truth in that VP Harris was not elected because 1) she does not have a penis and 2) her skin is the wrong color. People have to realize these facts in that America elected a felon who was previously endorsed by the KKK.
The problem with corrupting our elections was propelled in 2010 with the SCOTUS decision to overturn Citizens United v. FEC in 2010 and McCutcheon v. FEC in 2014. Pile on top of that the deceit driven by right wing media as you have mentioned and we have been forced a very hard hand in continuing to protect our freedoms.
I am thankful that I have Robert and all of you here. I feel his readership is going to jump up dramatically.
Yes! As an example, I had an argument with someone who refuses to read mainstream media. When I said Trump was a convicted felon, he insisted that wasn't true, and that Trump had been indicted but never convicted! This person reads right-wing online news, and I wonder whether those sources even reported the 34 felony convictions. . .
The bottom line is that the MAGAverse has had 8 years to perfect its disinformation/propaganda media bubble--They never heard a thing that Harris actually proposed. The main stream media has lost half of the country to the MAGAverse and all they have been doing with the unconscionable and unsuccessful "normalization" strategy to get back audience share is to alienate Democrats.
And the demographic analysis has to look at how Harris faired in the "non battleground" states. I am in NJ7 and this was the one swing district that went from blue to red when the Republicans flipped the House. There was not enough support for Sue Altman on the ground in this cycle, or to return Tom Malinowski, who had beaten Kean in the previous race.
I found the worth fighting for call was packed with useful information.
I suggest that we encourage trump voters to take a few moments and write down their expectations of what results will be delivered over the next four years, and that we do so ourselves.
For them, it should serve as a baseline they cannot allow to shift as they've excused trump's massive failures to deliver in the past. For us, it should serve as a basis for planning our own actions to mitigate the effects of his actions.
The impression is given that the regime will round up immigrants, like cowboys round up cattle, and drive them across the border. He will never be able to accomplish his promise. The cost of deporting 22 million people is prohibitive and certainly more than Trump would dream of spending on anyone other than himself. His promise will only result in a trickle of immigrants being sent back. It will be the replacement for his failed “build the wall” scheme. As he deports handful after handful of immigrants, he will crow that he is achieving his promise. Moreover, the horrific crimes against women that will result from this process will provide much entertainment for Nick Fuentes, and people like him, people like Donald Trump. The cruelty is the point.
Thank you! I’ve backed off a lot of so-called news, no surprise there! Anytime someone blames the Dems for their loss, I immediately leave that site. The problem isn’t anything that the Democrats did, the problem is the voters who voted for Trump. And changing what the Democratic Party stands for into what the Republican Party stands for is not the solution. Some of the former Republicans, the Never-Trumpers, appear to wish the Democrats would shift their policies to turn the Democrats into what the former moderate Republicans were. That is not the solution to the problem.
I have canceled subscriptions to writers who blame Dems for abandoning the working class. What hogwash! The Trump voters believe the lies the GOP has told for decades. The problem was not the candidates. The problem was so many bigoted, stupid, hate filled voters. Yes, I said stupid, and I meant to say stupid. Wait til prices get WAY more expensive or God forbid, someone’s daughter needs care for an ectopic pregnancy and nearly dies from lack of proper care. Jonathan V. Last might have a point about letting the voters deal with the real consequences of voting for Trump.
ah. The data shows we should have won. The data was wrong.
1. Fear. Baked into the amygdala. Fear of "the other". Trump's commercials invoked the Jungian collective subconscious. Most effective ad: girls' sports.
2, Salesmanship. Psyops can make an Alaskan buy snow water. 90% voted contrary to their own economic and physical health. Why would someone on SSI (or any government benefit) vote to cut it.? Hispanics and Moslems supported a guy who will deport them -- even if they are citizens. During his administration he was working on "denaturalization."
this… PROPAGANDA WORKS. the simple answer is that Dems won’t use effective propaganda tools. All the analysts give way to much credit to the voters-
the fact is that the masses are stupid and lazy - they don’t know or understand “policy” or how government works. They listen to TV ads and social media propaganda (if anything at all) and what their friends say and vote based on their emotional ‘feelings’ about a candidate or just plain misinformation. They have zero clue how the decisions that affect their daily lives get made. They ‘don’t pay attention to politics’ - Americans have dug our own grave by failing to educate people about civics and perpetuating ‘news’ and information sources that are primarily, if not solely, profit driven. Until we fundamentally change the system, propaganda is the only thing that will work.
I am already weary of the blame being placed on Democrats. Second guessing is like saying your aunt would still be alive if the telephone pole didn't get in her car's way. We should be comforting each other more than blaming. The money, misinformation, and deliberate obstructionism by the Republicans and trump are the culprits. If we are to find fault, it should be that we didn't see the forty-year-long juggernaut being built by oligarchs, fundamentalists, and asshats coming our way.
Problem is, the stupid people who voted for Trump will be told by Trump that his bad actions were because of the Democrats and these stupid people will believe him.
Thanks for this. We need to stop the blame game and get it together. We need each other now more than ever…more than ever. And we - I - need not to hate. That is their game and look where it has gotten us. Mourning in America - then, as Kamala so beautifully said, it’s not a time to throw up our hands but to roll up our sleeves. 🫶🏽
After the first 10 minutes of post-election day news, I was done. I'll watch Lawrence O'Donnell, but not anything else. I stick to my Substack writers and perhaps I will dip into podcasts again. But not the news. Heather Cox Richardson's piece for Friday night was helpful perspective, as always--disinformation and white supremacy in the 19th century and now. We've been here before.
I encourage people to donate to The States Project while we wait to come up with an action plan. Campaign stops don't work. Getting Democrats elected at the state level gives voters a real person to get to know. Sarah McBride started out in the Delaware Senate, and is now the first trans representative in the House. States matter.
I donate to top voting rights attorney Marc Elias (Democracy Docket) and get his "members only" newsletters. His work will not stop. Elias Law Group has attorneys all over the country. He has a podcast called "Defending Democracy" also. He has his own secure method of donating.
I also donate to The Civics Center Project, begun by attorney Laura Brill after the 2016 election. this project works across the country to get 18 year olds registered to vote, even when they are still in high school. The Civics Center donation link is through Act Blue.
I agree and add this, state legislatures start in cities and towns. We need to much more pay attention to local elections, run for office, support candidates that will be those representatives and senators. The process starts from the bottom and goes up.
I donate to Leaders We Deserve. The group led by David Hogg from the Parkland shootings. They are working to get new young leaders elected. Thanks for the tips on new places to donate.
Thank you Robert. This the first piece I have read since Election Day which I can truly say has helped me begin to cope with the shock and disgust I felt at Trump’s victory. He does not now nor will he ever represent me, he does not represent my wife, he does not represent my children, he does not represent my grandchildren. It will still take some time and some effort to come to grips with this stark truth: when given a choice between an experienced and capable black woman and a felon, a rapist, a liar and a traitor to our republic, a majority of our fellow citizens chose the traitor. The consequences and implications of that fact are profound, and I believe it will take extraordinary courage, hard work and engagement to begin to heal ourselves and this nation we love and call home. But, as you say, it is possible and must begin. I can see the time in the near future (days? weeks?) when I will stand up and get back into the fight. I must first learn to breathe again and to cope with the force of gravity. Someone reminded me of a verse by Marv Levy that describes my current state: “Fight on my men, Sir Andrew said. A little I am hurt but not yet slain. I’ll just lie down and bleed awhile, then rise and fight again.” That fight involves caring and loving and working until the end of our days, as it has always been so. Thanks again for helping me remember that.
I understand too well your comment about needing to “lie down and bleed” a while. I worked as hard as possible - felt like a full time job - for the election result we didn’t get. The last week before Nov 5 I made ballot curing calls. I want to help that effort again but haven’t been able to sign up because I literally can’t stop crying - and not sure I’ll make it through the call. I feel terrible that I’m not “stronger” in this moment, but I hope to be soon. I know I will never give up on the fight.
Please take time out to take care of yourself. The fight will go on for the rest of our lives and you’ll be in the middle of it. You’ll need all your strength. All of us will need to recover a little before we plunge back in.
Very well said, Brent! trump does not represent me or most of my family in any way, shape, or form either. He does not deserve my respect or loyalty, and unless he completely changes (an impossibility), he shall not have it.
My view is, "We must take care, not advantage, of each other." That's what I see as the big difference between us and trump and his ilk.
Other good news: Washington State and Oregon elected Democrats to all state-wide offices. Oregon flipped a Republican seat in the House and will have 5 of the state's 6 seats held by Democratic women. Portland held it first ranked-choice election for its revamped and expanded City Council (finally by districts so the council will have members from the entire city!), electing mostly progressives and the most diverse council ever. The VERY expensive race for the House seat in SW Washington was successfully won by the incumbent Democrat. All important victories
I admire your strength: I don't understand how you can muster the energy to generate such a long and complex newsletter after the week we've been through! Blame and recriminations on Dems failure abound, and I have decided to watch/listen to none of them. It's a waste of energy; the electorate will change before the next election, so they can evaluate the territory then. My coping skill for the next 4 years will be to neither watch nor listen to anything from the president. I can read it in my many news sources. Please take some time off and enjoy the weekend!
Marti Burt has finally said it. Trump lost when he ran against a white guy. That’s all you need to know. It has nothing to do with Democrats and their policies or strategies. We’re still a nation of bigots and misogynists. Women and Blacks need not apply.
I am so upset with all the pontificating blaming “the democrats”
The media is the culprit in my mind.
And they continue to with no self awareness as to how much damage they have caused by legitimizing an illegitimate party and refusing to educate on what has been happening the past four years with one party governing and the other obstructing.
Yesterday I heard them discussing Tom Cotton wanting to bring out the military against protestors and the man reporting only response:
The space photos are extra encouragement against the backdrop of Harris's speech in which she talked about brilliant stars in the darkness as we carry on the resistance.
Yes, targeted misinformation and outright lies, carefully seeded within the right wing media bubble, was a major contributor to R vote capture. This proved tragically successful with large pockets of "profoundly ignorant" voters (I am citing HCR's newsletter from tonight). It was there in HCR where I read painful accounts of Trump voters who are now shocked about what the tariff wall will bring, or that their family members will be deported. That profound, mass ignorance did not arise by chance -- it's been cultivated over decades.
At this point though, I wholeheartedly agree that finger-pointing gets us nowhere constructive. We are shocked and grieving and desperately sorting for answers and closure. Yet facing the future with clarity, and what I believe will be a fairly solid House presence -- if not a majority -- can hopefully help push back somewhat. These representatives are smart, tough, and have constituencies they actually care about, or they wouldn't be there now. I am somewhat relieved to see my state, NY, flip three seats back, and a fourth was already replaced by the farcical Santos scandal. It will be a very thin R majority, with vulnerable members and an wildly unstable executive branch.
This troubles me: does anybody have an idea what the follow-through may be for something like social security or Medicare? Because there are already two conflicting possibilities that were floated: Trump actually campaigned on a "promise" (cough) to maintain social security and cut its taxes. There is some sense to this, though it will run down the reserves faster. He at least claimed -- correctly -- that he is a senior too. And there's Trump's massive ego and congenital laziness to consider (I think it was Jay Kuo who mentioned to just let him play golf, which he assuredly will). Yet the other potential is the slash and burn manifesto floated by the increasingly obnoxious and ingratiating Musk -- to "take a[n austerity] haircut" -- which accords with the 2025 loonies. But Trump may get some pressure from more seasoned political operatives, both new and old, to not burn all of it down so fast. Assuming there are elections in two years, which I still believe there will be, somebody with an ounce of sense may remind them their majorities are at stake. Which begs the question, what social safety net policies are more realistic to be enacted in the next two years?
Thank you sincerely to all here, and especially to Robert, for providing this essential community at such a critical juncture. We need each others' support right now.
I don't know if I am about to read this in the comments, but it strikes me that Republicans aren't claiming the "election was rigged", fraudulent, etc.
Yes, I read about this on one of the reputable sites (maybe TPM) just in the last day. When the election went their way, R's went crickets on election fraud.
Entirely missing from all the election analysis: really horrible TV ads. The reason Trump won is not because Democrats didn't listen to working class people, but because working class people listened to Trump's torrent of lies. Nothing was more dishonest than ads by Trump featuring images of threatening looking mobs squeezing through fences while the voiceover claimed "Kamala Harris gave your social security money to illegals immigrants!" This played over and over - and was completely unaddressed by the Harris campaign. It need ed to be directly confronted by a Harris TV ad revealing the lies Trump was putting on TV. Pundits now are overlooking the hundreds of millions spent on ads that saturate the brains of people to ignore all the policies under discussion and go with fear-mongering conducted in their TV screens day in and day out.
Agree but how do you respond to this ? Tv stations are forced to carry this garbage (on the news side however they fact check, find duplicate sources and don’t report rumors). The ads are worse than terrible. And we are bombarded with them for far too many weeks and months. I dearly wish station managers could reject advertising for reason of crude inaccurate content. And I wish the campaign was limited to 2-3 months before an election. None of this will happen of course. We put poor souls in jail for possession of pornography but we allow political lies in the name of free press.
Thank you for maintaining a rational bright spot in these scary times. Elon Musk is now worth 300 billion. He was invited to be on a call with Zelenskyy. Unreal. I fear that the right wing storm of brainwashing cannot be corrected ….
I recommend listening to the latest Deep State Radio discussion with Simon Rosenberg and Tara McGowan. It was really enlightening. Tara talked about canvassing in Philly on a GOTV canvass . These were people who were REGISTERED DEMOCRATS , she was just working to get them to vote. She would talk to these black men and discuss the issues and they responded with verbatim talking points straight from right wing media. This is what we are up against. We have never cultivated the kind of media that the Right has.. they dominate the air waves and social media (Joe Rogan and algorithms and throttling of such). As Simon mentioned, we need to get Loud. We need to develop media that gets through. Another case in point… I was at a grocery story and the cashier was talking about how high the price of gas is. . It’s lower than it has been in ages! She’s simply parroting what she hears and it has become her “reality.” We are living in a huge mass delusion.
Fox News didn't always exist. Democrats need similar, easy-to-understand platforms and I have no idea how that can happen but if wealthy Republicans could start a "news" network like Fox then so can wealthy Democrats.
Hey, everybody! I need a favor. I have opened the Comments section to everyone today. It is important that everyone be able to express themselves during this difficult period.
By opening the comments to all, I expose this comment section to trolls. Because of the volume of comments and my other commitments on Saturday, I won't be able to monitor the comments section continuously.
If you see an offensive comment, (a) don't respond, (b) send an email to rbhubbell@gmail.com with the subject line "Troll" and quote the first few words so that I can word search the comment and delete it. Thanks!
One can also click on the 3 dots underneath the comment on the far right. You'll see the word, REPORT. Just click on that, and I think substack will take care of it.
I blame two things, neither of which Democrats are responsible for. First, the underlying continued misogyny and racism in this country, which Trump allows people to express, especially young men. But too, and wildly important but incomprehensibly ignored is the incredible level of lies, misinformation, stories made up out of whole cloth that have been consistently promoted by Fox News and even worse Right wing media for a good 20 years now. When vast swathes of the public exist in an information bubble that keeps them profoundly, ignorant and misguided, it is very hard to see how the truth breaks through. I wonder whether, even when their relatives start getting deported and the price of everything jumps, they will figure out that it’s their vote that did it.
I would recommend swapping "misinformation" for "disinformation." Reason: It implies that they knew it was false before they uttered it.
Completely agree
I understand your point, but it's backward. Disinformation is false information deliberately spread to deceive people. Misinformation refers to inaccuracies that stem from inadvertent error.
Ultimately, it does not matter which term people use. We all mean that people who need to know the truth were not hearing it.
It may seem like splitting hairs, but FOX News is spreading MISINFORMATON (they damn well know that they are lying), so Marti is correct!
If their listeners further disseminate the information to their friends and family, repost on Social media, etc. then it can be considered disinformation, because they didn't intend to lie - unlike the RW media.
Remember all the documents from Fox News that came out during the discover phase of of the lawsuit by Dominion Voting Systems??
https://www.apa.org/topics/journalism-facts/misinformation-disinformation
“ Misinformation is false or inaccurate information—getting the facts wrong. Disinformation is false information which is deliberately intended to mislead—intentionally misstating the facts.”
Oops sounds like I got it backwards!
Thanks for this, Marti , and Robert. In addition to systemic racism and misogyny, and vast and deceptive FOX , X, “Truth” Social, etc, Kamala Harris’ powerful opponents included SCOTUS, the earth’s wealthiest individual, unfettered immorality, and many more such elements. No Democrat would have prevailed. FOX viewers never even learned what tr&‘s former chief of staff, generals, +, had to say about him. SCOTUS MAGA SIX deliberately prevented timely public awareness of J6 culpability. Tired of those decrying “her” failures. Robert and comments like yours, Marti, are keeping me calm and girding for the challenges ahead. Thank you!
The thing about DISinformation is that as it spreads through social media and the like it becomes MISinformation. And because one's friends are spouting it, and truly believe it, it becomes that much more convincing.
Susan, you make a good point. There is a chain of reactions that starts off with a single act of disinformation (intensional lying) followed by a sequence of acts of unknowingly spreading misinformation. Thank you for helping me to better understand what's going on.
When you see information in a comment you can exercise your judgment to decide if it's disinformation or not. If it is, don't click on "like." That would only pass it on. You can state the truth in the matter by clicking on "reply." That would pass the truth to others. Information – whether true or false – can multiply on the internet like viruses in living systems.
And behind it all is money, billionaire money. This is Lewis Powell on steroids. Everything for big business nothing for anybody else. Brought to us by people who do not believe that all people are created equal. And do not believe that government is there to serve, all the people.
Spot on Martin! This IS who we are. Billionaire money has bought us and the media to believe that all are NOT created equal. It's the Civil War states' rights thinking that BIG government is evil (thank Reagan!). Heather Cox Richardson, Robert Hubblell, Joyce Vance all caution the blame game. We have been "bought" to think such limited thoughts. Stick with these voices of reason! Now, what do we do next?😱
A friend said --- the problem is "WE should have lost the civil war!'
You’re on to something, Derek: Heather Cox Richardson’s next-to-most-recent book is “How The South Won The Civil War”. It’s a very penetrating, subtle analysis (and yes – sobering, too!).
Sadly, this appears to be true, Marti! But we will go on. I just saw Jon Meacham on Ali Velshi's show on MSNBC. Ali gave a brief but beautiful editorial on his experience as a child growing up in South Africa. It was a history lesson of all of the periods of disappointment and despair that have occurred in our country, from moments during the Revolutionary War when it looked like we could not win, to the movement in the South to secede from the Union, and more. Ali said, as an immigrant to this country, that America has gone through some terrible times in its history and survived. When asked by Ali what he would say to Americans who are feeling despair in this moment, Jon Meacham quoted Frederick Douglas, an escaped slave, who said that American soil was a more propitious soil in which to fight against the South's dishonor than any other place! This, from an escaped slave! It was a VERY beautiful segment on a show I do not normally watch, but I am renewed in my decision to continue to fight! We are bigger and better than this moment!
Yes. Billionaire misanthropy has also been characterized as a form of techno-feudalism, largely wrought by juvenile tech bros who basically got lucky capitalizing in the earlier days of internet and media platforms. And then there are the Kochs and their ilk, who slowly planned radical socio-political capture for decades, as N. Maclean has traced in Democracy in Chains.
We have become their subjects. Cory Doctorow and Yannis Varoufakis both explore the fallout from tech bro feudal domination, among others.
You’re absolutely right. Heather Cox Richardson’s Substack addresses this today. Apparently a lot of Trump voters are finding out that a lot of what they believed to be true is anything but.
And they need to find this out. Jonathan V. Last of The Bulwark wrote that Dems should let Trump be Trump, and not rescue Republicans from their actions. This is to the ends of helping Americans understand better who is behind their miseries.
https://www.thebulwark.com/p/a-modest-proposal-let-trump-be-trump
There is a part of me that hopes that Republicans keep the house, and control all three branches. That way they have no one else to attach blame to for the coming chaos. I remember too many times when they blamed problems on "Democrat obstruction" when we had a divided government; and the right-wing media amplified that message.
Have to disagree. We desperately need the House.
But I genuinely fear the unshackled results. They will no doubt believe God is on their side, thus the complete rout of Democrats, full authoritarian steam ahead. Regardless, they will continue to blame Democrats, even far into their administration. Then there's FoxMusk.
It will also be a good opportunity for people to figure out whether they want to live in the US. I am considering on writing about some other options. I realize many feel fight to the end. Others may want to spend more of their lives living in a place where they have fewer disagreements with the people in charge, and the public in general. Reading in Spy Talk today about those who believe a civil war is coming and are preparing for it.
https://www.spytalk.co/p/new-in-spyweek-plot-to-murder-trump?utm_campaign=email-post&r=f0qfn&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
I understand your feelings - and in fact I DID leave South Africa - which I still feel I would do again. BUT - this country has too many really good and bright people; and this is the country that is worth and in fact demands fighting for. And --- as I've thought about the moving thing - to where? I don't want to learn a foreign language - and except for New Zealand - where would you go. We don't know the depth of problems and challenges in other countries - I mean - the UK is not doing so well.
I speak German since it is my second language and mother's tongue. Whatever is wrong with Germany, all of the Americans that I know here through Democrats Abroad feel like we avoid a lot of problems that we have in the US. It is cheaper to live here, I can drink safe water from my tap, groceries are way cheaper, and there is good transportation access. Housing tends to be cheaper and better protected. Everyone is required to have health insurance, so the public health insurance cannot turn you down for preexisting conditions. So, for all the things wrong, it has a lot of benefits.
My daughter goes to university in a major city, and we don't pay tuition. We paid a fee of 299€ this fall. I do not have to worry about her being on her own in the city, because she has city smarts and people are not walking around carrying guns. As a parent it is a relief. She went by train to visit good friends in Vienna for the weekend. She is used to getting around independently without having to own a car. That is a plus for her, for us, and for the environment.
By the way, Ireland is great for English speakers. Also, I know a lot of expats now who do not speak the language of the country they live in well or at all, just like there are people in the US in the same situation.
The UK was also ruined by Rupert Murdoch.
The problem is that there is no "safe haven". What happens in the U.S. has reverberations elsewhere and will further support right-wing movements in Europe and elsewhere.
Even if there will be reverberations everywhere because countries don't live in a vacuum, there are safer places. I think one has to be flexible. I will ask you to look at pages 8 and 9 of the global peace index. The US is at #132 in 2024. I will be interested to see if that number goes down in 2025 with the advent of Trump taking office.
https://www.economicsandpeace.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/GPI-2024-web.pdf
As you can see there are 131 countries who are considered safer. Many of them are in the African continent. However, with global warming that might change. I am more north on the planet in the EU than I was in the US.
Petty revenge sounds great, but Dems need to try and prevent as much harm as they can.
I will respectfully disagree. I am a follower of John Dewey who wrote Experience and Education. His philosophy on which the school I used to teach was based is that people learn best from meaningful experiences with real consequences.
For the MAGAs who believed Trump was going to save the economy they did not learn anything. Protecting them from it will not help them learn lessons we need them to learn for everyone's survival in the US. People can move to Blue States where governors are already pledging buffers.
I do not blame the people, I blame the corporate and social media. Many people apparently live in deserts of accurate, insightful media. They have neither the time, know-how or resources to find it. They don't read, they pick entertainment over information. But, if they rely on locally available media they don't have it.
I do not want petty revenge, I want people to learn lessons that will help them to do better informed voting. If they felt that they could just focus on earning a living and throwing in some occasional fun times, they will see that more is required of them to avoid what will probably happen. If they feel that God will swoop down from heaven and save them and any suffering they have in the meantime is deserved, well there is no helping them.
I’m not talking about the people who need to learn their lesson. I’m talking about the people who will be collateral damage. Pick any bad consequence, it will affect us all, not just his voters.
I agree! It will effect the entire planet. Global warming will be sped up to new levels we cannot return from. However, some will be affected more than others. Just look at education alone. With plans to dismantle and defund the department of education and put special education in Health and Human Services, while they put regular education into the Department of Labor as students are funneled into the jobs immigrants used to take before being deported, instead of high school or college.
I do not have an elementary education child. I am affected on that less than those who have children who need child care or primary education. In my family there is one child in undergraduate studies and the other working on his PhD in the US. The junior might finish her education before her funding is totally destroyed, but I will advise her to leave rather than take on the kinds of predatory loans that they are planning on to finish.
I am counting on parents across the country, to realize that the most important thing about primary education is not whether or not the government gives gender reassignment in schools, but whether or not schools even exist any more. It is a very anti-intellectual third world making agenda. It will be effecting those who are not in the know more. Those who are not US citizens more. Those who are undocumented more. Those who are female more. Those who are non-White more. Those who are not Christian nationalists more. Those who Trump doesn't consider allies more. Change won't happen over night, and we should not be giving in to it already. We should be planning our survival.
However, until his voters, and the 93 million who did not vote, actually feel the consequences of his policies, they may not make the effort to inform themselves enough to change them, together with us.
This makes no sense. trump voters are suddenly awakening to the truth? Finally, just three days after the election? No.
Yes, they are: Jeff Tiedrich gives an example, too. What we have to remember is not to say "I told you so" but "I tried to tell you."
Ruth, it's so poignant. What Robert and HCR are uncovering for us is that the 1/3 of Trump voters either a) listened ONLY to Fox lies and swallowed them hook, line, and sinker with no thought whatsoever; or b) did not listen to either side but just voted as a knee-jerk--"oh, I like his pretty orange hair." Now, they are going to have to suck up the results, having used the power of their vote like a child would use a Colt 45. In ignorance, however innocent, of the deadly result. We are going to have to drag them out of Trumps Nazi ditch along with ourselves. We must act going forward with unprecedented toughness, clear vision, and absolute love. It ain't gonna be easy or pretty.
I think you're largely correct in your assessment of the damage done by right-wing media. It has left voters swimming in disinformation, and we have been slow to recognize the power of lies and distortions, since we live in reality. We need to ramp up our efforts to reclaim some of the spaces on social media. We also need to get some sort of access to talk radio. When all you hear is Rush Limbaugh, it's no wonder you turn into a vengeful, fearful idiot.
True. Rush Limbaugh is dead, but his acolytes are marching on. Two years ago I was driving in Texas and, not finding a NPR station, I listened to local stations. Scary!!
I was having a gathering of Democrats Abroad at my house last night and we are all of the opinion that a lot of people do not realize what they were voting for. That is evident by states voting for Republicans but also for abortion protections and worker rights. I hold the corporate media responsible for that.
At the same time in the Bulwark one of the writers was saying today that the Democrats have protected the American population from many of the consequences of their actions. He said, the Dems should let them do what they do without stepping in to fix it was the advice of this writer.
He said let Blue state governors protect their people and let others see what their governors are really like. Toxic Texas is a hot mess with Abbott in charge. I never visited my friends while they lived there. I have had 2 sets of friends that moved there, who are now in California because they could not stay in Texas because of its politics. I think just because of Abortion laws we will see some population shifting within the US, as well as those who will leave. A national abortion ban should push many young women out. The independent media needs to help them figure out where they can go.
People do need good media options. Of course we have to choose them. I am excited that The Guardian will be adding a section on Democracy now that one can sign up for. Our job is going to be sustaining the independent voices in the media. Let the corporate press deal with Trumps' nastiness on their own. They earned it. Bye bye Bezos.
My family is already feeling the consequences. My beloved only son and his partner are planning on moving to another state. We live in VERY red Idaho. They would like to have a family and won't consider living where a woman can easily die if she has complications with her pregnancy. I am supporting their decision and hoping that national bans won't become a reality. My heart is breaking for them, for all young women, and for all the other "others."
You can support the Media and Democracy Project's challenge of several Fox TV stations' licenses. Hit them where it hurts them! To find out more, go to https://www.mediaanddemocracyproject.org/.
Thanks Linda, I agree that MANY who voted for Trump were so brainwashed with disinformation that did not understand or know the truth about his policies. I predict they will not be happy with what they get. One question I have is: Can the pendulum swing back the other way in 2026 if the disinformation continues or in the worst case ramps up?
Robin, I believe the pendulum can swing back, but I don't know what it will take. One thing to help it will be clear reporting on what is going on. The Guardian has pledged to do that, and to do a section on democracy, which I have signed up for. My Democrats Abroad Project 2025 Book Club has decided that after this election we are going to be reading about Democracy. I would like to see The Guardian be rewarded for this if they do it well, which I believe they can continue to do. I hold the corporate and social media responsible for the outcome of this election. People are wallowing in ignorance. Many live in information deserts, and do not have the time, know-how, resources to get better information.
Here is Heather Cox Richardson talking about people who are now realizing that they voted for the wrong person. I have been reading many articles in the past 2 days saying the same thing.
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/november-8-2024
We need to stop supporting bad media whether it be corporate or social. If we cannot do that, we cannot expect change.
Hooray for HCR - one of the best! Anyway, largely I agree with you but also we need to somehow get our people better educated from the get-go, and stop banning books, dammit! When I think about how much I learned about history from reading YA novels, not to mention tolerance and respect of others … of course, that’s the long game.
I can not be sympathetic to the brain washed masses. I have tried with no success, to discuss this with former friends and relatives only to find 'my mind is made up, don't confuse me with FACT' I
I worked remotely with Texas people throughout the state for 5 years. Also worked with people from 13 other states at the same time. Texans were by far the stupidest people I ever worked with. Seriously. People from the other 13 states thought the same as me. Ted Cruz is a perfect example of it. The majority of Texans voted to re-elect him! I have no pity for them. Voting for Cruz certainly is against their interests. But I think racism prevented them from voting for the better man who would actually DO things for them in the Senate.
Agree about racism. Along with misogyny, it was one of the horrors of this election.
I do not have the source at hand, but in addition to the increasing infant and women's deaths related to Texas abortion laws, rape has increased astronomically, thanks to the resumption of women's handmaiden role.
Useful idiots as well. Useful to the ruling class. Racism, misogyny and blaming the other were amplified until Americans turned on their country and their own best interests. How to recover from this state of affairs is the answer. Media must be held accountable for spreading disinformation. Maybe the next 4 years will be a wake up call to all of us.
As for the media, there are too many business interests and too any lazy and irresponsible journalists.
Karla, we must make a plan to create a media source that competes with Fox and tells the American (not MAgA) side of the story.
Yes, I agree. Robert, Simon Rosenberg, national treasure HCR, and many other bloggers and SM figures are providing factual information. I think they should join to create one powerful Left-wing organization to push back against Fox. I have NO idea how to do that, or even if it's desirable. maybe having dozens of individuals working toward the same goal but doing it separately would reach more people? Perhaps Robert could address this in an upcoming post?
I would add laziness too. I want to throttle everyone who keeps saying, "They didn't know anything about Harris or what she stood for." REALLY? These dweebs can "research" every conspiracy theory plus hydroxychloroquine but can't type Harris into their web browser? If they wanted to know what Harris stood for all they had to do was listen or look.
In addition to the massive amounts of disinformation dispersed by Faux Noise, Russian bots and Trump himself...I'm guessing that fully three quarters of the people who voted for Trump have no real idea just how tariffs work. MAGA voters take in every word Trump utters as truth and since Trump himself seems to be clueless about tariffs, so too are they. Also there are many, many Republican voters who never took Project 2025 seriously and have no clear idea of the sweeping restructure of our government that Trump's aides are gleefully preparing to execute. Such as getting rid of the Department of Education...Many of of Trump's voters need and depend on the special education services and disability grants that the DOE provides. Say goodbye to most of those services, folks. Unfortunately, too many of the folks to whom knowing more about Project 2025 would have made a difference in their vote, either didn't have the time, the access, or the interest to find out about Project 2025. The implementation of the Project will be a very unpleasant surprise for many Trump voters.
TL, I agree with much of what you wrote but vehemently disagree with the idea that they didn't have the time or the access--perhaps what disappoints me the most about this election cycle, though it doesn't really surprise me, is how such a large percentage of the population doesn't take seriously their role as "citizen." Of course earning one's daily bread is going to take priority for just about everyone--not having the interest to spend the limited amount of time over a many-month campaign to educate oneself a bit (and that is really all that was necessary to get a pretty clear picture of 2025, Trump and Republicans) is inexcusable, in my view. I do agree that the next four years could yield some very bad results for many of our Trump voters and non-voters and, although I am not happy about the rest of us suffering in various ways as well, I can't say I have any sympathy for them.
Your comments remind me of Martin Niemöller's poem, "First They Came." No doubt Trump supporters feel invulnerable, especially if they are white and wealthy. But once the list of undesirables starts to peel off one populace after another, their turn will come. As someone wrote elsewhere, "What happens to Latino male voters when their friends and family start being deported or sent to camps?"
You are spot-on. In my comment today I didn't want to go into details, but here we go. Trump in his first administration institutionalized lying and misinformation with the concept of 'alternative facts' practically in his first week in office. Right out of Goebbel's playbook. Bannon knows his history. It was always my fear that an irresponsible and unhinged interpretation and thus instrumentalisation of the 1st Amendment (throw in the 2nd one, too) might contribute to the eventual failure of the democratic system in the US.
I blame the fact that too many are comfortable and apathetic or uncomfortable and apathetic. Thus we get the figure Robert mentioned of 93 million eligible voters who did not vote.
Marti, you are spot on. Did you read the article by Michael Tomasky? He said essentially the same thing with a lot more detail. The disinformation propaganda machine overloaded people with stories about the economy in shambles, the migrant crisis and other issues. I don’t know how we fix that if we are to change the narrative.
Yes, I don’t think we have yet come to terms with how democracy is threatened by bots, disinformation and social media. When Fox News and others tell millions of people an election was stolen and social media algorithms promote one’s own world view exclusively, we end up where we are. And 100% about misogyny and racism.
I agree with the role of right wing media because I saw it with a couple of family members. It was difficult to have conversations because we came from a totally different set of facts. When we were discussing Trumps comments about immigrants eating other peoples pets, I was met with retorts like” he didn’t really say that. The fake news used AI to alter his words.” My niece has not vaccinated her 9 month old because she has immersed herself in that media world. For me, I’ve decided that I need to continue to do the work of community building and caring for people throughout my day. I’m involved in presenting Human Libraries in my community. Human “books” representing people who are stereotyped and labeled, tell their stories to “readers.” Time is slotted for deep questioning and dialogue. People leave with new insights and perspectives. You can learn more at humanlibrary. org. I don’t have the political power or judicial power to stop Trumps actions but I can help to change how people think about themselves and others. I can bring light into my area of influence. If enough of us do what is ours to do, we can mitigate the darkness that is surely to come. If you have another way to eradicate what has happened, something pragmatic the ordinary person can do, I’m all ears!
Thank you Marti, I agree 100%. Bernie and others want to blame the Democrats as it's just a very hard truth in that VP Harris was not elected because 1) she does not have a penis and 2) her skin is the wrong color. People have to realize these facts in that America elected a felon who was previously endorsed by the KKK.
The problem with corrupting our elections was propelled in 2010 with the SCOTUS decision to overturn Citizens United v. FEC in 2010 and McCutcheon v. FEC in 2014. Pile on top of that the deceit driven by right wing media as you have mentioned and we have been forced a very hard hand in continuing to protect our freedoms.
I am thankful that I have Robert and all of you here. I feel his readership is going to jump up dramatically.
Yes! As an example, I had an argument with someone who refuses to read mainstream media. When I said Trump was a convicted felon, he insisted that wasn't true, and that Trump had been indicted but never convicted! This person reads right-wing online news, and I wonder whether those sources even reported the 34 felony convictions. . .
The bottom line is that the MAGAverse has had 8 years to perfect its disinformation/propaganda media bubble--They never heard a thing that Harris actually proposed. The main stream media has lost half of the country to the MAGAverse and all they have been doing with the unconscionable and unsuccessful "normalization" strategy to get back audience share is to alienate Democrats.
And the demographic analysis has to look at how Harris faired in the "non battleground" states. I am in NJ7 and this was the one swing district that went from blue to red when the Republicans flipped the House. There was not enough support for Sue Altman on the ground in this cycle, or to return Tom Malinowski, who had beaten Kean in the previous race.
I found the worth fighting for call was packed with useful information.
https://www.mobilize.us/join/35175505/1:2ad590dcbf5379a56de52edecfcd4d7b67cc8f89430aba438f49372eea265963/
I suggest that we encourage trump voters to take a few moments and write down their expectations of what results will be delivered over the next four years, and that we do so ourselves.
For them, it should serve as a baseline they cannot allow to shift as they've excused trump's massive failures to deliver in the past. For us, it should serve as a basis for planning our own actions to mitigate the effects of his actions.
The impression is given that the regime will round up immigrants, like cowboys round up cattle, and drive them across the border. He will never be able to accomplish his promise. The cost of deporting 22 million people is prohibitive and certainly more than Trump would dream of spending on anyone other than himself. His promise will only result in a trickle of immigrants being sent back. It will be the replacement for his failed “build the wall” scheme. As he deports handful after handful of immigrants, he will crow that he is achieving his promise. Moreover, the horrific crimes against women that will result from this process will provide much entertainment for Nick Fuentes, and people like him, people like Donald Trump. The cruelty is the point.
Thank you! I’ve backed off a lot of so-called news, no surprise there! Anytime someone blames the Dems for their loss, I immediately leave that site. The problem isn’t anything that the Democrats did, the problem is the voters who voted for Trump. And changing what the Democratic Party stands for into what the Republican Party stands for is not the solution. Some of the former Republicans, the Never-Trumpers, appear to wish the Democrats would shift their policies to turn the Democrats into what the former moderate Republicans were. That is not the solution to the problem.
I have canceled subscriptions to writers who blame Dems for abandoning the working class. What hogwash! The Trump voters believe the lies the GOP has told for decades. The problem was not the candidates. The problem was so many bigoted, stupid, hate filled voters. Yes, I said stupid, and I meant to say stupid. Wait til prices get WAY more expensive or God forbid, someone’s daughter needs care for an ectopic pregnancy and nearly dies from lack of proper care. Jonathan V. Last might have a point about letting the voters deal with the real consequences of voting for Trump.
ah. The data shows we should have won. The data was wrong.
1. Fear. Baked into the amygdala. Fear of "the other". Trump's commercials invoked the Jungian collective subconscious. Most effective ad: girls' sports.
2, Salesmanship. Psyops can make an Alaskan buy snow water. 90% voted contrary to their own economic and physical health. Why would someone on SSI (or any government benefit) vote to cut it.? Hispanics and Moslems supported a guy who will deport them -- even if they are citizens. During his administration he was working on "denaturalization."
3 Maybe the proletariat are really "lumpen."
this… PROPAGANDA WORKS. the simple answer is that Dems won’t use effective propaganda tools. All the analysts give way to much credit to the voters-
the fact is that the masses are stupid and lazy - they don’t know or understand “policy” or how government works. They listen to TV ads and social media propaganda (if anything at all) and what their friends say and vote based on their emotional ‘feelings’ about a candidate or just plain misinformation. They have zero clue how the decisions that affect their daily lives get made. They ‘don’t pay attention to politics’ - Americans have dug our own grave by failing to educate people about civics and perpetuating ‘news’ and information sources that are primarily, if not solely, profit driven. Until we fundamentally change the system, propaganda is the only thing that will work.
I am already weary of the blame being placed on Democrats. Second guessing is like saying your aunt would still be alive if the telephone pole didn't get in her car's way. We should be comforting each other more than blaming. The money, misinformation, and deliberate obstructionism by the Republicans and trump are the culprits. If we are to find fault, it should be that we didn't see the forty-year-long juggernaut being built by oligarchs, fundamentalists, and asshats coming our way.
Problem is, the stupid people who voted for Trump will be told by Trump that his bad actions were because of the Democrats and these stupid people will believe him.
Thanks for this. We need to stop the blame game and get it together. We need each other now more than ever…more than ever. And we - I - need not to hate. That is their game and look where it has gotten us. Mourning in America - then, as Kamala so beautifully said, it’s not a time to throw up our hands but to roll up our sleeves. 🫶🏽
After the first 10 minutes of post-election day news, I was done. I'll watch Lawrence O'Donnell, but not anything else. I stick to my Substack writers and perhaps I will dip into podcasts again. But not the news. Heather Cox Richardson's piece for Friday night was helpful perspective, as always--disinformation and white supremacy in the 19th century and now. We've been here before.
I encourage people to donate to The States Project while we wait to come up with an action plan. Campaign stops don't work. Getting Democrats elected at the state level gives voters a real person to get to know. Sarah McBride started out in the Delaware Senate, and is now the first trans representative in the House. States matter.
I donate to top voting rights attorney Marc Elias (Democracy Docket) and get his "members only" newsletters. His work will not stop. Elias Law Group has attorneys all over the country. He has a podcast called "Defending Democracy" also. He has his own secure method of donating.
I also donate to The Civics Center Project, begun by attorney Laura Brill after the 2016 election. this project works across the country to get 18 year olds registered to vote, even when they are still in high school. The Civics Center donation link is through Act Blue.
I'm also a big fan of Marc Elias and Democracy Docket, and think they will be essential in keeping our democracy.
Me too, they are terrific.
I agree and add this, state legislatures start in cities and towns. We need to much more pay attention to local elections, run for office, support candidates that will be those representatives and senators. The process starts from the bottom and goes up.
I donate to Leaders We Deserve. The group led by David Hogg from the Parkland shootings. They are working to get new young leaders elected. Thanks for the tips on new places to donate.
Thanks for the reminder. I haven't donated to Leaders We Deserve in a while.
Thank you Robert. This the first piece I have read since Election Day which I can truly say has helped me begin to cope with the shock and disgust I felt at Trump’s victory. He does not now nor will he ever represent me, he does not represent my wife, he does not represent my children, he does not represent my grandchildren. It will still take some time and some effort to come to grips with this stark truth: when given a choice between an experienced and capable black woman and a felon, a rapist, a liar and a traitor to our republic, a majority of our fellow citizens chose the traitor. The consequences and implications of that fact are profound, and I believe it will take extraordinary courage, hard work and engagement to begin to heal ourselves and this nation we love and call home. But, as you say, it is possible and must begin. I can see the time in the near future (days? weeks?) when I will stand up and get back into the fight. I must first learn to breathe again and to cope with the force of gravity. Someone reminded me of a verse by Marv Levy that describes my current state: “Fight on my men, Sir Andrew said. A little I am hurt but not yet slain. I’ll just lie down and bleed awhile, then rise and fight again.” That fight involves caring and loving and working until the end of our days, as it has always been so. Thanks again for helping me remember that.
I understand too well your comment about needing to “lie down and bleed” a while. I worked as hard as possible - felt like a full time job - for the election result we didn’t get. The last week before Nov 5 I made ballot curing calls. I want to help that effort again but haven’t been able to sign up because I literally can’t stop crying - and not sure I’ll make it through the call. I feel terrible that I’m not “stronger” in this moment, but I hope to be soon. I know I will never give up on the fight.
Please take time out to take care of yourself. The fight will go on for the rest of our lives and you’ll be in the middle of it. You’ll need all your strength. All of us will need to recover a little before we plunge back in.
Very well said, Brent! trump does not represent me or most of my family in any way, shape, or form either. He does not deserve my respect or loyalty, and unless he completely changes (an impossibility), he shall not have it.
My view is, "We must take care, not advantage, of each other." That's what I see as the big difference between us and trump and his ilk.
Don’t know how the picture above came to be next to my name. Lovely picture, not me. 😊
Other good news: Washington State and Oregon elected Democrats to all state-wide offices. Oregon flipped a Republican seat in the House and will have 5 of the state's 6 seats held by Democratic women. Portland held it first ranked-choice election for its revamped and expanded City Council (finally by districts so the council will have members from the entire city!), electing mostly progressives and the most diverse council ever. The VERY expensive race for the House seat in SW Washington was successfully won by the incumbent Democrat. All important victories
In red Florida ,we did mange to flip one seat held by a MAGA incumbent/felon indictee…imagine that !
And another Fl Rep won her 4th, and final term, despite NEVER taking a single corporate donation.
I think the states should use ranked-choice elections for president. That might eliminate any need for the Electoral College.
Yes, great news for us Oregonians.
I admire your strength: I don't understand how you can muster the energy to generate such a long and complex newsletter after the week we've been through! Blame and recriminations on Dems failure abound, and I have decided to watch/listen to none of them. It's a waste of energy; the electorate will change before the next election, so they can evaluate the territory then. My coping skill for the next 4 years will be to neither watch nor listen to anything from the president. I can read it in my many news sources. Please take some time off and enjoy the weekend!
Marti Burt has finally said it. Trump lost when he ran against a white guy. That’s all you need to know. It has nothing to do with Democrats and their policies or strategies. We’re still a nation of bigots and misogynists. Women and Blacks need not apply.
Thank you
I needed to read this tonight
I am so upset with all the pontificating blaming “the democrats”
The media is the culprit in my mind.
And they continue to with no self awareness as to how much damage they have caused by legitimizing an illegitimate party and refusing to educate on what has been happening the past four years with one party governing and the other obstructing.
Yesterday I heard them discussing Tom Cotton wanting to bring out the military against protestors and the man reporting only response:
“which is somewhat problematic” .
The space photos are extra encouragement against the backdrop of Harris's speech in which she talked about brilliant stars in the darkness as we carry on the resistance.
I caught that "Hubbell space" reference, too, Susan!
I had that thought, too. It seemed like a direct reference.
Yes, targeted misinformation and outright lies, carefully seeded within the right wing media bubble, was a major contributor to R vote capture. This proved tragically successful with large pockets of "profoundly ignorant" voters (I am citing HCR's newsletter from tonight). It was there in HCR where I read painful accounts of Trump voters who are now shocked about what the tariff wall will bring, or that their family members will be deported. That profound, mass ignorance did not arise by chance -- it's been cultivated over decades.
At this point though, I wholeheartedly agree that finger-pointing gets us nowhere constructive. We are shocked and grieving and desperately sorting for answers and closure. Yet facing the future with clarity, and what I believe will be a fairly solid House presence -- if not a majority -- can hopefully help push back somewhat. These representatives are smart, tough, and have constituencies they actually care about, or they wouldn't be there now. I am somewhat relieved to see my state, NY, flip three seats back, and a fourth was already replaced by the farcical Santos scandal. It will be a very thin R majority, with vulnerable members and an wildly unstable executive branch.
This troubles me: does anybody have an idea what the follow-through may be for something like social security or Medicare? Because there are already two conflicting possibilities that were floated: Trump actually campaigned on a "promise" (cough) to maintain social security and cut its taxes. There is some sense to this, though it will run down the reserves faster. He at least claimed -- correctly -- that he is a senior too. And there's Trump's massive ego and congenital laziness to consider (I think it was Jay Kuo who mentioned to just let him play golf, which he assuredly will). Yet the other potential is the slash and burn manifesto floated by the increasingly obnoxious and ingratiating Musk -- to "take a[n austerity] haircut" -- which accords with the 2025 loonies. But Trump may get some pressure from more seasoned political operatives, both new and old, to not burn all of it down so fast. Assuming there are elections in two years, which I still believe there will be, somebody with an ounce of sense may remind them their majorities are at stake. Which begs the question, what social safety net policies are more realistic to be enacted in the next two years?
Thank you sincerely to all here, and especially to Robert, for providing this essential community at such a critical juncture. We need each others' support right now.
I don't know if I am about to read this in the comments, but it strikes me that Republicans aren't claiming the "election was rigged", fraudulent, etc.
Yes, I read about this on one of the reputable sites (maybe TPM) just in the last day. When the election went their way, R's went crickets on election fraud.
Entirely missing from all the election analysis: really horrible TV ads. The reason Trump won is not because Democrats didn't listen to working class people, but because working class people listened to Trump's torrent of lies. Nothing was more dishonest than ads by Trump featuring images of threatening looking mobs squeezing through fences while the voiceover claimed "Kamala Harris gave your social security money to illegals immigrants!" This played over and over - and was completely unaddressed by the Harris campaign. It need ed to be directly confronted by a Harris TV ad revealing the lies Trump was putting on TV. Pundits now are overlooking the hundreds of millions spent on ads that saturate the brains of people to ignore all the policies under discussion and go with fear-mongering conducted in their TV screens day in and day out.
Agree but how do you respond to this ? Tv stations are forced to carry this garbage (on the news side however they fact check, find duplicate sources and don’t report rumors). The ads are worse than terrible. And we are bombarded with them for far too many weeks and months. I dearly wish station managers could reject advertising for reason of crude inaccurate content. And I wish the campaign was limited to 2-3 months before an election. None of this will happen of course. We put poor souls in jail for possession of pornography but we allow political lies in the name of free press.
Thank you for maintaining a rational bright spot in these scary times. Elon Musk is now worth 300 billion. He was invited to be on a call with Zelenskyy. Unreal. I fear that the right wing storm of brainwashing cannot be corrected ….
I recommend listening to the latest Deep State Radio discussion with Simon Rosenberg and Tara McGowan. It was really enlightening. Tara talked about canvassing in Philly on a GOTV canvass . These were people who were REGISTERED DEMOCRATS , she was just working to get them to vote. She would talk to these black men and discuss the issues and they responded with verbatim talking points straight from right wing media. This is what we are up against. We have never cultivated the kind of media that the Right has.. they dominate the air waves and social media (Joe Rogan and algorithms and throttling of such). As Simon mentioned, we need to get Loud. We need to develop media that gets through. Another case in point… I was at a grocery story and the cashier was talking about how high the price of gas is. . It’s lower than it has been in ages! She’s simply parroting what she hears and it has become her “reality.” We are living in a huge mass delusion.
Fox News didn't always exist. Democrats need similar, easy-to-understand platforms and I have no idea how that can happen but if wealthy Republicans could start a "news" network like Fox then so can wealthy Democrats.
The New Republic had a great post on the effect of right wing “news”. I’ve sent to all my friends.
https://newsletter.tnr.com/index.php?action=social&chash=2715518c875999308842e3455eda2fe3.1073&s=11c340fb66c9b72f24dd4fbbbad6e4cf
Essential reading. Hits the nail on the head.