All Hail The Legitimate King Who Just Killed His Way To Power: Part 8

Elections have a job, they should convince the people their voice was heard. No matter what your opinion of the outcome, America’s system failed at the process in 2020.

To what extent does it matter? Nothing is perfect. The most obvious bad American election would be Samuel Jones Tilden (D) who cheated in the 1876 election. In that shitshow, Congress “fixed the cheat” by seating Rutherford B. Hayes (R).

Lots of historians think John F. Kennedy (D) didn’t actually beat Richard Nixon (R) in 1960. Ever heard of Chicago? Ever heard of Chicago associated with a clean election? That was a conspiracy theory when I was a kid but it’s practically common opinion now.

Funny thing about conspiracy theories, they’re false until they aren’t. Kennedy died in office so he’s remembered fondly no matter how weirdly he mismanaged things. Take one to the head and people forget the Bay of Pigs. They remember you as a great man despite evidence to the contrary. Besides, Nixon took another crack at it later and won.

Painting with a broad brush, “convincing people their vote counted” didn’t work out in 1876, 1960, and 2020. Time may or may not heal the 2020 issue but there’s hope. Nobody but nerds like me know who Tilden was. I already said I’m Gen X and our generation is so sick of Boomers and Nixon that we’d happily toss his memory in the trash along with most of the Beatles playlist. (Admittedly, there are nuances. I enjoy Octopus Garden, Fool on the Hill, and trade with China.)

There’s a second point of healing over the Kennedy/Nixon election. The question became a moot point when Nixon came back in 1968. He won so hard nobody could deny it. Once Hubert Humphrey got his ass handed to him by Tricky Dick, the first round of “did his opponent cheat or not” seems less troubling. Nothing an American loves more than a redemption story! Nixon’s solid win “fixed” the whole problem.

(Of course, Nixon’s two unquestionably very solid wins came before Watergate. Watergate amuses me. Generations older than mine talk about Nixon like he had cloven feet and smelled of sulfur. Compared to the last few decades, Watergate is a children’s tea party. Modern corruption is pervasive and obvious. Watergate was a one night fuck up with a single jimmied door. Trump was the victim (and victim is the right word) of an elaborate months long multi-pronged electronic surveillance project done by the FBI. Months and months of illegal spying done by people who’s names we know and who collect Federal paychecks and who are not in jail today. How weird to live a world where the President was spied upon by the FBI but a handful of assholes doing a single break in at Watergate is the ultimate indignity?

Trump never had the power his detractors feared. We all saw Twitter deplatform the President of the United States right in front of our eyes. William the Conqueror nuked the whole of English nobility and replaced it with his pals. Trump was feared like the most awful thing since cancer but he can’t get a Twitter account. Biden, ironically, is America’s savior replacement who can’t work past noon.)

[Note: when I wrote this in 2021 Biden wasn’t leading well but there was hope in terms of foreign affairs. A few months later hope was gone. In summer 2021 Biden fled Afghanistan by evacuating the airport first and all our military gear not at all. In winter 2022 he’s trying to start a war in Russia. Great Napoleon’s nutsack! If war with Russia in winter is the answer, the question is stupid.]

So back to Biden’s support among the people: He entered the white house with about 40% of the populace suspecting he was a usurper. That can be turned around! [Note: The actual number was 47% I wrote this in 2021 while I was off-grid.]

Suppose, like William the Conqueror, Biden turns out to be a strong and effective leader? If so, the debate about how he got on the throne vanishes. That’s one way this could go. It would be good for the country. If Biden actually performs, nobody will care how he got there. Stolen or won election, the people will be happy if they have free and peaceful lives with a good economy.

I could learn to live with that. So it’s a hope at least.

There’s another way things could turn out positive. Suppose they audit the living shit out of the election. Not a political / lawfare battle but really actually seek to find out what happened everywhere. It would have to be a real audit; flip over rocks and look at the scary things underneath. The 40% [47%] that smells bullshit on the wind might be mollified if a series of legitimate well run audits turned up a squeaky clean result. Hell, audit the states that went for Trump too; like Florida or Texas. That seems wise to me.

I think I’ve been fucked by a cheat. I’m open to being proven wrong. In fact I’d love it!

Then, even if Biden fucks up, at least some of the blame lies with the voters who put him on the seat. (Consider Venezuela; they voted for a commie and a few years later were starving so bad they ate zoo animals. Since they voted themselves into that mess, I don’t lose sleep over it.)

I might regain faith in the system. Wouldn’t that be awesome?!?

Not long ago, on the radio, I heard the AZ audit was kicking off. This might be a ray of hope! [This was written in 2021 remember?] If Biden’s a usurper (as I suspect) we might as well know. If he won fair and square, I’d love to know that too. Audits that uncover the actual truth could do wonders. If the audit is messy lawfare that’s obfuscated it won’t help. If it’s ignored and not acted upon, it won’t help. This is a tough one. There’s a narrow window of opportunity, a lot of chances to turn it into yet another mess, and Biden is great at doing the wrong thing at the worst time.

(Actually, there’s an interesting thought about truth. Suppose the AZ audit comes back with clear, understandable, publicly presented evidence that space ninjas cheated for Biden with eleventy zillion votes? It would have to be so clear that Kool-Aid drinkers working for NPR could understand it. Undeniable truth about a cheat might benefit Biden. All he needs is the brains to use it. Evidence of a cheat doesn’t necessarily implicate Biden in the deed. What the nation wants is clarity not a referee that never misses the call. Biden could leverage it like a judo master. “In light of this shocking evidence it’s clear that we need cleaner elections. I won’t tolerate cheating! I’m supporting the prosecution of everyone involved until even their pets are in jail. I’m doing that because I believe in the American way. I will do everything in my power to make sure the next election is flawless. However, I’m not going to step down. Anyone who’s watched baseball knows sometimes the ref makes a bad call, but the game must go on. The Nation has had too much trauma and a change in leadership is bad for the country. We will have a perfectly clean election in 2024 and that will help the country. Plus, Trump is Orange and he freaks me out. However, I have expressed a sincere apology to Mr. Trump. I’m giving him a gold star he can hang on his refrigerator and asking him to be Ambassador to North Korea. I’m going to earn everyone’s vote from now on.” Give that speech and then lead well. I could live with that. I doubt Biden is adult enough but a true statesman could manage it. Maybe Trump would roll with it; being proven right might be all the guy needs. Sadly, it hinges on Biden being a wise statesman so the nation is probably fucked.)

Here’s where the rubber hits the road; as I see it there are only three ways out of our current quagmire that aren’t total shit:

1. A cheat tends to be forgiven if the subsequent leadership is strong and especially if it benefits the nation. William the Conqueror did this.
2. A follow up election could “clear the slate”. Nixon did this. [Note: this doesn’t have to mean Trump winning a third (!) election. I’d be convinced by Biden winning a solid, clear, cheat free, and unquestionable second term. I doubt Captain Potato is up to it but if he is, that “solves” things.
3. Careful analysis could show the election process was squeaky clean. That looks like a distant and unlikely hope. I mention it an hope it happens.

Each of these options would work; lead well, undo the cheat, or prove Biden really won. Three paths out of the quicksand.

It’s not too late. It’s only a few months into the Bidenverse. He doesn’t have to suck. We could recover. 2021 doesn’t have to be a decrepit idiot turning our nation into a circular firing squad. There’s always hope.

A.C.

[Editorial note: Since it’s now 2022, I have the advantage of hindsight. Did any of my 2021 imagined “paths to a good solution” happen? Absolutely not! Things got worse. Much worse. So much worse that the press gave up and admitted it’s worse. It’s so bad that Biden’s generating his own gravity and altering space/time. It’s a black hole of failure.

First the matter of election transparency; I Googled to see what percentage of American think Biden’s win in the 2020 election was a cheat and more importantly where that number is going. I wish I hadn’t! I expected the issue had faded with time. It didn’t. Just after the election 47% of Americans thought Biden’s win was a cheat. That’s huge but I assumed the suspicion would fade. It didn’t. Throughout 2021, support for the “cheat theory” grew. It has never stopped growing. In June 51% thought the election was a cheat. In October 56% thought the election was a cheat. In December 59% of Americans thought the election was a cheat.

By Christmas damn near 60% of Americans thought a cheating usurper was in the White House. That’s not some weirdo blogger’s theory, it’s the best polling results I could find.

Regardless of my personal opinion, the people think they got screwed. It’s not going away. The “Biden’s a usurper” opinion gains support by about 1%-2% every month. That’s bad juju for a “consent of the governed” system!

My alternative hope was that Biden would become a strong and popular leader. So great that nobody cared how he got into office. Holy shit! Of all the things that didn’t happen, Biden ruling well didn’t happen the most! He wasn’t a powerhouse last spring but Biden’s popularity went into solid (terminal?) decline around June. His poll ratings have been dropping every month. Right now he’s polling at 41.6% approval (with 53.2% disapproval!) Biden is less popular than genital warts, people who pee on your shoes, and telemarkteters.

There was a chance that America would say “who cares how we got him, he’s doing a great job”. Biden blew it big time. Bummer! He’ll never get a better chance than the ones he’s already set on fire.]