Opinion: The Politics We Are Stuck With
By Emil Guillermo
A Black, South Asian Indian woman from Oakland — the first ever to be elected to the United States presidency.
That was the headline of hope.
Kamala Harris represented joy and positivity. Her election would have been a historic win for America and our country’s great diversity.
But on Election Day, the electorate did not turn the page on Donald Trump.
Was it a gut punch or a reality check?
When major networks called Pennsylvania for Donald Trump, it was essentially game over. There was no way that Harris could get to 270 Electoral College votes without Pennsylvania.
Trump, with substantial leads in Michigan, Wisconsin, Nevada and Arizona, seemed likely to get the votes needed to become the 47th president of the United States.
Now we don’t have to worry about the peaceful transfer of power as CFDT34, (Convicted Felon Donald Trump, 34 counts), the twice-impeached former president gets to call the White House home again. It enables him to avoid practically all his legal problems and possible prison time, a prime motivator for his seeking re-election.
That makes invoking his favorite parts of Project 2025 — deportations of undocumented immigrants and the vengeful roundup of his political dissidents, the “enemy from within” — the sour cherries on top of his electoral victory.
And who will stop him? The checks and balances are all gone. The Senate and possibly the House will be in Republican control. The Supreme Court and the Judiciary already are.
Where does that leave good, non-elite regular people who tried to do the right thing this election?
Among them: The women angered over reproduction rights.
Activists who fought against further erosion of civil and voting rights.
The undocumented concerned about impending ICE roundups.
The parents of trans-children, used to polarize voters and will now face real discrimination.
The voters repulsed by the hateful, misogynistic, sexist, racist, bigoted sentiments that came out of the Trump campaign.
They will all either find a way to stay enthused enough to keep fighting for our rights in our democracy or they will drop out and join the ranks of the so-called “low propensity/low information” voter, go back to their lives, and tune out until some politician or issue comes around to turn them back on.
Maybe they go with the flow and learn to hang with Trump. And keep quiet.
You may be one of those who voted, but did it secretly, not publicly. You stayed private maybe because you felt the fear of being trolled. Or you feared the threat of violence.
Trump talked about rifles training on Liz Cheney’s face. That could be yours.
Across the U.S, 36% of voters said they would feel scared if Trump is elected president, according to an early CNN exit poll on Tuesday.
Another 71% said they were concerned about violence as a result of the election.
On Election Day, American voters were afraid.
Now, the presumed president-elect Trump’s brand of bullying politics leads the way.
There is good reason to be afraid in the New America we did not expect.
About the Author
Emil Guillermo is a journalist and commentator. See his micro-talk show on www.patreon.com/emilamok. He performs an excerpt from his Emil Amok Monologues, “Transdad,” Nov.18 at the Marsh, 1062 Valencia St., San Francisco. Tickets here: https://themarsh.org/monday-night-marsh-stream/
