New Year’s resolution: Accept election results gracefully, even as you prepare for the fight ahead
One of my goals as I anticipate the New Year is to embrace the concepts of grace and gratitude more consistently. And with the results of the last election, trying to achieve this goal has become more difficult – but perhaps more important than ever.
The election smoke has cleared. There is a definitive result. With the exception of some random conspiracy theorists on the left—pulling the same kind of ballot tampering nonsense that election deniers did four years ago—America has accepted the results and moved on or is preparing for the tectonic shifts in governance that will accompany the incoming administration.
Of course, we know that if the outcome had gone differently, we would have participated in another round of “Stop the Theft.” But the fire hose of bogus complaints overflowed on Election Day—Pennsylvania experienced it “Big FRAUD,” roared Donald Trump on Truth Social—stopped abruptly around 10 p.m. ET, when it became clear Trump would win. The scenario was predetermined: “We lost, we were cheated. We won, it was fair.” But since we actually had a free and fair election, and will soon have what we expect to be a peaceful transfer of power—no insurrection—perhaps most Any observer can admit that one of the nation’s founding tenets remains well beyond the 2024 race: Representative democracy in America is built on an electoral system that still works and works very well. Good.
Who cares whether Trump wins by 1 million or 2 million, or whether he wins the popular vote by 1.2% or 1.1%? He won clear and convincing. The time has passed to engage in absurd debates about the semantics of what defines a “task.” It’s time for the experts to stop blabbing, for the pollsters to stop trying to justify their faulty forecasts and outdated models. The reality is clear: Republicans will hold the presidency, the Senate and the House. The right also holds a solid majority on the Supreme Court. So call it whatever you want, but whether you like it or not, the Republicans still have the power to govern.
At the beginning of 2016, the presidential race had about a dozen Republican candidates. Miss Carly Fiorina? Rick Santorum? Jim Gilmore? Me too. But if you’re a political operative who wants to get the scoop on a candidate in hopes of working for the most likely next president, Trump is your 12th interview. So he gets the worst of it, and he goes into the Oval Office with a bunch of broken toys.
Not this time. Trump will begin his second term with an experienced, well-trained support team, including his chief of staff. Susie Wiles, Who can rank close James Baker is one of the most respected former campaign operatives appointed as White House chief of staff.
Broken toys are headed to Goodwill. One of the main agitators who helped run the campaign, Corey Lewandowski, It’s cold outside now. After the election, having lost some serious weight during the 2024 campaign, he reportedly offered a conciliatory handshake to his co-campaign manager. Chris LaCivita, who, follow politicspoked a finger into his chest and said, “Fuck, fuck, and fuck. You’ve been having sex with the wrong person. I will destroy you.” This feels like a cinematic face-off between an underboss and a consigliere — a fight that at one point involved LaCivita posting a photo of Tony Soprano giving the middle finger.
