US Election Week 2020

[grumbler]

Because it was futile.  The thing about coups is that you have to be really damn sure the coup is going to succeed before you join it.  It's one of those things where the boundary between implausible and inevitable is very narrow.  You join the coup because you know that everyone else who's needed for the coup to succeed will join.  It was implausible for three states to find an excuse to negate the results, so we never got close to the precipice.  If election hinged on just one state, with a very narrow vote total and GOP state government, I don't think we would be feeling so relieved now.

I'll drop it.

  You really shoulda known that would happen.

People love to frighten themselves, and the thread proves it, but they hate to be reminded that the reason they were scared was because they were scaring themselves.

The Big Lie part of Trump's strategy, though, will likely cast a big shadow, as Valmy points out.

[Malthus]

I think the thing is that Trump is hardly a Caesar (as an analogy). He's not the 'strongman' who will overthrow the republic. He's not a Marius or Sulla (both of whom were, at least, pretty competent generals). That was never likely to happen.

Trump is more like one of the more obscure early figures in the decline of the Roman republic, who paved the way for guys like Marius, Sulla or Caesar, by weakening the trust people have in the integrity of the institutions of the republic.

The real danger isn't that Trump will pull a coup, the real danger is that some actually competent "strongman" type will take advantage of the weakening of trust in the institutions of the republic and pull a coup some time in the future.

[DGuller]

And just to be clear, by coup I mean any illegitimate scheme to gain power.  That doesn't mean tanks rolling down the streets, and that doesn't mean that the one performing the coup is not already in power.  Some of the history's most consequential coups were not the overthrowing of the ruling government, but rather illegitimately expanding the powers of the ruling government.

[Eddie Teach]

At any rate, if there was a coup it was as successful as a Trump casino.

[DGuller]

At any rate, if there was a coup it was as successful as a Trump casino.

Trump casinos were operating okay for quite a long while, and didn't start going under until Atlantic City in general hit the skids.  Whenever you heard of someone getting stabbed or robbed at an Atlantic City casino, you knew it happened at Trump Taj Mahal.  You can't have that many robberies and stabbings at a casino that's not successful.

[viper37]

There is all but zero doubt that Joe Biden will be sworn in as the new President on inauguration day.

Is there a possibility of faithless electors in some of the contested States?

[viper37]

In Languish terminology, organized Trumpist resistance has effectively been destroyed. Multiple divisions of the Biden Armored Corps and Kamala's Rangers have encircled and bypassed large pockets of the shattered Trumpist armies. We estimate advance Democratic elements to be in Washington by January 20th.

[Valmy]

There is all but zero doubt that Joe Biden will be sworn in as the new President on inauguration day.

Is there a possibility of faithless electors in some of the contested States?

The electors were all handpicked by the Democrats so it's not like they are going to be influenced by anything but their weird whims, like in 2016 when people were voting for Ron Paul and Spotted Eagle, but they won't vote for Donald Trump.

[The Minsky Moment]

I don't draw the conclusion that the system worked from the experience of the last 3 weeks.  The system performed pretty badly.  We watched as the President deluged everyone with outrageous and dangerous anti-democratic propaganda, obstructed the transition process and then openly attempted a coup, albeit pathetically. There was no pushback from his administration - no loud principled resignations.  The Attorney General raised his head to make threats about arrests of non-existent fraudsters. The vast majority of national GOP office holders either maintained silence or lead cheers for the President. In a state Trump lost by 140,000 votes, his nonsense managed to sway 2 canvassers in the state's largest county into blocking certification for several hours and one state canvasser into voting against certification despite having zero legal authority to do so.

All this happened despite the fact that Trump's effort was completely shambolic and strategically inane.  He spent the entire time sulking in the White House and on the gold course, sending out a few desultory, bizarre tweets, hiring and firing a series of increasing inept lawyers, waiting to the last minute to reach out to leaders in the state legislators. One cannot imagine a weaker effort and yet for nearly 3 weeks, he still hypnotized the vast majority of the national party and managed to convince 70% of Republicans that magic pixies stole his votes at the command of satanic democrats.  It's fortunate we don't know what a more organized and determined effort would have accomplished.

[Sheilbh]

Today in Trump legal team news, Jenna Ellis takes to Twitter:

Jenna Ellis
@JennaEllisEsq
10h

Jenna Ellis
@JennaEllisEsq
For people asking, this quotation has been attributed to Roosevelt, but there isn't a specific record of him saying this in a speech. I posted it because the ifea itself is true, whether or not he said it!
2:14 PM · Nov 25, 2020·Twitter for iPhone

[The Larch]

Would Teddy Roosevelt even employ the term liberal that way? 

[grumbler]

I don't think that the experience of the last 3 weeks should lead us to conclude that the system performed "badly" so much as t should lead us to conclude that there is too much partisan control of the election process, especially at the lower levels.  There is no reason why Congress should allow some partisan knucklehead in Michigan to gum up the canvassing process because he doesn't think that Arizona's canvassing was properly conducted when his party lost there.

It is probably true that a more organized efforts on trump's part could have delayed by several days the confirmation of his loss, but that's because Congress doesn't care, not because the system performed "pretty badly."

In fact, none of the scenarios people were gnashing their teeth about occurred, or even came close to occurring.

[Maximus]

I think the tedious procession of farcical lawsuits actually served to drain the energy out of any potential uprising. It was genius, really.

[Eddie Teach]

Would Teddy Roosevelt even employ the term liberal that way? 

I believe he considered himself a progressive. 

[Malthus]

Today in Trump legal team news, Jenna Ellis takes to Twitter:

Jenna Ellis
@JennaEllisEsq
10h

Jenna Ellis
@JennaEllisEsq
For people asking, this quotation has been attributed to Roosevelt, but there isn't a specific record of him saying this in a speech. I posted it because the ifea itself is true, whether or not he said it!
2:14 PM · Nov 25, 2020·Twitter for iPhone

... in short, the attribution is itself a lie.