Insanity is Still the Rule of Thumb

From a year ago - so much is still the same and so little has been learned by those squatting in the White House 

Insanity & the Alabama Special Election

I was truly disturbed by many aspects of the whole debacle. I mean, really, did we just have an election where there was an alleged child rapist actually running for Senate? Did we just have the so-called-leader-of-the-United-States tell us that a vote for an accused sexual malcontent was preferable to voting for a Democrat? Are we at that place, politically, where the Right just boldly says we need the vote for our policy because our millionaire donors have threatened to withhold future money if we don't pass a tax reform bill that benefits them specifically and to hell with the American voter's needs?

Yes, yes and yes.

With that said I absolutely had no problem at all with the results of the election. The election should have been a no-brainer on morality alone, but as many witnessed morality is of short supply in America these days. I knew that in this surreal quasi-political environment we exist in that Roy Moore could have possibly won the race in Alabama. The fact he didn't made many things that have felt wrong with the world lately fade away for a few minutes restoring, albeit it briefly, faith in our government, the scale of checks and balances and the human race as a whole.

I thought the Democrats got exactly what they put into it - the win. This was a much needed dry run against this unique & ever-changing political landscape. With the ever-decreasing length of the ol' attention span, seizing the moment as soon as it presents itself is critical to achieving success. The left, and I mean all facets of the left, from DC to Delaware to Detroit to Denver, has been not only discussing what was needed to begin to flip the Hill blue but has actively been engaging in activities that are laying the groundwork, on grassroots level, for potential continued success until the 2020 elections. 

I say potential because this is going to be a race that requires constant focus, energy and unusual approaches that the DNC has not been comfortable in the past but seem to be more open to embracing with this new breed of GOP insanity. With this win in Alabama, the Dems remember the thrill of winning due to a job well done. Add that to the fact resuscitation of the left has been needed for a long time and with the unique challenges from a Trump GOP, we are training for a marathon. We just have to give back to the Right what they put out. 

The GOP got what they put into the election as well. It was a half-arsed attempt to finish yet another unfinished “project” they have laying around that they keep tripping over. Even with their collective minds they still have too many pots boiling on the stove to keep track of them efficiently. They keep running here, there & everywhere trying to finish something, anything and end up looking the fool. The lack of any kind of flexibility in their mindset makes impromptu problem solving a deal breaker. The GOP has a set of policies they feel are imperative to their success and identity and seem unwilling to accommodate new approaches or ideas leaving them in an utter heap of unfinished policy. 

Add to everything the rapid demise of mere warm bodies on the Hill due to scandals and lawmakers who no longer wish to perform beneath a wannabe leader whose numbers are rapidly deteriorating in the polls makes for an unknown factor of a solid headcount by the Right who has blown almost a year in the majority with very little to show for their #1 position. 

The popular vote and polling numbers most incoming administrations have to feed off never gathered enough speed to take them through the special elections. Maintaining their election-year momentum was never an option because they never had any momentum, to begin with and that is exactly what usually carries the incoming party through to mid-terms election successes. The lackluster showing by the GOP opens a huge door for the Democrats to take back Congress but they must never get comfortable, confident or matter of fact. They must continue to fight each battle with entire heart and soul and they may be able to continue this streak of ousting Repubs & taking back the direction of policymaking in America sooner than either party thought was possible at first glance a year ago.