WAS: What Adults are Saying about Democracy and Chaos

Take one: Joe Biden’s 11th hour electoral retreat is a chaotic moment in both Presidential history and Democratic politics. It reveals that those hugging the capital “D” continue to belong to a “non-organized political party” who in stretching a big tent for all would screw up a one-car funeral. Even when their selected candidate is the incumbent who “survived” much of the primary season without opposition, he can’t even grasp the nomination

Take two: Kamala Harris’ seemingly smooth ascension to the top of the Democratic ticket in recent days suggests Democracy within (at least) the Democratic Party, is alive and well. Faced with a perilous situation four months from Election Day, party movers and shakers more quickly than not, responded to a disastrous candidate “debate” by pressuring the Party lead to sail away and inviting the next woman up to carry the day.

Of course your initial view of this is heavily influenced by the fractured, echo chamber media that dismays most of us. But here, in the adult world, where such channels are known largely to be simply noisy distractions run by shills, little indecision exists between these two takes.

Presidential politicking is as old as the day when Washington said he was done. But only recently has it become an unending cycle of polling, speculation, fund raising and third-rate professional wrestling memes.

In fact, the last time the US was in such a place as “chaotic” as now was 1968. As is widely known, LBJ the incumbent, withdrew his candidacy on March 31st that year.

What is largely forgotten, however, is that this was partially motivated by Robert Kennedy only first announcing his candidacy some two weeks previously in mid-March. Such an approach would be unheard of today given the bloated, extended system of anointing a party leader that seldom benefits voters or provides meaningful and practical candidate distinctions.

So Johnson, who had a VERY full plate at the time, surprisingly acquiesced as Kennedy, Eugene McCarthy, Hubert Humphrey and others moved on seeking the nomination. All were ready to unleash the tenets of Democracy toward becoming party nominee.

Five days later Martin Luther King was murdered and Bobby some 60 days on. The Dems moved onto Chicago enraging young party supporters by not selecting the most anti-Vietnam candidate (Eugene McCarthy) and the rest is a history that gave us Richard Nixon to an elected office he had been chasing for more than 20 years.

But outside of the stunning assassinations that still strike sharply to this day, what was so bad then about a a process of candidate selection that really didn’t start until April?

The levers of Democracy continued, albeit amid turmoil. A tight election was contested with no claims and even less evidence of ballot hanky panky. Whether your guy won or not I don’t know. I don’t know who shall win this November. But I do know the late switch to Harris is a hallmark, not a shortcoming, of the messy governance type we call Democracy.