It’s Over. Now Witness the Peaceful Transfer of Power a “Little Short of a Miracle” in a Season of Miracles

by johndavis, December 16, 2020

December 16, 2020 Vol. XIII, No. 12 4:13 pm Grace in defeat is not in the DNA of most partisans It was an especially contentious presidential race. Two parties starkly divided using their corps of politically biased news reporters to advance personal attacks and argue that they were the only true protector of American
[More…]

December 16, 2020 Vol. XIII, No. 12 4:13 pm

Grace in defeat is not in the DNA of most partisans

It was an especially contentious presidential race. Two parties starkly divided using their corps of politically biased news reporters to advance personal attacks and argue that they were the only true protector of American virtues. One party favoring strong, centralized federal rule and higher taxes; the other preferring a decentralized federal government and lower taxes.

Two presidential contenders. The incumbent President of the United States challenged by a seasoned pro who had run for president before and whose resume included serving as Vice President.

A bitter campaign of personal attacks. One declaring that his opponent was “weak, confused.” The other calling his opponent “obstinate, excessively vain, and takes no counsel from anyone.”

It was a rancorous and vengeful campaign during which both sides exploited every advantage possible, including changing election laws “to ensure a desired result.”

Of course, I am talking about the presidential race of 1800 in which incumbent President John Adams was denied a second term by Vice President Thomas Jefferson. A campaign of personal attacks so ruthless that at 4 o’clock in the morning on Jefferson’s inauguration day “the sullen Adams slipped out of the Executive Mansion without fanfare, boarded a public stage and left Washington.”

As David McCullough wrote in his Pulitzer Prize winning biography John Adams, “Adams could have set an example of grace in defeat, while at the same time paying homage to a system whereby power, according to a written constitution, is transferred peacefully. After so vicious a contest for the highest office, with party hatred so near to igniting in violence, a peaceful transfer of power seemed little short of a miracle. If ever a system has proven to work under extremely adverse circumstances, it was at this inauguration of 1801, and it is regrettable that Adams was not present.”

This is what I expect we will see on January 20, 2021, at President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration. President Donald Trump, like President John Adams, so humiliated in defeat that regrettably he will not be capable of celebrating Biden’s victory. Grace in defeat is not in Donald Trump’s DNA.

But grace in defeat is not in the DNA of most partisans. Do you think Democrats in Washington DC have set the example for grace in defeat during the past four years? I didn’t think so. Do you expect Republicans to set the example for grace in defeat during the next four years? I didn’t think so.

Trump would have won but for Sept/Oct Spike in Coronavirus

Now get this: In every presidential race since 1952, Gallup polls have shown that the candidate of the party seen better able to handle the most important problems of the day is the candidate who won. Look at the list and you will see that the rule applies 100% of the time since President Dwight Eisenhower in 1952. Exceptions: In 1980 and 2000, voters were tied on which party was better able.

The most important problem on the mind of voters in 2020 from the start of early voting (as early as September 18 in some states) through Election Day was the coronavirus. President Trump’s job approval on his handling of the coronavirus was a dismal 40%, with 57% disapproval.

But far more important is this: Per Gallup, in the Fall of 2020, “More Americans believe the Democratic Party (47%) than the Republican Party (39%) would do a better job of handling whatever issue they consider to be the most important problem facing the U.S.

What issue did most Americans say was most important 2020 problem? The coronavirus.

Boom. The Trump presidency doomed by his handling of the coronavirus. From my view, Trump should have shown more concern for the sick and more empathy for those grieving the loss of a loved one. And, he should have turned the daily coronavirus briefings over to the medical professionals.

However, despite his personal and presidential failings, President Trump would have most certainly won a second term but for the coronavirus. The economy was poised for growth and unemployment was at a 50-year low, yielding across-the-board wage increases due to a worker shortage.

According to Real Clear Politics, President Trump’s job approval on his handling of the economy during the first quarter of 2020 was 53.4%, with only 41.4% rating him unfavorably. Despite all negatives, Trump’s job approval on his handling of the economy remained at 53% all year. If economic recovery had been the most important problem for voters Trump would have won.

“A little short of a miracle” in a season of miracles

This was a year we will never forget. A year that began contentiously with the all-partisan Impeachment Trial of President Trump. Then, the dreadful coronavirus struck, taking over 300,000 moms and dads and grandparents and healthcare workers and friends and coworkers from us. A virus that has disrupted our personal and professional lives like no other event in our lifetimes.

The virus created an economic crisis, much worse for some. Businesses and organizations of all sizes, from major airlines to family-owned restaurants were forced to accept the bankrupting consequences of pandemic shutdowns. Tens of millions of unemployed renters could not pay rent or utilities and homeowners could not pay mortgages. Many were food insecure for the first time.

This was a year of a cultural crisis. A year in which the killing of a Black man named George Floyd by a rogue cop sparked violent protests. Peaceful Black Lives Matter protests ultimately discredited by arsonists and looters and chants of “defund the police.” Protests so threatening that they turned what was to be a national blue, Democratic wave into a political ripple that left Republicans in charge of most state capitols and Democrats facing political setbacks on Capitol Hill.

This was the year in which we lost the liberal lioness of the US Supreme Court, the “notorious RBG,” Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and saw the confirmation of Justice Amy Coney Barrett, transforming the nation’s high court to a solid 6-3 conservative majority.

Finally, this was a year of a particularly vicious contest for the nation’s highest office, with party hatred seemingly ever near to igniting in violence. A contest that ended on Monday, December 14, 2020, when the Electoral College gave President-elect Joe Biden 306 votes with only 270 needed to win.

Now, with the elections behind us and hope on the horizon for an end to the coronavirus, we end 2020 appropriately in the season of miracles. The month people of many religious traditions throughout the world celebrate the miracles of their faith.

The fact that people from all faiths and ancestral stories and cultural values coexist peacefully in the United States of America despite our rancorous politics is truly a “little short of a miracle,” one that can be traced to a Constitution crafted by founders like Thomas Jefferson and John Adams that gives each citizen the right to consent to how they are governed by way of voting for their leaders.

It will be regrettable if President Donald Trump is not present at President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration if only to honor a constitutional system that has proven to work under the extremely adverse circumstances like the presidential campaigns of 1800 and 2020.

It will be even more regrettable if all of us are not there, at least in spirit, including those walking wounded after President Trump’s defeat. It’s over. It’s time for all of us to stand witness to the peaceful transfer of power, a “little short of a miracle” in a season of miracles.