2024 11 06

Today, we stare into the void. Chicago, Illinois. September, 2024. © Clayton Hauck

Here we go again. Hold on to your butts. Last night was a gut punch for many of us, but here we are. Lots of people will have lots to say, with hindsight on their side, but I think my biggest takeaway is that we don’t have an effective opposition to Trump populism. The Democratic party is run by a largely-senile president who was pushed out of office against his own wishes and was nowhere to be seen throughout the election; along with a former president who is nowhere to be seen until it’s time to campaign for a few weeks leading up to the vote; along with a former Speaker who, while smart, is an 84-year old millionaire none of us can relate to or connect with. This isn’t the kind of leadership that wins elections and unless something changes, it will continue to happen over and over again.

Kamala was not a perfect candidate, but she ran a decent campaign, all things considered. Sure, she could’ve done many things differently, but I don’t think it would’ve changed the outcome one bit. It was an impossible task and now we live in a world where the only two female presidential candidates in our countries’ history have both been defeated by Donald Trump. It stings, bad. It’s a grim reality, but it is our reality and if we want it to change, we’ll need to stay engaged, stay focused, and stick together.

-Clayton

PS - I think Jon sums it up well here, and Jonathan does a pretty entertaining job as well, below that: