Hot on the heels of the Ted Cruz drama at the Republican National Convention come revelations that the Democratic National Committee engaged in shenanigans intended to undermine Bernie Sanders’ bid for the Democratic presidential nomination. The DNC machinations, exposed in a massive hack and release by “Guccifer 2.0,” seem to confirm allegations made months ago by the Sanders camp.
Cruz and Sanders share the common ignominy of being the runners-up in this year’s presidential nominations. Both had many unpleasant things to say about their victorious rivals. Both were considered to be the candidates of principle when the nomination processes distilled down to two-person races. Both were supported and admired by voters who prioritized principle. And, both were excoriated by many in their parties when it came time to endorse the parties’ nominees.
Sanders’ loyalists were deeply angered by Sanders’ choosing to endorse Clinton despite many months of denigrations and a pronouncement that Clinton was unfit for the presidency. Cruz’s detractors were deeply angered by Cruz’s refusal to endorse Trump after many months of Trump’s denigrations, a refusal that broke Cruz’s earlier pledge to support the eventual nominee.
At the core of all this is party tribalism. The purists are angry that “their parties” aren’t standing for the principles that the purists themselves demand. The loyalists are angry with those who refuse the Hobson’s choices. Those who refuse to vote for “their party’s” candidate, whether they vote third-party or not at all, are accused of de facto voting for and therefore endorsing the other major party’s candidate. Logic is twisted, principles are derogated, accusations are flying, and name-calling is often the final outcome.
Dig into the past of all the loyalists and party purists, though, and you’ll find a consistent record of disappointment. The Republican rank and file have been complaining about the party’s failure to do what they want ever since the 2010 mid-term victories. They complain about how they were good soldiers and voted for both McCain and Romney despite their misgivings about both, but they castigate their peers who voted with them then but who are now saying “not again.” Many Democrats are upset that the party failed to deliver some of the fruits of the promised land they thought they’d see under Obama. While they broadly excuse Obama himself, they lament the failure to achieve socialized medicine, gun bans, massive taxation of the rich, destruction of Wall Street, and the “dream society” they’ve been looking forward to for half a century or more. Those among the Democratic rank and file who either embrace Sanders’ vision or dislike Clinton’s miasmic history are angry that the party machine stacked the deck in Clinton’s favor with super delegates and the aforementioned DNC shenanigans.
What’s going to happen, though, come election day, in the secret confines of the voting booth? These disappointed people will pull the levers for their party/team/tribe, hoping that THIS time something better will happen. The aphorism:
the definition of insanity is doing something over and over again and expecting a different result
should come to the minds of any who’ve heard it before.
This is a year where both major party candidates are being supported as much because they’re not the other candidate as for anything positive they can be reasonably expected to accomplish. Of course, both have their genuine supporters and true believers, but so did Manson, Koresh, Jones, Hubbard, Moon, and Rajneesh. I don’t expect to change the minds of ardent Clinton and Trump supporters. Everyone else, though, might want to realize that this is a singular opportunity to rebuke two parties that have consistently failed their constituents and have together brought America to its current lousy state. There’s another player on the field. He’s not perfect, but he’d be miles better than President CLUMP would be. Even if you think he can’t win, your vote and the votes of others disgusted by the duopoly and the choice that is CLUMP will send a message and lay the foundation for building a future where the duopoly doesn’t get to coast on tribal loyalties. I’m voting for Gary Johnson because I think my vote will send the right message. Join me – what have you got to lose? Your tribe’s only going to disappoint you again.
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