The Democrats MUST Win in 2024
The choice is between democracy and authoritarianism.
Photo Credit: cnn.com
Issue #422 OpEd, Monday, November 27, 2023
Those of you who follow us here on “We Are Speaking” know that we are unashamedly woke and progressive Democrats and that we are totally “Ridin’ with Biden” in 2024.
We continually discuss why the Democratic party is the only choice to protect our rights and our very democratic republic. Unfortunately, everyone on the right and way too many people on the left are undermining the Biden-Harris 2024 election campaign with damaging, misleading, and often just plain untrue statements.
We already know about the frightening and dangerous implications of a second Trump presidency. He is already warning that his primary goals for a second administration are to send the Justice Department and the military to eliminate any and all protestors, Democrats (who he called “vermin”), competitors to him in future elections (and future elections, period), and immigrants, who he stated were “polluting the blood of our country.” These are ideas and phrases straight out of the playbooks of Hitler and Mussolini. Trump also plans to eviscerate the Federal government, including firing tens of thousands of non-partisan civil service federal workers working in the many federal agencies and replacing them only with people he feels are loyal to him.
The ultra-conservative Heritage Foundation has also released its platform for Republicans starting after the next election, called “Project 2025.” I previously wrote an article about this heinous proposal:
However, it is important to also critically examine the policies and ideas being put forward by conservative think tanks and organizations, such as the Heritage Foundation. One of their notable projects is Project 2025, which aims to provide a roadmap for conservative policy solutions in the United States.
I wrote about Project 2025 in a previous Substack article here.
Why We Need to Re-elect Joe Biden and Kamala Harris
False Narrative: He’s too old. Yes, he is already the oldest president in American history and will be about 86 years old by the end of his second term. But with his age comes decades of experience and expertise, and he has not missed a step (except for tripping over a cable) since taking office. Racist and sexist people also say that should Biden expire before the end of his term (not a given!), Kamala Harris would rise to be the first woman, the first Black woman, and the first South Asian woman to be president. That really irks Nikki Haley, who wants to be the first woman and South Asian woman president. WAY too many Democrats (and the media) are making too much of a big deal about Biden’s age instead of focusing on all of his accomplishments.
False narrative: It’s the economy, stupid. Although some grocery items and especially the cost of housing are still very high, the economy overall is in good shape, much to the chagrin of the Republicans. For the first time in over 40 years, the U.S. economy has surpassed the Chinese economy. One major reason for that is that President Biden has brought a lot of manufacturing that used to be done in China back home to the United States, plus he strengthened the supply chain that was in crisis on the West Coast when he took office. Also, the United States has the best post-COVID economy of all of the G7 countries. And last, but certainly not least, the unemployment rate overall, and especially for Black people, is the lowest it's been in decades. Thanks, Joe!
True Narrative: Biden-Harris will ensure that Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and the ACA are saved. Even though President Biden got a promise from the House Republicans that they would not eliminate Social Security during his “State of the Union” speech last winter, Trump and all of the Republicans have decided that they will, as usual, ignore giving their word and will work to slash or even eliminate all of those programs deeply. Medicare and Social Security are not “entitlement programs,” but are instead insurance programs that workers have paid into during all of their working lives. The Republicans have tried to eliminate the ACA, also known as “Obamacare” since it was first enacted in 2012. They also have no viable replacement for health care for regular Americans, although Congresspeople and other high-level Federal workers have the best healthcare in the world for themselves.
False and True Narratives: Many people, including those on the left, are falsely accusing President Biden of being responsible for the ongoing genocide in the Gaza Strip. Only one organization, Hamas, is directly responsible for the carnage, but Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu is being blamed by many Israelis for the security lapses that helped the October 7 events to happen. Meanwhile, although funding to Israel continues as it has for decades (people need to remember that for better or worse, Israel is the only stable democracy in the Middle East), President Biden has called for care and concern for the Palestinian citizens, increased humanitarian aid, and most importantly, an equal two-state solution, which Netanyahu vehemently opposes. It was Netanyahu who lifted up Hamas and downplayed any other Palestinian governments ever since he's been in charge. In the meantime, although there has not been a total ceasefire (for many reasons), President Biden has used his experience and relationships with Netanyahu and other Middle Eastern countries to institute pauses in the fighting, slow but consistent releases of the hostages, and more humanitarian aid for Palestine. No one else has the ability to do those things effectively.
True National and International Narratives: President Biden has repaired the relationships with European countries and organizations, including NATO, that Trump all but destroyed. Biden has opposed Russia’s Putin, and kept the dictators that Trump loves, like Xi of China, Ung of North Korea, and Orbán of Hungary, from unleashing even more damage onto the world. Here at home, the initiatives that Biden was able to pass include the American Rescue Act, the Inflation Reduction Act, and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. All of these bills are adding jobs, stability, cost savings, and much more to all of the American people, including to the Republicans who voted against the bills but show up to take credit for the results.
There is much more to this premise, and we will continue to speak on these issues here on our Substack, but the most important issue for the 2024 election is that the choice is not so much between Biden and Trump or Biden and any other Republican. The upcoming election is truly between democracy and authoritarian totalitarianism. Period.
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