You could say this was a close election, except that Biden will have won the popular vote by more than 5 million votes, plus victories in states few thought were truly winnable. This election will be remembered as a powerful statement.
You could say that we're dangerously divided, and that's partly true, except that this election was won by a coalition of decent Democrats and McCain/Romney/Bush Republicans who put aside differences on policy for the sake of the country.
You could say that our democracy is fraying, except that civic participation is at an all time high, and a leader who tried to subvert our democratic institutions was just beaten by entirely peaceful, democratic means, thanks to free elections, a free press, and the rule of law.
You could say that our foreign adversaries are delighted to see us go through this, except that Putin and Xi are terrified of the sight of public servants counting ballots cast by free people to expel their leader - and of Biden's foreign policy taking this show on the road.
The biggest danger we must confront is not that Americans are divided in our views or values (not my experience in my district), but that we disagree about basic facts, thanks partly to social media that feeds each of us whatever confirms our biases and stirs up our passions.
And yes, I'm worried about Trump and his family inciting violence. But that's why we have law enforcement (and another reason why all of us, even if we support police reform, must support the institutions of law and order in our country).
Meanwhile, there are plenty of unifying issues on which Biden and Congress can find bipartisan common ground -- a big infrastructure bill, for example, & an internationalist foreign policy.
Build from there. Be firm on basic principles, but pragmatic on policy. We can do this.
Build from there. Be firm on basic principles, but pragmatic on policy. We can do this.
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