What Now, Democrats? Part 2

     When a supposedly astute political commentator suggests that the Democrats should strip Joe Biden of the nomination and give it to Gretchen Whitmer or Gina Raimondo, you know that political Armageddon has arrived.

I wish Biden would reflect on this debate performance and then announce his decision to withdraw from the race, throwing the choice of Democratic nominee to the convention. Someone like @gretchenwhitmer or @SherrodBrown or @SecRaimondo could still jump in and beat Trump.

— Nicholas Kristof (@NickKristof) June 28, 2024

     The Democrats are in desperate straits. Their ship is sinking, and there’s nobody plausible who could bail them out.

     That has implications that – so far, at least – no one has dared to address. When a cabal of power-mongers see their power slipping away, they become desperate. They reach for any possibility that might save them. But electoral defeat is staring them in the face. They can’t prevail with Biden, and they know it. There’s no way to fabricate enough fraudulent votes for a Biden victory. Worse (for them), there’s no Democrat with a national following who’d stand a chance against Trump. Therefore, they cannot allow a November election in which the GOP candidate is an un-wounded Donald Trump.

     Their alternatives are these:

1. To defame Trump so grievously that he’s made to look worse than Biden;
2. To have Trump assassinated;
3. To prevent the election from being held at all.

     I can’t think of any other possibilities. All are ugly; #2 and #3 are outrightly criminal. But those are the Dems’ remaining plays. They must either choose one or face a humiliating defeat.

     This is an ominous thing to write, but I must: I believe we face the prospect of deliberately sown civil chaos so great that a military takeover is the likeliest outcome. The Democrats’ strategists must know that there’s no dirt remaining with which they could delegitimize Donald Trump sufficiently to defeat him. That puts a target on his back. But a successful or partially successful attempt on Trump’s person would trigger popular outrage, and a popular uprising, unprecedented in American history.

     I don’t think I’m overstating the case. The Democrats attempted some vile things to snatch the 2000 presidential election from George W. Bush. They used defamation against Dubya in 2004 (remember the TexANG “memo?”), albeit unsuccessfully. Their 2008 candidate rose to national office by shamelessly defaming Jack Ryan, his opponent in the 2004 Senatorial race that gave him prominence. He protected his prospects by sealing virtually every record of his earlier life and career. Their 2016 candidate attempted unprecedented defamation tactics against her opponent – alleging that he was in the pay of Russia – while simultaneously deleting evidence of her own crimes. They hid their 2020 candidate in the basement, suppressed any negative reportage about him, and stole the presidential election outright.

     Is it credible that there’s a depth to which they would never sink?

     It’s not looking good, Gentle Reader. And my hand hurts once again.

     Buy ammo.