WHAT IS NOW, IS

When facts are funky but they're facts all the same

I receive a bit of pressure these days, telling me I have to endorse Kamala Harris or that I need to endorse Robert Kennedy.

What I feel we all need to do is become far more honest with ourselves, rely on our own critical thinking, and do what our hearts tell us to do. Politicians always endorsing politicians these days feels a bit like, “Here, let me do your thinking for you” — particularly at time when it’s so obvious that the endorsement craze has become part of the game by which elections are engineered.

Look, I get it. Donald Trump must not become President again. Obviously I get that, or I would never have run in the first place. But that doesn’t mean we should be dishonest about what’s been happening in this country, including all the various ways our democracy is put at risk by forces within both parties.

In 2008 I enthusiastically voted for Barack Obama. In 2012 I voted for him in resignation, disappointed at the corporatist bent to so many of his policies. But in electoral terms my vote counted equally both times. And I feel the same way now. I will vote for the person who has the best chance of defeating Donald Trump, and at this point that appears to be Kamala Harris. But what I will not do is sacrifice my integrity in doing so.

Many - the “DON’T YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT’S AT STAKE HERE!? crowd - are horrified by my refusal to acquiesce to the party line. In fact I think I’m doing more for their candidate by being honest with the half a million people who voted for me, just saying “I know it sucks, guys, but we can’t let Donald Trump be President again.” Those three Supreme Court Justices he was able to appoint have already caused great damage, and in ways that will continue to do harm. Project 2025 is not to be taken lightly. Pretty much everything about him, in my mind, is a threat to our democracy.

So yes, I will use my vote to try to block Trump. Given my beliefs, I feel that’s my duty as a citizen. And if Bobby Kennedy were riding higher in the polls I would be weighing strongly the benefits of giving a third party a go this time. But what is now, is. I have had to face what is, in my own personal reckoning. And we have to face what is, as voters.

This election should not have gone down the way it did. On the Democratic side, it’s been nothing any of us should feel proud of. But will I vote for Kamala if she appears to be the only one who can beat Trump? You bet I will. We have to keep our eye on the ball.