What happens after November 3?

 By now everybody has a rough idea that this will not be like any other election. For once, we have to take Donald Trump at his word: he will not accept defeat under any circumstance. And our tradition of an orderly succession of government has always rested on the defeated candidate admitting his defeat so the nation may move on with some degree of confidence. 

We even have a rough picture in our minds as to how events will play out. The true final tally will not be known for weeks after Election Day. And each day the count seems to be going against Trump he will be throwing sand in the wheels of achieving any kind of an accurate count. Worse, we can assume the cooperation of a number of Republican governors in key swing states. They can change the rules by fiat if they choose, and might even order their electors to disregard the popular vote and vote for the incumbent.

Such tactics seem far-fetched to us, who have never seen a deeply dirty election play out. But Constitutional scholars find there are very few grounds on which to base an effective offense against such tactics. Particularly if the contest goes to a Supreme Court that has been rigged in the defense of the incumbent.

So there is much cause for concern. I sympathize with those of us who would rather seek solace in cat videos until all this is past us. But I believe we need to be paying very close attention to every step of the game. Out futures all depend on it.

I recommend very strongly both reading this illuminating text and watching the embedded video.

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/11/what-if-trump-refuses-concede/616424/

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/11/what-if-trump-refuses-concede/616424/



posted by milo

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

That Uplifting Tweet You Just Shared? A Russian Troll Sent It

Image
Here’s what Russia’s 2020 disinformation operations look like, according to two experts on social media and propaganda. By   DARREN LINVILL   &   PATRICK WARREN Internet trolls don’t troll. Not the professionals at least. Professional trolls don’t go on social media to antagonize liberals or belittle conservatives. They are not narrow minded, drunk or angry. They don’t lack basic English language skills. They certainly aren’t  “somebody sitting on their bed that weighs 400 pounds,”  as the president once put it. Your stereotypical trolls do exist on social media, but the amateurs aren’t a threat to Western democracy. Professional trolls, on the other hand, are the tip of the spear in the new digital, ideological battleground. To combat the threat they pose, we must first understand them — and take them seriously. MORE: https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/russia-troll-2020-election-interference-twitter-916482/ Posted by Jamie B.
Read more

The Nightmare Scenario That Keeps Election Lawyers Up At Night -- And Could Hand Trump A Second Term

Image
The Nightmare Scenario That Keeps Election Lawyers Up At Night -- And Could Hand Trump A Second Term   (Photo: Photos: Getty Images) Americans will almost certainly go to bed on Nov. 3 without knowing who won the presidential election. Since millions of people will vote by mail, constraints on time and resources will slow ballot counting into potentially a weeks-long process. Voting patterns suggest it’s likely that President  Donald Trump  could end Election Day in the lead in certain key states, only to be overtaken by Democratic opponent  Joe Biden  when more votes are tallied.  This could create a nightmare scenario during the three months stretching from Election Day to the Jan. 20 inauguration: a battle on the state and congressional level over who is the legitimate winner. This could include Congress reconvening on Jan. 6, presided over by Vice President  Mike Pence , with no consensus over its potential role in choosing the next president. This is arguably the most likely of th
Read more

Philosophical Question #14 – Lifestyle Choices

Image
Here is an interesting question in my list of philosophical questions: 1.) Should governments have penalties for those who live unhealthy lifestyles? A list of unhealthy lifestyles would include things like smoking, drinking, illegal drugs, prostitution, and other “vice” type activities. I guess the “government penalties” would be referring to monetary punishments, withholding medical treatments (insurance companies would love that), possibly imposing/regulating very high (exorbitant) prices on things considered unhealthy in order to cut down on their use, and other possibilities. 2.) Or, would you say that living an unhealthy lifestyle, likely resulting in a LOT of eventual personal pain and suffering, should be punishment enough for unhealthy lifestyles? When people make bad choices in life, often in their youth where ignorance and immediate gratification takes them over,  3.) Should a society be obligated to help "fix" them, by way of tax money?   Is that part of
Read more