I am reading Jon Meacham's biography of Abraham Lincoln, and I am just at the point of finishing the passages in Chapter 14 that describe the goings-on at the Democratic Presidential Convention that was held in Charleston, South Carolina, in April 1860. Your description of the CPAC circus this past weekend in Washington DC is redolent of…
I am reading Jon Meacham's biography of Abraham Lincoln, and I am just at the point of finishing the passages in Chapter 14 that describe the goings-on at the Democratic Presidential Convention that was held in Charleston, South Carolina, in April 1860. Your description of the CPAC circus this past weekend in Washington DC is redolent of Jon Meacham's depiction of the 1860 Democratic convention , except that MAGAhats were nowhere in sight, but sideburns and hoop skirts were apparently well represented, along with overweening pride, arrogance, and attitude. As to the Democratic Party platform of 1860, it was indistinguishable from the popcorn antics that Trump boosters were braying about during the weekend's proceedings. The same sort of apocalyptic atmosphere prevailed at both events; except that delegations from Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, and Texas withdrew early in disagreement with Northern Democrats, soon to be followed by delegations from Arkansas, Georgia, South Carolina, and Virginia. Not to put a fine point on things, the Southern Democrats also lost the vote on the party platform by a vote of 165 to 138, in a battle that was all about preserving and advancing the cause of slavery. The Democrats' champion, Stephen Douglas, was unable to get the two thirds majority vote needed for him to become the Democratic Party's nominee at the Charleston convention. Without the radical Southerners to oppose them, the Regular Democrats soon reconvened in Baltimore, where Douglas secured his nomination, for what little it was worth. This was a pyrrhic victory, as the Democratic Party was by then irrevocably split, with one dissident faction opting to nominate the then Vice President John C Breckinridge, a Kentuckian, to represent what was left of the Democratic Party. A fourth candidate for president in the person of John Bell of Tennessee represented a group calling itself the Constitutional Union Party, which hope to preserve the Union while trying to downplay the slavery issue. John Bell was a relative moderate who embodied the ethos of the remnant of what used to be the historic Whig Party under the great Henry Clay. Most Whigs opted to affiliate with the up-and-coming Republican Party on its platform of funding internal improvements that promote interstate commerce.
Metaphorically speaking, from an astronomical perspective, what the nation saw was the equivalent of a dying star that was overtaken by its own heat and gravity until it blew itself to smithereens. What was left from the self-immolation of the Democratic Party were shards and pieces of what was once the dominant political party in America, now facing the new, and vital Republican Party, soon to be led by Abraham Lincoln in the race for the White House.
We are seeing echoes of the Democratic Party of 1860's implosion in the CPAC's meeting of today. The pressure and temperature are rising to unsupportable levels, with most Americans looking for peace and harmony. The party of Trump is a minority within the overall politics of America today; but, to carry the metaphor further, like the white dwarf star that survives the star that are formerly was, it is white-hot and infinitely dangerous, and to push the matter for further, it is spinning madly about, spewing deadly radiation in every direction. The question is, can the modern Democratic Party, led by Joe Biden, with his Lincolnesque mien and common decency, survive the radioactive fallout this weekend's grotesque reincarnation of the radical Southern Democrats of 1860. As that group of radicals reside within its own echo chamber, so does the Party of Trump. We can only hope and pray that the Democrats do reach out to the broad middle where nobody is looking to dissolve the Union, because today's radicals are no less anxious to destroy the federal Union than their forebears were in 1860 and 1861. Back then, it was all about preserving and celebrating slavery, today the mantra is somewhat more nuanced, but no less dangerous. And the same evil cast of characters has again appeared in our midst to destroy what the new Republican president would describe as, "the last best hope on earth".
I am reading Jon Meacham's biography of Abraham Lincoln, and I am just at the point of finishing the passages in Chapter 14 that describe the goings-on at the Democratic Presidential Convention that was held in Charleston, South Carolina, in April 1860. Your description of the CPAC circus this past weekend in Washington DC is redolent of Jon Meacham's depiction of the 1860 Democratic convention , except that MAGAhats were nowhere in sight, but sideburns and hoop skirts were apparently well represented, along with overweening pride, arrogance, and attitude. As to the Democratic Party platform of 1860, it was indistinguishable from the popcorn antics that Trump boosters were braying about during the weekend's proceedings. The same sort of apocalyptic atmosphere prevailed at both events; except that delegations from Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, and Texas withdrew early in disagreement with Northern Democrats, soon to be followed by delegations from Arkansas, Georgia, South Carolina, and Virginia. Not to put a fine point on things, the Southern Democrats also lost the vote on the party platform by a vote of 165 to 138, in a battle that was all about preserving and advancing the cause of slavery. The Democrats' champion, Stephen Douglas, was unable to get the two thirds majority vote needed for him to become the Democratic Party's nominee at the Charleston convention. Without the radical Southerners to oppose them, the Regular Democrats soon reconvened in Baltimore, where Douglas secured his nomination, for what little it was worth. This was a pyrrhic victory, as the Democratic Party was by then irrevocably split, with one dissident faction opting to nominate the then Vice President John C Breckinridge, a Kentuckian, to represent what was left of the Democratic Party. A fourth candidate for president in the person of John Bell of Tennessee represented a group calling itself the Constitutional Union Party, which hope to preserve the Union while trying to downplay the slavery issue. John Bell was a relative moderate who embodied the ethos of the remnant of what used to be the historic Whig Party under the great Henry Clay. Most Whigs opted to affiliate with the up-and-coming Republican Party on its platform of funding internal improvements that promote interstate commerce.
Metaphorically speaking, from an astronomical perspective, what the nation saw was the equivalent of a dying star that was overtaken by its own heat and gravity until it blew itself to smithereens. What was left from the self-immolation of the Democratic Party were shards and pieces of what was once the dominant political party in America, now facing the new, and vital Republican Party, soon to be led by Abraham Lincoln in the race for the White House.
We are seeing echoes of the Democratic Party of 1860's implosion in the CPAC's meeting of today. The pressure and temperature are rising to unsupportable levels, with most Americans looking for peace and harmony. The party of Trump is a minority within the overall politics of America today; but, to carry the metaphor further, like the white dwarf star that survives the star that are formerly was, it is white-hot and infinitely dangerous, and to push the matter for further, it is spinning madly about, spewing deadly radiation in every direction. The question is, can the modern Democratic Party, led by Joe Biden, with his Lincolnesque mien and common decency, survive the radioactive fallout this weekend's grotesque reincarnation of the radical Southern Democrats of 1860. As that group of radicals reside within its own echo chamber, so does the Party of Trump. We can only hope and pray that the Democrats do reach out to the broad middle where nobody is looking to dissolve the Union, because today's radicals are no less anxious to destroy the federal Union than their forebears were in 1860 and 1861. Back then, it was all about preserving and celebrating slavery, today the mantra is somewhat more nuanced, but no less dangerous. And the same evil cast of characters has again appeared in our midst to destroy what the new Republican president would describe as, "the last best hope on earth".
I, too, am reading Meacham's book, and it is chilling in the parallels. (I posted this a few minutes ago before I read your comment.)
👍 on the metaphor of a dying star