21 Comments

Prof. Richardson does a good job of outlining what I believe is just the beginning of in-fighting in the Republican Party. If Trump and his entourage of miscreants actually follow through on mass deportations, blanket tariffs and government benefit cuts, I think there will be significant economic pain for everyone, including (maybe especially) those who voted for him. From the things I’ve heard Tump and Vance say relating to economic matters, I envision them as being like monkeys on a spaceship - pushing buttons, turning knobs, pulling levers - without a clue in the world as to what the real effects of doing those things will be. When inflation and unemployment start to rise, you haven’t seen anything yet with regard to in-fighting.

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I hope you're right but I'd feel a lot better if we had a better plan to effectively sabotage their project, and not just wait for them to do it themselves.

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Me too. The Republicans are likely to have a trifecta of government (assuming they hold on to the House), so it will be hard to sabotage or stop them. From what I’ve read, lawsuits will slow down some of their plans, but I imagine these will eventually get to the Supreme Court, and I don’t have much faith in the judgements coming out of the Roberts court. For some things, they would need 60 votes in the Senate, which they will not have. So, there is some hope, but not much.

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Not counting on politics now to help us (although I will definitely still work within that system). I'm not averse to political action - it's been part of my belief system for a long time, and not giving up on it. Not ready for guns yet, but am thinking outside the usual electoral system. Of course, I will work for Abigail Spanberger for VA Gov. But I'd like to be ready to stand in the way of the cruelty their planning for undocumented people, trans people, etc.

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My wife has been active with various groups of Democrats in our area, mainly on issues affecting public education. Before she was a school principal, she was an interfaith community organizer for many years in border states (Texas & Arizona), so she has developed the skills and connections to mobilize people in a community around issues affecting immigrants and marginalized groups in general. I’ve seen that these efforts can have an impact. Perhaps connecting with similar groups in your area would be a way to make a difference. Google “Industrial Areas Foundation” to find an affiliate in your area - I see that there is one in Harrisonburg, VA. I would strongly urge that guns and violence is not the way to help.

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Good information. Thanks.

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Professor Richardson's comments about the Taliban are fascinating. Some Afghan men are now wondering whether they should have protected the rights of their wives and daughters, because now the Taliban is placing restrictions on men's liberties. If you allow the rights of others to be curtailed, your liberties may be restricted next (and the Afghan men are used to, and enjoy, being in power).

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And that's what it took to start them "wondering"? contemptible.

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As I read the part of Prof. Richardson’s letter on the Afghan men now regretting the Taliban rule, I could not help but remember the poem at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, which is basically a poetic form of the 1946 confessional prose by German Lutheran Minister Martin Niemöller, who was at first enamored with Hitler and the Nazis, but then became horrified and repelled by them, and was eventually imprisoned by the them. The poem on the Memorial is as follows:

First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—

Because I was not a socialist.

Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—

Because I was not a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—

Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.

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Heather Cox Richardson continues to give us reliable information that we can depend on.

Thank you Heather.

Barbara Thompson of University Park, TX

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Thank you. I appreciate Heather’s remarkable insight.

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Nov 12·edited Nov 12

Don, I think you nailed it! It’s only a matter of time, once the dust settles and the chickens come home to roost. I especially liked your “monkeys on a spacecraft” analogy :) This may take a while, but not four years. Remember what all those Republican leaders were saying about Trump before he was first elected? Even vp elect Vance!! At least some of them will come back to their senses when he tries to go too far. Thank you, Prof. Richardson, for giving us the historical perspective on all of this, which is so important in these times.

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I know, I really do know the people I trust to give me information are hurting. Of course that is only about 6 people that I trust on line and one on MSNBC. HCR, Rachel Maddow, Tim Snider, RRhodes, Olbermann, and Michael Luttig all are very different but a few are people who also pick others up. This is the problem I see. They have been in the trenches AND this is a huge part of their lives and livelihood plus they have lives like we do at home. So I understand that the first day after the election is going to rock everyone’s world but (now I’m gonna get tough here) you all can’t pull even the littlest of punches. We all need to hear it like it is going to be. Otherwise people aren’t going to think about making choices until the problem is right infront of them. A wonderful woman at my husbands work went right up to him and said, if you go to Canada I’m coming with you. She is not a US citizen. She is scared. I’m in PORTLAND, MAINE. Imagine what the other states are thinking. I am almost in Canada already. It’s not like it will look any differently. My point is, when some people on tv and around say we need to mobilize, it should also be said, the shits gonna hit the fan so if you are a target get safe and do it soon. .

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For all the weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth, this was NOT a Trump landslide by any measurement.

Updated estimate: Harris 75.7m votes (48.5%)

Trump 77.9m votes (49.9%)

other 2.6m votes (1.6%)

Total turnout 156.1m votes (vs 158.6m in 2020)

Trump margin +1.4% Tipping-point state: PA (Trump +2.0%)

x.com/NateSilver538

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Brilliant comparison between Republican reaction and infighting, Taliban repression and Russian expectations of a new trump regime.

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Professor Richardson, I am an absolute nobody, working in affordable housing for a number of years and having spent the bulk of my life in public service. I have what I believe may be an excellent idea that I would love to share with you. Given the changing environment in our country, I think this novel idea may prove impactful and helpful to everyone. If you can provide a means, I would love to share it with you. It is intimidating to reach out, but here I am. If you decide against it, thank you for all you do, and I will continue following your essential work. Great job with Jon Stewart - informative and quite disturbing, what you shared, but necessary and accurate. Thank you.

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Truly sick and destructive activity by the Rrumpian Trouablcans’s’ and the Dark Side gaining power over logic, facts, truth and good reasoning… And the appoint of delusional misguided disinformation of distortions of reality to a conceived distorted perceived created reality… So maybe Rudy was rigth… “ That truth is not Truth…” For morons of dissemination and the vacuous who want to believe in it… So there for you don’t NEED truth just retold lies…

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Dear HCR, From your intimate history of American thinking I'd like to understand what brings about the change in electoral control by the two political parties every few decades since Lincoln and the original Republican Party. Is there a pattern? NBH

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In reading about Trump’s selections of cabinet members and other positions he made up, it’s easy to despair. Naming a panel of military leaders to examine current officers and “fire” woke officers, particularly Generals, is beyond belief. Mark Milley is genuinely concerned that he may be called back to Active Duty and Courts Martialed. How a man who ducked military service can be so bold is ridiculous. I know this is not a direct comment on this episode, but I am using it as a lead in to a recommendation for what I listened to as a blog on Clearly Clinical, a continuing education resource for mental health professionals. The program is also available on YouTube. The title is Don’t Lose Hope: Research-Backed Insights for Holding Hope, Bridging Divides, and Moving Forward by Dr. Tania Israel. It’s an hour and five minutes long, but addresses ways to talk with people with differing beliefs and opinions. One continuing theme is that we are more alike than we think-a frequent statement by Harris. I think it’s broader than clinical and similar to a New York Times opinion piece about how to reason with unreasonable people. You can’t just counter with your opinion telling them how wrong they are; it just drives them deeper into their opinion. You listen, try to understand why they believe as they do , and may find common ground in values, or at least address them. May not be your thing, but I enjoyed it and learned from it. I have too often shared my thoughts and probably paid a price in appearing judgmental when that’s the last thing I wanted to do. My worst judgment was when a patient hit one of my hot buttons by saying the Bible was a book written by men for men. I proceeded to launch into my reasons that that was not true and why by several examples. I didn’t see her again for 6 weeks. She said immediately that we had to have an understanding. I told her I knew what I had done and wouldn’t do it again, and we worked productively from then. A hard earned lesson that I forgot in this election season. It cuts off any potential to work comfortably. People who feel judged vote with their feet. Sorry for straying.

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Great info as always! Prof Richardson, while on the subject of the Middle East I wonder if you could write a little bit about the Abraham accords' link to the October 7th attack in Israel. Jared Kushner played a significant role in creating these agreements and as I understand it they were the catalyst for the attack. The normalization of relations between Israel and certain Arab states was perceived by Hamas and other Palestinian factions as sidelining the Palestinian cause and diminishing their leverage in negotiations.

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