Reply #15: Well, the other part is, of course, he would've immediately been beset... [View All]

[belle]

by not only the Repub-controlled Congress but by the entire frenzied attack machine. I mean, I always knew that they were going to make what they did to Clinton look like a walk in the park. I figured that at least Kerry had the advantage of being (I thought) more of a fighter than Clinton; and also was way less likely to give them easy ammo by oh say sleeping with an intern. But I also knew that it was going to be complete gridlock at best. Which I would've been mostly okay with; gridlock is at least better than actively fucking even more shit up. On the other hand, if and when something really hit the fan during his tenure--the economy tanking, another god forbid terrorist attack, or now something like this bird flu--he would've been savaged for it. No, it's not logical, but hello, we haven't been dealing with logic for quite some time now.

And that's without even taking Iraq into account. Let's face it: if he did not get us out of there one way or the other, and he gave no guarantees that he would do so, the left as well as everyone else would be all over his ass by the latter two years of his term.

I still hoped with all my heart that he would win; I knew all this shit was going to happen regardless, and I figured he might at least do some good work to keep the worst from happening, economy and environment-wise, not to mention civil rights-wise (hello, Supreme Court?? sigh). And I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt per Iraq; I knew that he was at least more likely to get us out than Dubya, which isn't saying much. And that he at *least* would not be trying to open up a war on another front. And that he would buy the rest of us time to regroup and rebuild a progerssive wing. But he would've been a lame duck at best; even in my fondest hopes I did not imagine otherwise.

Well, as the man himself said, or something like it, it is a good thing to be able to adapt to new circumstances and change your mind. I threw a lot of energy and cash into trying to get him elected. I will not be doing do if he decides to run again. And I will be pondering the implications of a Bush win with as much objectivity as I can muster. That is, I am rethinking my strong opposition to the idea that "it has to get worse in order to/before it gets better," if only because there's no doubt that it'll get worse, and I have to believe it'll get better *someday*...