It’s common knowledge that in maritime tradition the captain of a sinking ship willingly perishes with the doomed vessel. What America is facing today is a captain okay with sinking a perfectly good ship if he’s not allowed to be captain anymore. That’s unacceptable.
The debate of June 27th was the iceberg and the interview on July 5th shows the initial stage of denial at the seriousness of the event. Just like with RMS Titanic, this is a critical time, where the longer you wait, the less good options you have left to save souls, or in this case, save the republic.
Titanic’s captain had an excellent chance to save all of its souls after the collision if he had done several things: 1) steered towards the ship on the horizon at low speed, 2) counter-flooded the opposite end of the ship to slow the rate of flooding by several hours (Carpathia arrived 90 minutes after it sank), 3) continually broadcast its accurate position and condition.
Similarly, President Biden has an excellent chance to save our democracy’s chances of surviving as we know it in the November election by standing down. Will he?
They say that chance favors the prepared. While the GOP is preparing their Project 2025 in the event they take power, what are the Democrats’ preparations in the event that happens?
It’s not hyperbole to say that there’s no guarantee the 2026 elections or 2028 elections will even take place if a wannabe dictator with the backing of an authoritarian party takes power in November.
Between now and the August convention and the election, which kind of passenger will you be? Will you desperately try to get the captain to make the right choice to stand down? Will you live in denial at the seriousness of the circumstances? Will you resign yourself to the worst possible fate and wait for it to come?
Americans are famous for splitting the ticket, and in the event Trump wins it is very likely the only thing keeping the republic in tact will be an overwhelming Democratic majority in the House and Senate to override vetoes and ensure removal from office in the event of another impeachment.
Even if the ship of American democracy successfully evades the icebergs of the November election, there will still be many more to navigate for years to come before our republic is clear and safe from the dangers of authoritarianism, despotism, thugocracy, and kleptocracy.
Indeed, it will require eternal vigilance from all of us.
Christopher Columbus once said that “the sea brings each man new hope, as sleep brings dreams.” This time, if you want the American Dream to stay afloat, it’s time to wake up.
Perry Waag 