Where to from here?
Take heart in how good this turmoil could be
Here’s what I’d put in America’s Suggestion Box, which is a dream of mine for something I wish we had:
This is excerpted from something of unknown origin that slipped me into a positive groove:
"Trump's public opinion numbers are terrible. Polls show a significant number of voters don't want to vote for either of these candidates…You take Biden out of this race, suddenly voters don't have much of a rationale to vote Trump and a new candidate wins pretty easily…I believe the party that replaces their candidate will be the party that wins in November."
I can’t get it out of my mind. It would be a gift to us, not a problem for us, if we had another Democrat to vote for.
We could do this as a kind of a new start for a fair America that genuinely serves the people. The DNC gave the nomination to Biden without any competition, but now don’t give it to Kamala, who was chosen by Biden and not by any electorate. Be democratic and let the people choose.
Here’s the suggestion I’d put in that box for step one to get a new candidate:
Invite potential candidates to "A Forum for the Future," rather than to a debate. Each would try, in perhaps 15 minutes, to convince us they were the best.
The candidates would be those who are being bandied about, plus Marianne Williamson, who still is running. Seeing who each of them is, we would choose – the method to be decided upon.
One more thing is about Marianne. There’s an argument she shouldn’t have run, but, since there she is, I’ve said that if we didn’t know any of the candidates and judged from what they offered she would win hands down. She’s not unknown, with six of her books having been NYT bestsellers, and, unlike any of the other candidates, from her life of service hordes of people she has influenced are grateful to her. Getting our highest office without having held any lower one isn’t ideal, but Presidents get advised for doing unfamiliar things and she has the vison, the compassion, the intelligence, and the enlightened insight into human behavior that animates whatever she does that could make her the best president we’ve ever had. I’d love to see her in an equal playing field with the others, where I bet she would knock America’s socks off.
Without MSNBC or CNN, that Marianne has not been on, people can remain little-known. I just got this message from Ruthy Wexler, one of the finalists in my how-to-save-the-world essay contest:
All I do really is think about how we humans can evolve or what we can do to save our democracy…I’m writing YOU because I’m watching Marianne Williamson right now and I am amazed and so impressed by her. Bill Maher has this program called Club Random where he just hangs with another person. MW is SO GOOD, so smart, so brilliant at handling him, so genuine, so visionary, so completely knowledgeable. The contrast with that and Biden’s nonsense—just astonished at how she’s PERFECT FOR WHAT WE NEED NOW. And I know you like her. No one else I know thinks she ought to be running but I am just astonished at her courage and clarity. Sometimes I think Goodness is the most powerful thing of all.
From Ruthy’s lips to you-know-where…
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Suzanne - you first pointed me in a hopeful direction by suggesting that we need an alternative to Biden, and you proposed Tim Shriver. Since then, I’ve been thinking. Then when Robert Reich posted earlier this week, lamenting that actor and major donor George Clooney is now calling for Biden to step down, it hit me — run George Clooney at the top of the ticket!
It makes sense for a number of reasons. Though not a politician, he has far more on the ball than people like Reagan, Schwarzenegger or George W. In fact, people generally distrust professional politicians today (a factor that has probably helped Trump.) Moreover, Clooney is likely free of the compromises, sellouts, and obligations others have to make in order to attain office. Clooney knows how to work with various directors, agents, coaches, specialists and subordinates to get a major project accomplished. He himself has directed several major release film projects. His wife is a human rights lawyer. He’s traveled and worked internationally.
A challenge at this point for any other alternative Democratic candidate is gaining enough recognition and respect in the time remaining. Yet due to his career, Clooney is widely known, and everybody seems to like him – and I suspect he’d draw off a substantial portion of Trump voters (as well as from RFK Jr).
Finally, many people vote on superficial criteria — Clooney simply *looks* like a hero – especially next to the other two cadaverous options.
Thanks for the Comments. I agree. We need a new face in the presidential crowd.