Post-primary musing

In Massachusetts, the race between Bernie and Hillary was tight, but not for Trump who carried the Bay State and dominated in most Super Tuesday races — with rare exceptions. Hillary was ascendant in the South and, with the Super Delegates, is well on her way to clinching the nomination.

There's a strong element of schadenfreude watching the implosion of the Republicans as a party. The idea of the Serious People losing to a buffoon like Trump is hysterical. The Republican Party is reaping the whirlwind they sowed by staking out anti-science, anti-government, and anti-reality positions for years. Like Bobby Jindal presciently warned, they've become the party of stupid. I wonder how Karl Rove feels about the reality they're creating now.

Both Bernie and Trump are tapping a strong element of discontent, in both parties, with politics as usual. The establishment can't believe that so many people are perfectly willing to burn it all down. There have been many articles describing the roots of this discontent and how insulated the establishment leaders have been from the insecurity and dissatisfaction most people in the United States feel with both parties.

One would think the match-up of Hillary versus Trump would be a cakewalk. Hillary is practically a Republican anyway. But I think Hillary has been vilified to such an extent by the Republican establishment that she will not attract much crossover.

On the other hand, while establishment Democrats would probably line up behind whoever the nominee is, the disaffected people will not. I suspect they will probably be a lot more willing to cross party lines: They don't care who burns everything down, as long as someone does. I really worry that being able to tap into the disaffected vote of both parties might be enough to carry Trump to victory.

Bernie is building a lot of enthusiasm among young people, but the young people just don't vote. This has been a truism for generations. Young people could be extremely influential in politics, but they just don't.

The surprise for me has been how shallow the dissatisfaction with the establishment seems to be among black voters in the south. If anyone has been left behind by both parties it's them. I don't know if their disinterest in Bernie is simply because he's a white man or lack of name recognition or what. It's fascinating.

I guess time will tell. In the meantime, I'm going to make some popcorn, crack a beer, and fully enjoy watching the Republican pundits sputter, fume, and run around like their hair is on fire. It's still months until July.