So, what now?
We won, we won bigger than we had even dreamed we could win. South Carolina, for god’s sake. Kansas! Texas! Mississippi, of all places, if you can believe it.
So, now, after all the feelings of exuberance, after all the congratulatory conversations and texts and emails and phone calls, after all the joy and relief, what happens now?
In a sense, it’s a bit of uncharted territory because many of us are not much used to joy and relief following elections. Too many times during our lifetime, we have been left despondent at worst, disappointed at best. Of the 15 presidential elections since 1968, nine times the conservative won. But this time, maybe the first time since the initial Obama election two decades ago, there is real hope. And there is also, inevitably, disagreement.
What should we do? How do we use the mandate?
Focus on cutting prices, some say, because inflation is why we won. Concentrate on those “kitchen table” issues. Work with the other side to get things done, others advise, because Americans want action. Bring down the cost of gas and maybe push to end the war against Iran. So don’t pursue vengeance, we are cautioned. Don’t focus on retribution. Just end the polarization and we will win over those in the middle, for good. Don’t move too hard and too fast.
But how about, instead of vengeance, in place of retribution, we get just plain old accountability? How about instead of reaching across the aisle, we use the power we have been given to reach back to a period when the rule of law was the rule?
What has happened in this country in the last two years is not just a difference of politics, varying viewpoints on the tax code that can be reconciled in committee meetings. It has been criminal behavior—from shooting at unarmed boats in the Caribbean to killing schoolchildren in Iran; from raiding a Congress member’s house to deporting legal residents to countries they’ve never seen; from unleashing repeated investigations of perceived enemies to unleashing a secret police force on our city streets; from withholding appropriated funds because they would go to places you don’t like to disregarding established science you don’t like. And so much more.
They didn’t just shatter norms, the other side. They broke the law, they defied the law, they egregiously ignored the law, again and again. If we don’t hold them accountable, they would do it again. No, they will do it again.
Let the subpoenas begin.