Feelin’ Good
We have all spent the day watching the Biden/Harris inauguration and I just listened to John Legend sing it best when he said he was “feelin’ good”. We are all feelin’ good today. We feel good because a terrible episode is over and already starting to fade to black. As bad as the four years have been, the longest four years I can recall, the last three months have seemed even longer and the last two weeks longer still. We have all been holding our collective breaths wondering where things will erupt next. But today I also had a reality check when Kim played a tweet from a loyal Trump supporter. This disembodied female voice was expressing dire distress. She was palpably upset about the transition of power from Trump to Biden. She was sobbing and crying about the loss of her country and there was genuine feeling in her voice, so I do not think she was putting on a show for the recording. I sensed that this was really how she felt. She was suffering extreme loss at the thought that what she considered righteous representation she felt she enjoyed with Trump as President and that she would lose under Biden as President, was somehow lost forever. I cannot say I understand the basis for her feeling, but I respect the strength of it. I also wish she would open her heart and her mind for the possibility that there is more out there for her and those like-minded people in what will come next.
Watching the virtual celebration being aired tonight with all the fantastic superstars singing inspiring songs of hope and inclusivity is so inspiring. We are all breaking into tears (especially Kim) with every song, every scene of a young person participating in the grandeur of the evening, every time a first responder is shown participating in the festivities in honor of the sacrifices they have made for all of us in this year of pandemic. The finishing fireworks alone made the day as special as any I can remember. It shows the world that it is possible to produce a remarkable event AND do it in a responsible and socially distant manner that respects the 400,000+ people who have lost their lives to the COVID scourge we have suffered through for ten months and will continue to do so for another period of time. I am now listening to Joy Reid talk about the rediscovery of faith in our system, explaining how Democrats have consistently showed us how they can overcome the constraints of the pandemic and not lose the value of the gathering, but actually create a new and stronger medium that, by virtue of its mass media effect, may have been better and more inclusive and representative of an inauguration of the people, by the people and for the people.
One of the highlights of the evening’s very reasonable 90-minute show was watching the three prior Presidents who deigned to attend the inaugural (naturally, Trump did not so deign) speak to the importance of the day. Several things became clear in that piece. To begin with, Barack Obama is clearly the spokesman for the group, both by virtue of his youth (he is 59 and both Clinton and Bush are 74), his articulate manner (Clinton has lost as step in his oratory and it was never Bush’s forte), and the passion and resonance of his words in speaking for all Americans. The second thing of note was the speech made by George W. Bush, stating so clearly that he is onboard Team Biden, an amazing endorsement by a member of the Republican Party and an indication that the diversity getting sworn in to the Senate (Ossoff, Warnock, Padilla and others) is symbolic of a new day when our leadership in Washington can truly to said to begin to be a fair reflection of who we are as a country.
All of these things contribute to my fellin’ good tonight. It feels like a massive sigh of relief to know that Donald Trump’s finger is no longer on the button, that even his seemingly most loyal acolytes like Pence, McConnell and McCarthy seem to have turned at least one corner in regaining their senses after all the craziness and denial of justice we have endured for the past four years. I do not necessarily feel that this feelin’ good sensation will lead to an immediate resolution of all the problems we face, but rather that we will be facing the problems righteously, with dignity and with an abundance of humanity. Watching Joe Biden hold his grandchild while watching the show or watching Kamala Harris take the time on the podium to greet and acknowledge a young member of the visiting contingent reminds me that unlike Donald Trump, this team will take far better care of us with humility and compassion. I wish I could impart that feelin’ to the crying Republican that sees today as the end of her world. I believe that if she could shake some of the brainwash off, she might be pleasantly surprised to learn that this administration will likely be far better for her and hers than Trump ever was in reality.
It is so very hard for me to understand how others across the political aisle cannot see the value of the goodness we saw on exhibit all day today. I was encouraged to hear that our neighbor, who Kim bumped into this evening on a walk, and who we suspect has been a loyal Republican voter, was jubilant about the hope and upbeat nature of the inauguration. She commented about how well-spoken Biden seemed. To me, this was as hopeful a moment as I’ve seen today because I think getting past the rancor of the political divide is key to opening ourselves to the possibilities of working together for good common purpose.
I am told that the crazies of QAnon had really believed that Trump had a card up his sleeve and that today would end with him returning as President and Biden incarcerated for cheating his way into a near-inauguration. Now they have seen the light of reality and are dismayed that their fearless leader is anything but fearless. They see that he has “abandoned” them and that his pardons and commutations excluded them. This has caused speculation that they are about to turn on Trump for his betrayal of their cause. This proves to be as thinly considered as their original support of the man and perhaps as thinly considered as their entire platform of conspiracy theories. I suspect that reaction may have contributed to the report that Trump authorized additional Secret Service coverage for many of his family members and staff in a manner that greatly exceeds what has been requested by other departing administrations. I think their concern may be justified. I wouldn’t want QAnon targeting me for betrayal of their cause. As I think about it, maybe its unreasonable to expect that these departing Republicans have any basis for feelin’ good after all.