Gargle and spit
I have to admit that yesterday hit me way harder than I anticipated. maybe even harder than the election itself. Watching that grotesque spectacle was almost too much to bear.
Unfortunately, reading this this morning took me right back there:
He literally became president yesterday, I know that. But according to John Harris, the founder of Politico, he became a great president yesterday.
Yes, he did say that once the Democrats gargle and spit they’ll feel liberated. That is not a joke although I’m sure Harris had a cigarette himself after he wrote that pithy line. Evoking it as non-consent is just … chef’s kiss.
That is because they can no longer place confidence in a strategy that once looked plausible but now has been exposed as illusion. They cannot push Trump to the margins, by treating him as a momentary anomaly or simply denouncing him as lawless and illegitimate.
Just lie back and think of Dear Leader:
That contest may be more effective if opponents embrace the reality that Trump has already demonstrated some familiar signatures of the most consequential presidents. Like influential predecessors, his arguments have shifted the terms of debate in ways that echo within both parties — in this case, on issues such as trade, China, and the role of big corporations.
Like other large presidents, Trump has been a communications innovator and exploited technological shifts more effectively than rivals. In that sense, Trump’s use of social media recalls Franklin D. Roosevelt’s mastery of radio, and John F. Kennedy’s and Ronald Reagan’s mastery of television — even as his banter and insults don’t aspire to anything like traditional presidential eloquence.
One more signature shown by the most consequential presidents: Uncommon psychological toughness. Have you ever known someone who was facing legal hurdles? In many cases, even if people ultimately win the case, they end up being consumed and shrunken by the searing nature of the experience. Imagine running for president amid huge civil suits, criminal prosecutions, and even felony convictions — then emerging from this morass as a larger figure than before. No one needs to admire the achievement to recognize that Trump is possessed by some rare traits of denial, combativeness and resilience.
About that combativeness: Could someone so zealously divisive ever join the roster of presidents who even schoolchildren can typically recite as the nation’s greatest?
You know who else was zealously divisive? I know that you do:
Anyway, Harris says that being divisive is a good thing because it leads to unifying the country. The implication being that once you gargle and spit you’ll be nice and docile and do whatever you’re told like a good submissive.
It reminds me of a famous line from Grover Norquist from 2004:
“Once the minority of House and Senate are comfortable in their minority status, they will have no problem socializing with the Republicans. Any farmer will tell you that certain animals run around and are unpleasant, but when they’ve been fixed, then they are happy and sedate. They are contented and cheerful. They don’t go around peeing on the furniture and such.”
I don’t recommend reading the whole thing. Harris is so aroused by all this that it feels downright intrusive.