More than just Trump: The sobering reality is that a president can indeed lose reelection

[ck4829]

I posted this less than a week before the election:

I've been a member of this forum since 2004, so I'm not exactly a baby chicken around here. But take this into consideration: I have a sister born into a generation where they never once witnessed a president lose the reelection.

I think, that for some people that second election may seem symbolic rather than have real consequences. I think that when (I'm going to go ahead and say when) Trump loses the election, the American people in general, and young people in particular will say: Whoa! We actually have power to influence the political landscape!

And it will be a much-needed thing!

I also think we give the Executive Branch way too much power, far beyond the power granted in the Constitution. The president isn't supposed to be the pope or the CEO of America, not supposed to be some messianic figure, they're not supposed to be our equivalent of a king (*Still eye-rolling at Alan Dershowitz for the 'pearl of wisdom'*), they're supposed to essentially be the head of the Executive Branch and have co-equal power with the Legislative Branch.

I think the Executive Branch as a collective and abstract entity needs a reality check.

And I'm going to keep saying this. I hope Biden wins, promotes an agenda that benefits all Americans and also promotes a liberal, Democratic agenda that he was voted in for and I will not complain if Democrats in the House and the Senate ranging from Pelosi to the Squad hold his feet to the fire on certain things if they need to.

I think what we are seeing going on today is the flip side of what I originally posted: People saw a president get the pink slip and it's like looking at a brand new color or a new dimension of existence.

We have misinformation masquerading as news, we have our perceptions of information and time warped by a great deal of things, we have people who think eras they never lived in were the greatest ever, and more.

I honestly think we need "de-POTUSification"...

I know President Biden will have this agenda in mind in word and deed, but maybe it needs to be something we can ALL get behind and advocate:
* The potus is first and foremost a public servant, not the CEO of the country, not the Pope of America
* There is no "divine right of presidents", and no, the potus is not the heir to God and/or Jesus
* That second election is not a rubberstamp, any potus can indeed lose that election and be evicted from the White House
* On that note, nobody is entitled to becoming the potus. It does not matter what your political connections are, how much money you have, what religion you have, how not-"socialist" you are, the color of your skin, what historical era you can pretend to recreate, etc.
* The potus is ultimately co-equal with the other branches of power, with special powers granted to the potus, like in foreign policy being more for responsibility rather than privilege
* If you're not going to wage "civil war" when the factories shut down and move overseas or when Purdue Pharma floods your town with opioids, then don't plan on waging it when your person loses reelection

Our country as a whole wandered into dangerous territory with this whole giving the potus a cult of personality, now we must strive to undo the damage or else we will have someone try to out-Trump Trump in 2024 and beyond and we will jump right into becoming some totalitarian theocracy or fascist state.

[Frasier Balzov]

1. Trump was hoisted on his own petard of hubris.

That should be an object lesson to anyone else who thinks they can tell the House of Representatives to pound sand.

[Hugin]

2. "... the Executive Branch way too much power, far beyond the power granted in the Constitution."

Not to mention the dictatorial power of the Senate Majority Leader. Who the Hell made Moscow Mitch God and why are there 99 other Senators and the Vice President even needed in the room?