I have come to the opinion that elections are not about the economy, jobs, pandemic, or anything...

... other than the personalities that are running for the office.

Issues are not really that important anymore. The people vote for the person they like that is running for the office.

Otherwise, how would we explain the 74 million votes that Donald Trump got on November 3rd? The economy hit the tank. Millions of people lost their jobs. Most people believe he did an awful job leading us thru a pandemic, which gets worse with each passing day. There was very little that he did right. The only explanation that I can see is that many people identified with him, liked his personality, and voted for him.

Democrats need to understand that elections are not about issues anymore. It is about propaganda and personalities. Voters are gullible. The bigger the lie, the more they are apt to believe it.

The Irony.

Trump and the Russians want Americans to believe that he was cheated out of the election. There was "massive fraud", they say. There simply was no way that Joe Biden got "80 million" votes. So they accuse the Democrats of doing just what they have done in the past and were doing again in this most recent election.

In fact, Joe Biden should have to prove that he got "80 million votes" before he is sworn into office.

The irony of listening to Donald Trump and the Russians complain that the election was "fixed".

The truth of the matter is that the people rescued their democracy, what is left of it, from the grasps of the greedy autocrats that sought to take full advantage of America's democracy.

The people, despite a pandemic and an onslaught of propaganda, went to the polls to throw the rascals out. They showed how a democracy gets rid of dictators and autocrats.

The only sad part is the "74 million" that voted for Donald Trump and the Russians. They will probably never "man up" to their harmful and dangerous mistake?

How difficult would it be to audit "mail-in" ballots?

It seems to me that it would be rather simple to audit every precinct in question, simply by auditing a dozen or a hundred or a random number from that precinct? Each of those voters could be easily located and asked to verify their ballot. It doesn't seem that complicated.

I suppose that is why Republicans do not like "mail-in" ballots? They leave a paper trail that can be easily traced, unlike those questionable machines that are programmed by who knows who?

Personally, I do not care so much that votes are counted the night of the election. Instead, I would prefer that it be accurate.

The Sounds of Silence

Those that complained about the "fake news" were the victims of "fake news".

They began by believing that mainstream media, with all their faults, was the "enemy of the people". After accepting that premise, they were prepared to accept anything told to them by the Trump White House or right-wing media sources. They bought into it, hook, line, and sinker.

In effect, they are the victims of their own propaganda. They were ready to believe the most absurd and ridiculous charges imaginable.

Once they agreed to accept the real "fake news", they were unable to compare and contrast. They were unable to see reality as it truly is.

That is why 70 million or so Trump supporters are having such a difficult time believing that their Savior actually lost the election.

Trump's plan to take over the Republican Party.

There is simply no way he will surrender his base and his hold on the Republican Party. He will use them to feather his own nest and further his own agenda. That's who he is.

He will continue to "Tweet". He will tell his supporters who is acceptable and who is not. Republicans will not be able to win without Trump's stamp of approval.

He will hold rallies for those that oppose those Republicans running for re-election, especially if they have said something good about him. Republicans will be running in fear forever.

It is a creation of their own making. For those that may want to return to Reagan conservatism or a more rational Republicanism, there is no place for them.

They have sold their souls to the devil and there is no compromise position. Either they agree to be a slave to the insane policies of Donald Trump or they resign.

Donald Trump will collect most of the contributions from present Republicans after he is out of office. Republican office-holders will be starved for funds unless they support Donald J Trump.

Republicans have forfeited any independence they may have dreamed about. They can forget about running for the Presidency themselves.

Republicans have had several opportunities to free themselves from the Trump Party but instead, they have chosen instant gratification over the obvious pain to come.

It has been 23 days since the election.

There are 18 more days until the electors declare their votes for the Presidency.

Time is moving quickly.

Trump is like a Pentecostal evangelist preaching to his flock. Either they disavow the numbers, the votes, the reality, and go with him, or they will burn in hell fire.

Surely he hears every little tick-tock, tick-tock that the clock whispers...?

Republican leaders are falling into Trump's trap.

They are foolish.

They believe they can keep him under control when he is not in power and they will be able to use his popularity to take control of both Houses of Congress. They are mistaken. He will divide them the way he divides everyone else in his life. He will split them like a piece of wood on the chopping block.

They will not remain united under a Donald Trump with even less controls than he has presently. He could give a big rat's ass about the Republican Party.

He has his followers. Let them get theirs. Either you will be with Donald or you will be in a minority Party. That will be their only choice. Do they want to be a member of the Trump Party or do they want to pretend to be a member of the Republican Party?

We should not expect any quick resolution of the investigations around Donald Trump.

In my opinion, the DOJ and the FBI will create a net around him, to understand just how deep he goes with Putin and the Russians. He has shown every indication that he is very deep in their grasp.

The new DOJ will not turn a blind eye to what has happened for the last 4 years, or what has happened in the last 4 weeks. They will investigate very carefully before they make their case.

Like a dog that returns to its vomit, Trump will return to his Russian masters. It's just a matter of time.

But Joe Biden has too much on his plate to worry about the traitor that became president. He will be cleaning up his mess for his entire term. It will be left to his DOJ and the FBI to get to the bottom of the Russian involvement in our elections and beyond.

They will not be in a hurry to prosecute but Trump will know that he is surrounded at all times. He will never see another day of peace.

Would a Supreme Court rule that a President can pardon himself?

I could never see that happening, but in today's world, who knows?

In criminal questions, no man can be permitted to be the judge and jury for himself. That would contradict all the foundations of law.

However, that does not mean that Trump would not try to pardon himself. Whatever he thinks he can get away with, he will try. It would be incumbent on someone to take it to the Supreme Court for a decision if that were to happen.

If he does pardon himself, it would only validate his disrespect for the rule of law. It would show the world that he is guilty as sin.