Day 232 of self-isolation - The US election

The US election

Today is the day of the US election . Just as our 2019 election was mostly about Brexit, so the 2020 US election is mostly about the pandemic.

If you are a Republican, the 237 thousand American dead are an unfortunate happenstance, the wrecked US economy wasn't their fault, and if you elect Trump, there will be blue birds over, the white cliffs of Dover, just you wait and see.

If you are a Democrat, then the 237 thousand American dead were caused by an inadequate response by the Federal Government, and as ever, the buck stops at the desk of the president. Likewise the unemployment problem.

Trump has made various efforts to draw voter attention away from the number one issue in America, and towards Hunter Biden's laptop, which no-one has been allowed to see, and anyway it isn't Hunter that's running for president. I couldn't imagine a weaker issue to try to pivot to.

There has been a lot of early votes, and indications are for an avalanche of votes for Biden, as well as a major swing in Congress. It seems likely to me that the Demoooocrats will control both houses as well as the presidency, with a good working majority.

The big question is not so much who will win the election. The big question is, will Trump try to engineer a civil war over the result. Or possibly a foreign war? Because between November 3rd and January 20th, Trump will still be president, and on his past record, he could try for maximum damage, on the thinking that if he can't have America, then nobody will.

Shops and restaurants in major cities have put up their plywood board defences, in the expectation of a possible riot on the results. We shouldn't read too much into this, it is just a precaution, but notice that this doesn't happen for British elections.

America has become profoundly divided, and the division isn't even along political or religious lines. The division is, pro-Trump or anti. Do you think he is the Messiah or the anti-Christ?

Because of the way their voting works, we won't know the outcome for at least a few days, and if lawsuits are started all over, that could drag on for months. But by the end of tomorrow (US time, maybe some time Wednesday UK time), we should have a good idea of what happened.

To all my American readers - go and vote. It's your civic duty and privilege.