For some time I’ve believed that the presidential election of 2024 will be a defining crisis that pits the most likely Republican candidate, Donald Trump, against whomever the Democrats choose, whether President Joe Biden or someone else. The outcome of that contest will tell us a lot about what kind of country we are.
But the crisis has come two years early. Trump isn’t on the ballot, but virtually every race reflects the Trumpian context in which we live. To vote is to choose, and next Tuesday’s outcome will be a telling index on our nation’s identity. I hope that you will vote Democratic.
The audience for this column is somewhat limited. A significant fraction of Americans have already voted. And a larger proportion, whether they’ve voted or not, have already decided with a certainty beyond the capacity of this column to influence.
