By the end of July this year, things were looking very dire indeed for the Democrats. Trump had survived his (first) assassination attempt, and in the process, solidified his status as a right-wing martyr. A few days later, a Florida judge dismissed the justice department's classified documents case against him, in another huge victory for the former president. And only two weeks prior, there was that catastrophic debate, when the then-nominee Joe Biden looked a strong breeze away from meeting his maker.
The atmosphere was apocalyptic, the election result – already nail-bitingly tight – now seemed a foregone conclusion. Despair was verging on delirium, people were in desperate need of light relief. And then, along came a coconut tree.
