The Undecideds

When Joe Biden participated in his town hall earlier this week, the people there who were asking questions were all undecided voters.  I know that compared to most years when there's a presidential election there are far fewer undecideds in 2020 than usual.  And I know, too, that it seems odd that there would be anyone who is undecided after four years of  Trump and a pandemic with over 217,000 Americans dead, a policy to take immigrant children taken from their parents and put them in cages, an impeachment, a lawsuit in the Supreme Court supported by the White House to eliminate pre-existing conditions from healthcare during a pandemic, Trump using tear gas against peaceful American protestors, being the only nation in the world to pull out of the Paris Accord on Climate Change, and a refusal to condemn white supremacist groups, among other things.  (Made all the more notable now that a militia group has been arrested for plotting to kidnap the Michigan governor -- who Trump has been slamming for six months, including just yesterday morning.)  Mind you, I'm not  saying  that everyone should be against Trump for all those things -- people have their own opinions and there are very fine people on both sides....  I'm just saying it's a bit weird, for all that, with less than four weeks to go before Election Day and voting having started already in many states, indeed over 5 million votes already cast, that there are still people undecided.  But okay, go figure.

Now, I don't suspect that many undecided voters read these pages here.  I won't make a cheap joke like how the reason I think that is because reading these pages here does require the ability to read.  After all, the people at the town hall seemed perfectly bright and thoughtful.  I don't know if that's indicative of all undecided voters -- in fairness, I don't know if that's indicative of all voters, period, whatever side of the aisle -- though I do suspect that many, if not most of them tend to pay less attention that others.  Or perhaps they're just too thoughtful, so many thoughts running through their heads, bouncing around off one another that it's become too much to process.  I don't know the reason they're undecided. 

But I do have a suggestion on how to decide.  And I not only offer it here, but will graciously pass it along on social media, as well, and at any street corner where people seem uncertain whether or not to cross and therefore fit the profile.  So, here's the thing --

Joe Biden has never been President.  He's been Vice President, and was a U.S. Senator for decades, and in public service for 47 years.  But never as President, so as much as we think we have a pretty good idea about the kind of job he'd do in the  Oval Office, and however much we know about his plans, we don't actually know how he will do.

Trump has been president, and for almost four years.  So, we do know how and what he'd do as president.  Some people adore that job and some are sickened by it.  But undecided voters just don't know.  Is overseeing a pandemic, taking children from their parents, using tear gas on Americans, giving comfort to white supremacists, getting impeached and ignoring Climate Change good leadership or bad?  They don't know or are just totally conflicted between that job that Trump has done (good or bad) and what Joe Biden might do?

What I would suggest is that, after four years on the job of non-stop, in-your-face, pounding activity and tweeting, Trump has not yet convinced you that his record shows you should vote for him, then right now you don't believe at this moment that he should be rehired for four more years.

The same argument doesn't hold for Joe Biden.  What's uncertain to an undecided voter about Joe Biden is that you "don't know."  But with Trump...you do know.  You have all the information you need.  Four more weeks isn't going to change what you do know.  And what little trickle-through of new information is like a condensation that built-up overnight on the ocean shore.  It's just droplets of moisture -- the entire ocean is still right there in front of you as the waves keep flowing in and pounding the beach.  So -- you know.  You know all you need to know.  You just haven't decided yet if that's good enough to bring him back again.

Except -- you have made a decision.  You've decided that, knowing all you do know after four years of unrelenting information and sensory overload, with only days to go, voting already started, you can't yet vote for Trump.

Joe Biden?  You just don't know.  You don't have enough information.  So, you aren't sure whether you can vote for him or not.

But Trump?  You have all the information.  And you know that all that information hasn't convinced you today to vote for him.  And there's nothing new to come other than condensation that will changed that ocean.

As for the uncertainty of Joe Biden?  Hey, in Trump's very own words, "What have you got to lose?"  The alternative to Joe Biden and his 47 years of public service and eight years as Vice President is a guy who you know has not convinced you to vote for him after four years of evidence and trying.

If you were an absentee boss looking for a general manager to run your store, took a chance on a first-time hire with no experience, gave that person a four-year unbreakable contract to do the job, and after those four years with his contract up in just one month his work results hadn't been enough to convince you to rehire him for another four-year unbreakable contract -- and it turned out that for the past year the store he was in charge of had been flooding non-stop and it still wasn't resolved and few customers could get in to shop -- would you lock yourself in to rehire that person, or go with someone you had run-across over the years who had decades of experience in the field?

As I said, anyone who believes they haven't yet decided who to vote for should realize that, yes, in fact they actually have decided.  They just haven't realized it yet.