Sep 4, 2020
A Moderate Proposal
For preventing fascism in America,
from dividing and defeating the country,
and for cooperation beneficial to the publick.
It’s that time again.
When liberals and leftists begin to fling poop at each other. Well, more poop. Bigger poops.
When liberals declare that anyone not voting for Biden is a fascist.
When leftists write liberals off as incapable of achieving real change.
And we don’t have time for it anymore.
This isn’t a surprise. Much like 2016, the DNC’s plan to defeat Trump consists mainly of an extremely clear FUCK YOU to progressives. Biden, like Clinton before him, has built a platform and a campaign dominated by conservative ideas. GOPer John Kasich got a primetime convention spot, while the most exciting politician in the country, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, got a single minute. Biden has repeatedly sneered at Medicare for All (M4A) and the Green New Deal (GND), and dedicated himself to renewing the drug war.
Meanwhile, liberals are preparing their excuses for a Biden loss. It’s those damn Berners! They wouldn’t vote for us even though we listened to approximately none of their proposals. And in response, lefties (almost all of whom were once liberals ourselves) turn off and stop reaching out to radicalize and organize.
And while this is all happening, fascism is exploding in America. And to defeat it we will need to work together.
So I have a proposal. A moderate one, if you will.
Leftists: don’t take it personally when liberals say not voting makes you a fascist. They know on some level that capitalist electoralism is severely limiting, but they’re not ready yet to accept that it is doomed to fail. Without this realization, they fall back on the reactionary assumption that the Democrats are entitled to every leftish vote. To repeat, you were probably a liberal once, too. Don’t make it any harder to radicalize than it already is.
Liberals: when a leftist gives you reasons they won’t vote for Joe “nothing will fundamentally change” Biden, take those reasons and use them to persuade ‘moderate’ voters. Biden’s entire campaign, if not his career, is oriented toward moderates, conservatives, and disaffected Republicans. In that way it makes absolutely no sense to try to sell him to people with left political views. As a typical Democrat, Biden thinks victory will come only from winning as many “republican” votes as he can, so follow his lead and reach out to those people.
When a lefty says Kamala’s brutal prosecutorial record is too much for them, talk to an undecided voter about it. Point out that far from being soft on crime, Kamala and Joe are actually probably tougher on crime than Trump ever will be.
If a leftist objects to Biden’s refusal to endorse the GND or M4A, don’t abuse them in pursuit of their vote. Instead, find a conservative who is worried that Biden is implementing socialism. Nothing could be further from the truth, and these refusals are far more likely to persuade a conservative than they are a leftist.
If a lefty finds the sexual assault allegations against Biden credible, don’t harass them to vote for an abuser. Instead, try talking to moderates who are pretty sure this #metoo thing is just a liberal hoax.
If a lefty refuses to vote for the king of incarceration, don’t declare war on them. Instead, talk to a conservative about the fact that Biden is largely responsible for the crime bill jailing the most prisoners per capita in the world, and that Biden thought Reagan was too soft on crime.
The reasons your lefty friends hate Biden are the same reasons your moderate friends should love him. It’s a perfect fit.
Overall, conservatives are much closer politically to Biden than leftists are. It is far easier to make a lower-information Trump voter reconsider Biden than it is to make a high-information leftist reverse themselves on electoralism altogether. Trump voters and Biden voters are both capitalists.
It’s about priorities. If it’s less important to elect Biden than it is to own the communists, anarchists, and other people who will defend you against fascism with their lives, by all means, keep shitting leftward instead of following Biden’s lead to the middle. Instead of phone banking for Biden, continue spending time ranting about the spectre of Bernie voters throwing the election. Instead of working to convince fence-sitters, declare war on half your friends list and revel in the negative attention.
As a leftist who is extremely pessimistic about the way things are headed, my desperate hope is to preserve any possibility of cooperation between liberals and those further left. In times of violent conflict this coalition is sometimes known as a Popular Front, and other nations have used it to resist fascism. But if we can’t even get through election season without burning bridges, we’ll never stand a chance.
