The Sorkinization of American Politics
I was never going to enter politics.
Upon graduating from my liberal arts college in 2007, I was fully intent on molding young minds in the social studies classroom. I was all set to teach wokeness before it was cool by teaching history in a way that both challenged and unnerved the adolescent mind. I took notes not from the required age-appropriate textbook but rather from Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States. Students were going to learn the truth about Columbus and Native American genocide and Seneca Falls and Stonewall. They would challenge the long-standing definition of race. They would come to terms with their own White privilege. They would come to understand the myriad of ways in which "The Man" was keeping them down and what would be done to loosen his metaphorical grip on our communities of color. I was going to do all this because education was my lightsaber which when yielded correctly could create a rebellion that would alter history forever.
By the end of 2014, I would leave the profession entirely.
My youthful exuberance and idealism would eventually be crushed by a system that saw me as a threat rather than an asset. I would challenge long-standing practices that ended up being a disservice to the students. I pushed back on pre-established rubrics and the one-size-fits-all method of teacher evaluation. I created an elective course that dealt with media bias a full 5 years before the 2016 election and that course was promptly taken from me as it was seen to be too controversial in the eyes of my administration. I even had the audacity to offer error correction as a way of enhancing student learning only to be told that I was making other department members "look bad" by being the only teacher to offer this opportunity. When my contract wasn't renewed at my fourth school in seven years, I realized that nobody would want to hire me with that type of resume. Teaching, the only thing I knew how to do, was no longer an option.
So I did what all good unemployed women and men do: watch TV. And it just so happened that during this time I got into Aaron Sorkin's The West Wing, widely regarded as one of, if not the best, political dramas of all time. The series follows the fictional Bartlet Administration as it deals with the inner workings of the President and his closest advisors, chief among them his press secretary, his speechwriters, his chief of staff, as well as a savvy secretary and an up-and-coming intern. Despite there being significant challenges on both the domestic and international levels, the administration was always thoughtful and deliberative in its efforts to make the right decision. There were disagreements to be sure, but those disagreements came from a deep-rooted desire to do the right thing. In many ways, Sorkin was offering the American viewing public what he felt an administration should be doing and the conversations it should be having. With the series being set against the backdrop of the Bush II Administration having aired from 1999 to 2006, it provided the exact kind of hope that Democrats needed to elect someone like Barack Obama just over two years later.
So I did what all good unemployed women and men do: watch TV. And it just so happened that during this time I got into Aaron Sorkin's The West Wing, widely regarded as one of, if not the best, political dramas of all time. The series follows the fictional Bartlet Administration as it deals with the inner workings of the President and his closest advisors, chief among them his press secretary, his speechwriters, his chief of staff, as well as a savvy secretary and an up-and-coming intern. Despite there being significant challenges on both the domestic and international levels, the administration was always thoughtful and deliberative in its efforts to make the right decision. There were disagreements to be sure, but those disagreements came from a deep-rooted desire to do the right thing. In many ways, Sorkin was offering the American viewing public what he felt an administration should be doing and the conversations it should be having. With the series being set against the backdrop of the Bush II Administration having aired from 1999 to 2006, it provided the exact kind of hope that Democrats needed to elect someone like Barack Obama just over two years later.
While I was late to the party in watching The West Wing when it originally aired, I still felt its hope and optimism in 2014. I proudly voted for Barack Obama twice but saw him being stalled out time and time again by Republicans. Losing the House in 2010 led to six years of Republican intransigence, thereby thwarting President Obama's bold, ambitious agenda that seemed so promising in 2009. As I hopped on the campaign trail in the summer of 2016 to maintain Obama's legacy and his accomplishments by electing Hillary Clinton as his successsor, I could not believe the number of voters who were disillusioned by his presidency. Were they not paying attention? Did they not realize President Obama's quick thinking and legislation prevented a second Great Depression? Did they not know how important the Affordable Care Act was to 20 million of their fellow countrymen? Did they not understand who the DREAMers were? Did they not care that Osama Bin Laden no longer walked this Earth?
The sad truth of the matter is that what I was seeing was an information gap among the general population that transcended generations. While the youngest generation was definitely the biggest offender, other generations were guilty, too. This gap in information came from what I would come to see as the Aaron Sorkin view of politics where decisions were either right or wrong with no nuance in between. While that plays well for a 45-minute television drama, in the real world of politics it's never that simple. Within a month of being on the campaign trail, I had already lost count of the number of times I had to explain to voters that "Barack Obama didn't do that because the Republican Congress wouldn't vote on it." Democrats were being scapegoated for Republican inaction. Despite begging and pleading, many voters told me that they didn't see a difference between the two parties. If there was no discernible difference, why should they vote at all?
One of history's great unknowns is whether Donald Trump would have been re-elected in 2020 if COVID hadn't arrived. As much as we like to think not, I honestly think that he might have, even with his atrocious record. Had he not botched the COVID response, had the economy remained strong, had students been in school, had businesses remained open, would the average swing state voter have changed horses midstream and voted for Joe Biden? Or would we have gone down a deep, dark path of authoritarianism that Republicans are being so publicly supportive of leading up to 2024?
We do not live in Aaron Sorkin's idyllic world. In this world, the real world, politicians make hard choices each and every day. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris do this each and every day. They address challenges in a way that is thoughtful and deliberate. They surround themselves with the best and brightest minds. They are, in many ways, the living embodiment of the fictional Bartlet administration. But this is not an NBC political drama that ends after an hour once a week. These decisions are made 24/7. These decisions are played against the backdrop of a fifth-column fourth estate hellbent on making Republican fascism as tolerable as possible before the 2024 election. The Biden-Harris Administration will continue to serve the American people and will do so with a hostile media criticizing them for the next 12 months no matter how successful they might be. That in itself, makes it impossible for any current or future Democratic administration to be seen as being as thoughtful and prudent as the fictitious administration that shone through on The West Wing. Instead, we have to understand that an ideal White House where every correct decision that is made receives universal praise is very different from the one that actually occurs.
That starts by understanding that The West Wing is not real. There is no perfect administration. Mistakes happen. There are unintended consequences. Crises are dropped at your door with no historical precedent to guide you. But rather than simply "sit this one out" as too many voters did in 2016, you should ask yourself a series of questions about Republicans and Democrats. Which party took COVID seriously? Which party delivered an actual infrastructure week? Which party has made record levels of investment toward combatting climate change? Which party has literally stood on the picket line and helped union workers across the country bargain for better wages and benefits? Which party is expanding, rather than limiting, your right to vote? Which party is protecting a woman's bodily autonomy? And which party is working to protect innocent lives in Ukraine, Gaza, and Israel at this very moment?
These, my friends, are the questions to ask. Because they represent the very real politics of the United States right here and right now. This is no Aaron Sorkin drama. This is the United States, one failed election away from falling into authoritarianism. The answers are simple if you're paying attention. If you understand that there is no alternative, no voting third party, no voting for Harambe, no protest vote, no sitting this one out in 2024. If you thought The West Wing was a drama, try a Trump second term. Because that would be an unmitigated disaster for everyone and everything we hold dear. If you want an administration like The West Wing, you should know that isn't and will never be possible. If you want an administration that will continue to fight for the little gal or guy and that will continue to defend our democracy, then you have only one choice in 2024: Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
Because this is real life and not some utopian political drama.
One of history's great unknowns is whether Donald Trump would have been re-elected in 2020 if COVID hadn't arrived. As much as we like to think not, I honestly think that he might have, even with his atrocious record. Had he not botched the COVID response, had the economy remained strong, had students been in school, had businesses remained open, would the average swing state voter have changed horses midstream and voted for Joe Biden? Or would we have gone down a deep, dark path of authoritarianism that Republicans are being so publicly supportive of leading up to 2024?
We do not live in Aaron Sorkin's idyllic world. In this world, the real world, politicians make hard choices each and every day. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris do this each and every day. They address challenges in a way that is thoughtful and deliberate. They surround themselves with the best and brightest minds. They are, in many ways, the living embodiment of the fictional Bartlet administration. But this is not an NBC political drama that ends after an hour once a week. These decisions are made 24/7. These decisions are played against the backdrop of a fifth-column fourth estate hellbent on making Republican fascism as tolerable as possible before the 2024 election. The Biden-Harris Administration will continue to serve the American people and will do so with a hostile media criticizing them for the next 12 months no matter how successful they might be. That in itself, makes it impossible for any current or future Democratic administration to be seen as being as thoughtful and prudent as the fictitious administration that shone through on The West Wing. Instead, we have to understand that an ideal White House where every correct decision that is made receives universal praise is very different from the one that actually occurs.
That starts by understanding that The West Wing is not real. There is no perfect administration. Mistakes happen. There are unintended consequences. Crises are dropped at your door with no historical precedent to guide you. But rather than simply "sit this one out" as too many voters did in 2016, you should ask yourself a series of questions about Republicans and Democrats. Which party took COVID seriously? Which party delivered an actual infrastructure week? Which party has made record levels of investment toward combatting climate change? Which party has literally stood on the picket line and helped union workers across the country bargain for better wages and benefits? Which party is expanding, rather than limiting, your right to vote? Which party is protecting a woman's bodily autonomy? And which party is working to protect innocent lives in Ukraine, Gaza, and Israel at this very moment?
These, my friends, are the questions to ask. Because they represent the very real politics of the United States right here and right now. This is no Aaron Sorkin drama. This is the United States, one failed election away from falling into authoritarianism. The answers are simple if you're paying attention. If you understand that there is no alternative, no voting third party, no voting for Harambe, no protest vote, no sitting this one out in 2024. If you thought The West Wing was a drama, try a Trump second term. Because that would be an unmitigated disaster for everyone and everything we hold dear. If you want an administration like The West Wing, you should know that isn't and will never be possible. If you want an administration that will continue to fight for the little gal or guy and that will continue to defend our democracy, then you have only one choice in 2024: Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
Because this is real life and not some utopian political drama.
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