By Michael J. Herman ©2024 Mi chael J. Herman All Rights Reserved

Ironically, the economic favor Americans enjoyed during Trump’s early term was a direct residual effect of the 2-term Obama administration. Who also inherited a dismal economy from his predecessor George W. Bush.

s arguable that whoever was astonished or even mildly surprised at Trump’s victory is simply too distracted to have smelled the aroma of hostility that for months Trump constantly pumped into their air supply without let-up.

The surprise should not be that Trump won, but that the electorate and the popular vote turned out to be so very discontent? The walloping that was dispensed was wholey unexpected by many.

A prediction can be made that an end to the kind of life that Americans have so graciously enjoyed, including ready access to healthcare, First Amendment Rights, and freedoms too often taken for granted may be on the brink.

The fact is that there were three specific factors that went into this massive Democrat loss.

1)      Joe Biden’s utter refusal to resign from the campaign leaving Harris only roughly 100 days to build a protectable force was an utter disaster and I believe that when History is written it will put a blight on Biden’s biography as among one of the worst blunders in modern political history.

The fact the DNC and others didn’t demand he relinquish the race sooner was a huge miscalculation. It certainly stands as a lesson for future campaigns. (If there will be any?)

2)      The fact the People were denied the opportunity to choose their representative for President forever tarnished the Presidential campaigns and probably set a heinous precedent.

Without bemoaning the choice of Harris, there were others denied their rightful chance to compete. In fact, I liked her as an Attorney General, as a US Senator, and even somewhat as a VP, but surely, the US was denied the Constitutional right to choose.

In closing I will say that approximately 20-22 months ago I penned an Op-Ed piece for #HuffPost which a few decried as inaccurate, in which I said the following:

The Dems are blowing it BIG TIME! With still a hearty berth until the Presidential Election of 2024, the Dems should be actively launching and implementing a national get out the vote registration campaign.

If the Dems can start registering lots and lots of Democrat voters and build a bigger tent and fill it with excited and active participants, they will stand a much better chance in 2024.

However, I perceive an apathy and malaise that has permeated the Democrats while GOP engagement seems high and continuing to build momentum.

Even if only a percentage of new Dems end up voting in ’24, the advantage of building  momentum now cannot be underestimated.

My concern remains that the lessons taught by the Hillary Clinton Campaign may be lost on current short term memories of self serving politicos in the party.

And,

3) The Harris Campaign’s misreading of tea leaves. Happiness and joy can only go so far. When darkness and fear are the tools of the opposition, more than Pollyanna and suggestions of joy were required. The Harris campaign was negligent in actively and in real time retooling messaging and connecting with the perceived pain drawn by the Trump Machinery.

One can only hope that if getting out the vote isn’t a strategy the Dems want to pursue that there is something else up their sleeves. For you can be sure there’s something up Trump’s and the GOP’s.

Hindsight is 20-20, or in this case, 2024. Predicting the future should be left to those with crystal balls, but remember that history constantly repeats itself and we can only hope now is a turning point toward something good and better.

Michael J. Herman is Editor-In-Chief of Luxury-Media Group and Columnist at thecriticAtLarge.com.