Twenty years ago, when my son was a toddler, I was standing in the elevator with him. Have to say, he was just about the most adorable child you could possibly imagine. At one point, while he was still a baby, he did indeed look exactly like the Gerber baby. Curly blond hair, large blue eyes, etc. I would constantly be told by passersby, “What a cute little boy!”
So he and I were standing there, minding our own business, when the doors opened and a woman got in. I don’t remember much about her; my general impression was that she was attractive and possibly in her forties. Nothing too distinctive about her.
“What a cute little boy!” she said, right on cue. I thanked her. Then she said, “You know, pretty soon there aren’t going to be any children who look like that.” I stared at her; I had no idea what she was talking about. “We’re going to have so many Hispanics here that they’re going to intermarry with us and their genes will take over,” she explained. I continued to stare speechlessly. I guess she thought I was glaring instead of staring, because she immediately began to backtrack. “Oh, of course you may not agree with me,” she said, or some such. I continued to be silent. Mercifully the doors slid open and we escaped.
I hadn’t thought about this little incident for years, but as the election campaign heated up and the alt-righters came out of the woodwork in favor of Donald Trump I was reminded of it. Now I know what was motivating that woman. She may simply have been swallowing ideas whose origins she knew nothing about. But this fear of The Other forms the basis of what is being called white nationalism, or its more extreme cousin white supremacism. Mixed in with the fear of being taken over by Hispanics is that of being taken over by African-Americans. Or Asians. Or Muslims, which are seen as more of an ethnic group than a religious one. (Scene from the aftermath of a Trump rally: A big guy shaking his finger in the face of a young man holding a sign that said something about not persecuting Muslims: “Islam isn’t a religion, it’s an ideology!” Oh, right.) Or . . . Jews. I am absolutely astounded at the open anti-Semitism on the white nationalist/spremacist websites. (Just took a look at Stormfront, now feel like I need a shower.)
So what? you say. Just because Trump has some deplorable supporters (yes, I’m using that word deliberately), that doesn’t mean that he buys into their ideas. Does it? Well, you’d be a lot better off making that case if the man he hired as his campaign manager wasn’t none other than Steve Bannon, the head of Breitbart News, which is a huge purveyor of racist, anti-Semitic propaganda. I cannot for the life of me understand why rational people are sticking their fingers in their ears and humming rather than looking at the truth.
So here we are with the election one week from tomorrow. Hillary has gotten her October surprise. The polls are tightening. I’m starting to get that familiar feeling in the pit of my stomach as I think, “America isn’t really going to put Trump in the White House . . . right?” I still think the bullet is going to pass over our heads, but we may all have new parts in our hair. And a close election is going to fuel the alt-right madness for another election cycle.
So I say what I’ve been saying for months: Hillary Clinton needs to win in a landslide.
Here are a some clear-eyed quotations for you to keep in mind as you make up your mind:
I consider Trump to be a grifter who is working his biggest con. He’s a bigot, a sexist, and a genuine danger to national security. My daughter, a sophomore in college, knows more about public policy than he does. Tom Moran
I am endorsing Hillary. And all her lies and all her empty promises. I am endorsing Hillary. The second worst thing that could happen to this country. But she’s way behind in second place, you know? She’s wrong about absolutely everything – but she’s wrong within normal parameters.” P. J. O’Rourke
If forced into a choice between Clinton and Trump, I will prefer Hillary Clinton. The future of the entire conservative movement is at stake, and a Clinton victory over Trump might be the only hope of saving it. Tom Nichols
Desperate times call for desperate measures and there is no doubt that, thanks to Trump, this is exactly where conservatives are today. John Ziegler
I understand those of you who think that pulling that lever or marking that ballot for Clinton is a vote for a laundry list of evil. I understand. So here’s my reasonable request: Do not vote for Donald Trump. Your vote really may make a difference, a very bad one. Leave that top space blank, or vote for Evan McMullin, or write in the name of your dog, or Abraham Lincoln. Whatever. It doesn’t really matter what you do, as long as you don’t vote for Trump.
Folks, we cannot fight this same battle all over again in 2020.