Men are pack animals.
Of course, not all of us are affected by it, but male culture is governed by hierarchies, with the alpha at the top. It can be toxic and difficult, ill-considered or tribal, but it is also deeply rooted in our society and resistant for modification.
The pack mentality is especially prevalent in politics, where even men who are principled tend to drift toward the centers.
Donald Trump rose to power and continues to be a threat to this nation by pretending to being an alpha male, and exploiting the pack behavior and power of politicians, especially the Republican men with most power.
The immediate aftermath to the insurrection was a perfect example of pack behavior. Republicans briefly blamed Trump, believing that he was injured and weakened by the incident. They quickly and obsequiously fell back in line after Trump appeared to have survived the episode, tails tucked.
Both the men at the Capitol and those on the streets exhibit pack behavior.
A few months ago, I heard a group discussing politics in a Brooklyn gym. Two of the three were white and one was black.
Two white men boasted about Trump and how much he was a great person. Even though there were some drawbacks, the two white men were overcome by one positive attribute. The Black man interjected with comments about Trump’s racism, but the two white men dodged and dismissed it. They wanted to be focused on Trump’s strength and power.
This is why I believe, deeply and religiously, that women will save this country.
My belief was strengthened by Cassidy Hutchinson’s testimony on Tuesday. She did what so many men around President Trump have refused to do: she spoke out in support of the truth, and for the country.
This is not to say that there haven’t been men who have acted heroically in the face of recent threats to the country, but the women have truly distinguished themselves, which is even more remarkable in politics, which even now is dominated by men.
There were brave women who made sexual assault allegations against Donald Trump and were vilified and attacked. I don’t want to fail to mention Christine Blasey Ford, who testified to her allegations against Brett Kavanaugh.
Nancy Pelosi was there to hold the line when Republicans controlled the majority. She also accelerated a liberal agenda once Democrats regained control.
She also oversaw two impeachment votes against Trump. The first was on charges of foreign interference in the 2016 election. The second was on allegations of inciting Jan. 6 insurrection.
In fact, Black women voted strongly to remove Trump in 2020. Despite being of different races, more women voted to remove Trump than men. However, the majority of white women still voted in his favor.
This is the point: America will regret not electing Hillary Clinton president in 2016. There was an open Supreme Court seat when people were casting their ballots, and it still didn’t motivate enough Democrats to turn out to the polls or convince enough undecided voters to support her.
Sure, there were overlapping factors operating in that cycle — Russian interference, the media’s lopsided treatment of Clinton and Trump, Anthony Weiner’s laptop and James Comey’s outrageous 11th-hour announcement — but sexism was also one of them.
Now, we have a Supreme Court set to plunge us into a time of regression. We must remember the women, even though we have a Supreme Court that is poised to throw us into a period of regression. On Thursday, Ketanji Brown will be sworn in as the head of the liberal arm of court. Although they may not be able blunt the rulings by the theocratic majority on Thursday, the entire liberal arm of the court will be composed of women. They will also outline the moral argument and create the foundation for future courts that are more inclined to reverse the damage done by this one.
If enough women are enraged by the Dobbs decision and head to the polls to punish Republicans, the change could begin as soon as this fall.
Conventional wisdom states that parties losing power during midterms lose their seats. But, in this cycle many women are mad about losing civil rights and may challenge that wisdom.
Two generic congressional polls conducted within days of the court’s Dobbs decision showed that the Democrats held a significant advantage over the Republicans in two generic polls. Although there are still months before the elections, this finding is intriguing and must be troubling for Republicans.
While Representatives Alexandria OcasioCortez and Cori bush are pushing for an aggressive response, President Biden sticks to his institutionalist instincts.
It is clear that in this moment, women feel more than men have a sense of the danger and the courage to face it.
Source: NY Times
