There is joy in democracy

I think the last time I felt like this I was a young teenager who encountered a girl in the cloakroom. Unforgettable, although I don’t remember her name. The Democratic National Convention just ended was better. I didn’t get a hug this time, but I fell in love with Kamala Harris, Tim Walz, and with my entire party.

There were laughs and smiles, a sense of purpose, and caring. What I have claimed for my party for decades was there and visible. You could feel it. You could almost taste it. It was not like the recent Republican convention, a festival of snarl, grimace, gripe and get even. It reflected Donald Trump and not really the Grand Old Party he has seduced.

Our people put ego aside. Governors who didn’t get selected by Harris as the VP nominee showed us why they were considered. They spoke with grace and strength. Aging football players waltzed across the stage as if they were still 18, and it almost seemed important in its silliness. People I hadn’t heard of, as well as some I had, sang and danced and I applauded, alone and wishing I had some girl to hug.

Over just 40 minutes Kamala Harris accepted the Democratic nomination with a fluent, forceful, tightly argued speech. That contrasted with Trump’s 90-minute blather, generously described as “meandering. “

Trump’s tactics certainly have their defenders among Republicans. But not all.

Here’s one: “He lacks self-control. He lacks discipline,” said Eric Levine, a Republican donor who supported Nikki Haley during the primary but says he will vote for Trump. “There are all these things Donald Trump should be talking about and instead he’s talking about everything else.”

They may do as much as they must to maintain Republican loyalty, but as little as they can to make him a winner. If Donald Trump looks like a loser, I think many Republicans will flee the sinking ship, with a wave and a sigh of relief, saving energy for bringing their political ship afloat again.

More important to me, beyond the extraordinary number of small donations, is that a few Republicans are speaking out with their votes. Swing states, by definition, are close and switch back and forth. I think the Democratic Convention can only mean there is a Democratic jump coming in the polls. Trump seems incapable of shifting with any persuasion. He can shout that he has never been against abortion, as he has, but not many, if even a single fool, will believe him. His running mate can’t make that claim without lightning striking him down.

Donald Trump may not lose a vote among his frightening base. He could trip on his way to the podium, wet himself, poke thumbs into his ears, wave his fingers, and his core audience would cheer.

But I meet Republicans today who will end up voting for Kamala Harris, not as the better of two equals but an attractive, impressive public servant with a party filled with smiles, not grimaces; with love, not hate. And not for candidate Donald Trump, who would rather get even personally than make our democracy better for everyone.

Norman Sherman of Coralville has worked extensively in politics, including as Vice President Hubert Humphrey’s press secretary.