Random post-election thoughts: … Still a little numb after Tuesday’s drubbing. And still can’t believe I got my Kamala-victory prediction so wrong. I really do live in a blue-state bubble. … Yesterday’s local blue-state-bubble of all bubbles: GBH’s Boston Public Radio show with Jim Braude and Margery Eagan. In one segment (and not the Doris Kearns Goodwin segment) there was little or no conceding that the Trumpsters might have some valid points. No conceding that bubble inhabitants might be wrong here and there. It was mostly about Trumpster racisim/misogyny/fascism etc. etc. … Then again, it’s hard not to find fault with those who think Trump  and Tony Hinchcliffe’s racist/misogynist/authoritarian appeals and jokes are actually funny. … So many contradictions and nuances to sort out! … Gov. Maura Healey has at least one foot outside the bubble: “Economic Concerns Drove Shift to Trump, Healey says.” … My thoughts exactly, via Shirley Leung:  “I thought women would save us from another Trump presidency. I was wrong.” …  

Newfound respect: Bernie Sanders

As I’ve previously noted (see posts below), Bernie Sanders is more of a classical progressive who believes class matters in politics, unlike the more modern identity-politics/woke progressives whose ideological theory that race/gender/sexual orientation ultimately glom together into an single, unstoppable and righteous voting bloc just got blown out of the water Tuesday. … What percentage of Latinos voted for Trump on Tuesday? Oh, that’s right. 45 percent. … They can’t all be upset with ‘Latinx,’ can they? …  Back to Bernie: Still don’t agree with many of socialist Bernie’s solutions to Dems’ working-class-voter woes. But he’s on the right track in identifying the working-class-voter problem. …

Do I dare?

Hmm. Should I or shouldn’t I? Re: re-subscribe to Andrew Sullivan’s newsletter. He did call Tuesday’s general results in a Sunday London Times column. It’s a devastating piece on ultimately Biden’s (not Harris’s) political miscalculations. …

No surprise: Fox News was insufferable yesterday

The folks at Fox News yesterday were actually complaining that Harris took too long to concede the election. You see, it wasn’t good form. It lacked class, blah, blah, blah. All this from shameless network backers of a certain presidential candidate who spent the past four years refusing to concede the 2020 election. …

I’m blaming Ann Selzer

After writing the post below on the Ann Selzer/Iowa poll, I wondered: Was she, consciously or unconsciously, trying to gin up last-minute momentum and enthusiasm for Harris with the surprise last-minute poll results? Hidden biases work in wonderous ways, after all. … Hey, I gotta find someone to blame for my lousy Harris-wins prediction.

Switching to state political news

Massachusetts Republicans made a handful of gains yesterday? Really? Massachusetts Republicans? It’ not exactly a political tsunami, but it’s probably enough to justify a small GOP victory lap. … Question 2 passed – and you have to wonder why referendum opponents didn’t start airing ads earlier. The pro-Question 2 commercials were quite powerful and needed a response, pronto. But there was no major anti-Question 2 response for weeks on end. … What will the legislature do with the Q2 results? Perhaps require MCAS graduation tests to proceed as usual, but not use the results to ban anyone from graduating? If legally possible, it might be a clever way of abiding by Tuesday’s referendum results while still using MCAS graduation tests as ways to measure school and individual performances. … Re MCAS tests in general: I could be wrong, but I sense a backlash about the sheer number of different student tests, not with the principle behind student tests. … With the rejection of Question 5 and with Trump promising to cut taxes for restaurant workers, it might be a good time to nab a restaurant gig. Hell, I wouldn’t mind doing a no-taxes bartending shift now and then. I enjoyed bartending way back when at my old Kenmore Square and Central Square haunts. They were true dives to remember!