This was originally posted on blogger.

The Republicans have taken the Senate, likely the house, and the Presidency. The legislative trifecta allows Trump to be unchallenged in the White House. What do we take from this moment?

We cannot run history again. So we will not know the exact combination of factors that led to such a stunning defeat on the Democrats part. That said, we can wager some guesses. Kamala was female, and a black woman. As with all firsts, she needed to be exceptional. Obama met that bar – he defied the odds and won overwhelingly in 2008. Hillary didn’t. Kamala didn’t.

What was it about Kamala that threw people off? She was left in a bad position. She had to defend Biden’s administration but also claim to be a departure from it. Her own policy record is wishy-washy. And her own agenda was amorphous. An uninspring economic agenda, no clear stance on immigration. Unconvincing stance on Israel. What geniuses told her to run this way? If this election was truly a fight against fascism, then why didn’t they try harder?

Let’s not forget the Democrats unrelenting focus on the Donald. This is a through line between Biden and Harris’s campaigns. The focus was always, always on Donald Trump: the way he was a threat to democracy, a threat to women’s rights, a racist. As we see the results of the popular vote, I have to wonder if this rhetoric is self-defeating. Clearly, a good portion of the country has a great deal of respect for Donald Trump. And still the Democrats beat him over the head with labels. The party with the alleged moral high ground used name-calling and exagerration to fight Trump.

This way of talking may alienate even further Trump’s base. Middle-class, working white men are the classic supporters of Donald Trump; the communities described in JD Vance’s A Hillbilly Elegy. Does it work to attack such people? If Joe Biden won on this platform in 2020, I believe it is because of his strong record of a middle of the road politician, and identity as a literal average Joe.

Kamala was unknown by most voters before her own campaign, and so would’ve done better to define herself on positive qualities rather than “prosecuting” her opponent. Perhaps these issues could have been fixed if, like Ezra Klein suggests, we had a full-blown primary runoff for the Democratic candidate – a chance to test their nettle, show the stuff they’re made of.

America has chosen Trump, and this is the time to find out why.