2020 Election: America’s Fate is Not at Stake

The 2020 Presidential election is certainly an important election. The next president will be in charge of navigating the COVID-19 pandemic,  through the economic recovery and the swift distribution of a vaccine. The next president will also be in charge in dealing with pressing foreign affairs with Russia and China, as well as overseeing controversial domestic issues of tax plans, health care, gun control, immigration, climate change, race issues and the ever-growing national debt. Yet, despite the claims from the Biden and Trump campaigns, the fate of America does not lie with the outcome of this election. Whether we will still have a President Trump, or a President Biden on January 20, America will not be irreversibly doomed.

In 2016, an anonymous essay published in The Claremont Review of Books first termed a “Flight 93 Election” (referring to the 9/11 plane which was heroically retaken by the passengers). Written under the pseudonym Publius Decius Mus, after a Roman nobleman who charged into the thick of battle, sacrificing his life for the Roman Republic, they explain the analogy of how it pertains to the 2016 Presidential election. Publius argues, in response to many notable conservatives’ backlash to Donald Trump’s nomination, that Trump was not the nominee Republicans wanted, but the nominee they needed. Stated in a very simple and direct manner, Publius writes that “2016 is a Flight 93 election: charge the cockpit or you die.” Death, in this analogy, is the liberal takeover of America as a result of a Hillary Clinton presidency, and charging the cockpit as “take(ing) your chances” with Donald Trump. Hence, started the belief of “Flight 93-ism,” which has been openly adopted by many on the right and the left in 2020.

Flight 93 elections can exist, but are rare and currently over stated. Flight 93 elections occur when there is a strong likelihood of long-lasting, irreversible damage, or disregard for the Constitution—the foundation of a political dogma separate and in violation of the Constitution. In historical context, there have been two Flight 93 elections in the U.S.—1860 and 1864, the elections of Abraham Lincoln, as the continuation of slavery would have allowed the violation of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all.” Some could argue the elections of Woodrow Wilson and Franklin D. Roosevelt should have been perceived as a Flight 93 election, due to the major shift of power from the legislature to the executive during those presidencies. Of course, Presidents have lasting impacts on the country, as seen with recent examples of the controversial Affordable Care Act under President Obama (Obamacare), and President Bush’s questionable decision to invade Iraq. Despite the debates we can have on whether these were to the benefit or detriment of America, neither resulted in the end of America, or caused irreversible catastrophe to the future of America. However, as many contributed Trump’s 2016 victory to his demonization of Hillary Clinton, and Flight 93 fear of a Hillary presidency, supporters and strategists of both the Biden and Trump campaigns are pushing Flight 93 panic attacks against the other. Trump argues that a Biden presidency would result in a socialist takeover of America with ANTIFA burning the streets of every city, while Democrats push that four more years of Trump will result in the prominence of white supremacy, the death of the planet from climate change, and the end of democracy as we know it. As absurd as these statements are, both candidates have given reason to cause substantial concern for voters. Biden has refused to answer whether he will try to pack the court, while Trump told the white nationalist group, the Proud Boys, to “stand back and stand by.” These examples definitely portray the negative aspects of both candidates, they do not accurately represent the next four years under their presidency.

The Flight 93 fear tactics demonstrated in this election cycle help to rile up the base, as well as turn the independents’ vote, now abandoned by the populist movements of both parties, into a choice of the lesser of two evils. While voters may have justified concern for the next president, whether policy-wise and their integrity, neither candidate exhibits the country-dooming change their opponent pushes. A Biden presidency wouldn’t result in a socialist takeover—besides the obvious fact that Biden is not a socialist himself, there is not enough support for socialist policies in Congress, even if Biden would support them. For Trump, a second-term would likely continue the disgraceful Twitter antics, but wouldn’t cause the prominence of white supremacy—Trump has actually denounced white supremacy multiple times—or any other irreversible, country-dooming change.

None of this is to say people shouldn’t vote—anyone who is eligible and educated on issues should vote. As previously stated, there are many critical policy issues which will be influenced by the next president. My point is that on November 3rd, or whenever the outcome of the election is decided, there is no need to be panicked or scared about the effects of the next president, whether it’s President Trump or President Biden. •