I am a huge fan of MSNBC. In the months following the debacle of November 2016, I could not watch. I amused myself with reruns of Gilmore Girls and Parenthood. I needed time away in Stars Hollow to heal a heart that was devastated by those results. I began to knit as well. I did eventually knit scarves, but my first foray back into a craft I dabbled in years ago when I taught myself the basics, was Pussy Hats. I made a prototype for me to see if I could actually do it. I photographed it and put it on my Facebook wall. There were some who thought that making a Pussy Hat was unbecoming. Really? How could I not do something to lash out, albeit in a quiet way? I offered to make hats for anyone who wanted one. I showed three shades of pink from which to choose. My hats, when done, arrived to their recipient in a small pink gift bag emblazoned with a white cloud containing the Elizabeth Warren quote, “Nevertheless She Persisted.” Slowly, my equilibrium resurfaced and I returned to MSNBC for any hope they could provide.
It is no surprise, then, that I was watching MSNBC yesterday. Kasie DC, in Kasie Hunt’s absence, was hosted by Ayman Mohyeldin. He announced that he would be talking with Bradley Whitford about The West Wing and his new show, Perfect Harmony. Readers of my blog know how I feel about The West Wing and Josh Lyman was such an integral part of the allure. Josh, as you may know, was very savvy in many ways but also had a distinct vulnerability to him. We saw his beginnings with the campaign, his recovery from being shot, his relationships, his humor, his altruism. When any of those characters would say, “I serve at the pleasure of the President of the United States,” it would give me such a “proud-to-be-an-American feeling.”
Yesterday, Ayman Mohyeldin called The West Wing “somewhat aspirational about its politics” and Bradley Whitford said it celebrated public service. In speaking of the present-day White House, he went on to say that it is “hard to imagine it having the same lofty intentions.” He was well-spoken and eloquent when speaking of past presidents. He continued, saying, “A couple of years ago we had a President like that and, even Presidents I disagreed with – George Bush – I firmly believe he was trying to do what he thought was right.” I totally agree with his sentiment.
Perhaps the greatest difficulty I have with the political chaos here today is that it is not political at all, really. It is a difference in morals. I understand that nuance is lost on some but we are well beyond a nuanced difference between the class and elegance of the Obama administration (including the man himself and his wife, children, family) and this group of grifters led by a narcissistic sociopath. I am perpetually perplexed when people I thought were good and decent continue to fall in line behind this abomination. Let’s see: abomination versus Obama nation. Quite a difference. It is just not possible to explain the difference to people who see nothing wrong with what he has done or who will turn a blind eye or a deaf ear to excuse his actions, his hateful rhetoric, his fifth grade vocabulary.
I believe the solemnity of the office should weigh so heavily on the conscience of its occupant to cause an uplifting in demeanor, an aspiration to fill the same shoes worn by others in whom the citizens of the United States have put their faith. This is not a job for the faint of heart or someone who decided on a whim to run and bamboozled some and cheated others to weasel his way here. As I wrote in another blog post, watching The West Wing gives me hope. We have been languishing here, as a country, in a type of limbo caused by a Republican-led senate which acts as if there were no checks and balances and which has become a “legislative graveyard.” The worst part is, I think, the lack of compunction they have in doing whatever they feel like doing in order to support a sociopath and enrich their own coffers.
Watching the journalists on MSNBC fighting the good fight is heartwarming and my Twitter feed provides me with so much hope. We are months away from the next election but we already know this administration has given carte blanche to those who wish to interfere with our election process. I yearn for the normalcy of a President who will handle the country and allow me to sleep at night. I am hoping against hope, (as my late mother would say) that our country’s moral compass is heading us in the right direction.