As a self proclaimed “radical leftist socialist,” the current state of affairs in my home country is enough to make me want to fling myself into the seventh circle of hell expeditiously.

On the one hand, you have a diapered, orange, wannabe Nazi who regularly and unabashedly shits his pants, is a convicted felon 34 times over, has made a career out of failing up, and has somehow convinced millions of people that continue to fund his failures that he is an every man, while adorning his home with gold plated toilets. He is responsible for giving us a super majority conservative Supreme Court who is systematically dismantling democracy in real time with absolutely no repercussions or concern for judicial ethics.

On the other hand, you have a gently alive octogenarian who is not only not a good president but who also is not a good man and has spent his literal life inflicting harm on the most vulnerable Americans via the Halls of Congress. His presidency, as predicted, has been a disaster, and he slides deeper into senility every single day. In his rare moments of lucidity, however, he proudly proclaims that he is a Zionist and continues to funnel billions of American taxpayer dollars to Israel to fund their ethnic cleansing of Palestinians.

Is this really the best we’ve got? There are no other options for leader of the free world than a 78-year-old blowhard predator pants-shitter and an 81-year-old bumbling buffoon? I have lived through a Cinnamon Hitler presidency, I know what the stakes are. I have also lived through a Biden presidency, and I am here to tell you that it has not really been much better.

See the thing is, when both candidates are really, really bad, it is hard to just continue to scare people into voting for the one that you perceive to be slightly less bad. It is not the fault of the people, democrats, republicans, and independents alike, that they do not want to vote for Joe Biden. It is not the fault of the people that the DNC insists on doing absolutely fucking nothing to actually help their party and the American populace. It is not the fault of the people that Biden cannot coherently string together words. It is not the fault of the people that not being Donald Trump is not enough to win elections anymore.

If Joe Biden loses the election to Trump in November, which it looks like he very well may do, the blame lies squarely on the shoulders of the DNC and the democrats that refused to demand he step aside and allow a proper, capable candidate to take his place. The bar has been set very, very low. So low, in fact, that it now resides in hell. The left leaning troops would rally around pretty much anyone we are sure has a pulse at this point.

This compulsion and unwavering dedication to their blinders are going to be our downfall. For far too long, the establishment democrats have allowed the republicans to run roughshod over this country. They have sat back and allowed them to bastardize the constitution and the rule of law while wringing their hands and sitting on their asses. They continually bring knives to gun fights and their insistence on “working across party lines” when the Republicans never have any such intent is why we are where we are. Silence is violence. Silence is complicity. They and their ineffective, feckless ways are just as responsible for this absolute clown show as the republicans are. And I am goddamn sick of progressives being blamed for not wanting to vote for a walking corpse with one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel who loves genocide and respectability politics more than democracy.

Biden should never have been the nominee in the first place and, if you recall, he stated he that he intended to be a “bridge president” that would usher in the next generation of democratic leaders to step up after “saving us” from another four-years of Trump. Kind a like how he promised he would forgive student loans and codify Roe v Wade. He also explicitly stated that he definitely would not run if were in poor health come 2024. Hmmmmm… it’s almost like… all politicians are fucking liars or something?!?!?!?!?! Yes. Even the democrats. But barring putting someone else up initially, the process of implementing his replacement should have started the second the first debate was over. It is irresponsible to allow him to continue to run. Not just irresponsible, but bordering on elder abuse if we’re being honest. I’m getting flashbacks of seeing Diane Feinstein’s petrified, barely alive body being wheeled around the Halls of Congress by Nancy Pelosi’s daughter. WHY WON’T THESE FUCKERS JUST RETIRE?!??!?!?!?!?!

It is no secret that our government is in desperate need of reform, and that is putting it so very fucking lightly. Here is how I think that should be done, in order of importance:

1. Get money out of politics. Make it so corporations are no longer considered people when it comes to making campaign donations (yes, that is literally a thing, look up Citizen’s United ).
2. Implement term limits
3. Implement campaign age restrictions (Don’t come at me about ageism. If it’s true that people are not mature enough to vote until they are 18 or cannot be POTUS until they’re 35, then it can also be true that people over the age of 65 should not be in charge of making and interpreting the laws)
4. Implement voting age restrictions (no one should have a say in a future they will not be alive for; also, see #3 re: ageism)
5. And just for funsies, I also think we should stop sending money to destabilize other nations and also we should not send money to an apartheid state that uses our tax dollars to offer their citizens free healthcare and college and all the things we are told we cannot have, all while doing it on stolen land.

And that is just scratching the surface of the fuckery that is the United States government and judicial system.

In all seriousness, I do not understand this feral, visceral need to defend and simp for politicians of any kind. This kneejerk reaction of the Blue Maga crowd to defend Biden as if criticism is a personal attack on their grandpappy truly baffles me. I think we have lost the plot of how this is all supposed to work. Politicians are elected, voted in by the people (except not always! Cuz gerrymandering). Our taxes pay their salaries. They are entrusted with governing this nation and working on behalf of their constituents. They are not Gods and Goddesses to be worshipped, despite what Trump supporters would have you believe, but should be criticized and scrutinized every. step. of. the. way. All of them. Equally.

My feelings about Biden in no way mean that I support Trump, and that argument is fucking tired. If the democrats and the blue wave folks want support for their candidates, they should pick better candidates. Bernie would have beat Trump in 2016, I am certain of it. And while I am no fan of his anymore either, the DNC were responsible for that fuckup, too. In the last two presidential elections, many democrats, liberals, and progressives alike voted against their better judgment and values for subpar candidates. We held our noses and voted for the options we were given because we knew what was at stake.

I bet most of us will do the same come November. We understand the big picture here. Yes, I know what Project 2025 is. Yes, I know that another four-years of Trump may mean he holds that office until he dies, regardless of the limits of the office. Yes, I know that a federal abortion ban is likely. Yes, I know that it would be possible for him to appoint another bought and paid for right-wing SCOTUS Justice. It is because I know these things that I will vote for whoever the fucking candidate is in November. But the Never Trump republicans and independent voters will not.

I want to make it abundantly clear that when I and others who feel like me criticize Biden, it is not in defense of Trump. I actually believe that Trump is one of the most vile humans to have ever walked this earth, and considering how much trash has been and still is out there, that really is saying something. For as long as I live and am of sound mind, I will never understand how this man was able to fleece half the country so thoroughly. Honestly, it would be impressive if it weren’t so goddamn confounding and alarming. Some of the smartest, sharpest people I know have fallen victim to his con and it will never not be baffling.

But two things can be true at the same time: Trump can be a vile, repugnant, abhorrent predator and con man, and Biden can also be unfit for office. Us pointing out that we think that, at the BAREST OF FUCKING minimums, the leader of the free world should not be sliding into dementia is not us betraying the party or America. Like honestly, I think we really have lost perspective on this. Biden is unfit for office. Trump is a disgusting, bigoted wannabe despot. Both things are true simultaneously. Stop pretending like just because Trump is awful all criticism of Biden should cease. After the debate performance and his other recent blunders, coupled with Trump’s “assassination attempt” and classified documents case getting dismissed, Biden will lose in November. The most unifying thing we as a left-leaning people can do now is to band together to demand he be replaced on the ticket. It is literally our only hope, I truly believe that.

At the end of the day, the only thing the Democrats are really good at is losing. They continually expect republicans to play by the same rules they do, despite them constantly proving that they have not even glanced at the rulebook. We all know Trump is bad. To deny that Biden is also really bad is simply disingenuous. Instead of slinging blame at those of us who are honest about what is actually happening, focus that ire on the DNC, whose dedication to losing should be turned into a masterclass. After all, they are the ones in charge. It is time they be held accountable for their ineptitude. Act accordingly.