Progressives have been arguing incessantly over which presidential candidate should get our votes: a lesser evil from the two-party duopoly, or a third party candidate who has no chance of winning? I suspect we'll soon be longing for the lesser crazy and the minor fascist, but the point is now moot.
Yes, a lesser evil is still evil, but no, a third party presidential candidate without significant support already in the legislatures is never going to get serious consideration from a significant number of voters.
It doesn't matter now. We don't have to argue about a presidential candidate in 2018. We can be of one mind on what to do. We don't have to consider whether it's best to run as a Democrat or a Green. Every seat in the House and a third of the seats in the Senate will be up for grabs. State houses and governorships across the country will be contested.
A hundred million citizens are going to be horrified in the days ahead, appalled by Republican policy makers and dismayed by Democratic sell-outs and losers. In each state, in each district, we need to be recruiting real progressive candidates for office in 2018, whatever their affiliation.
There will never be a better time. The Republicans will never been more clearly exposed for who they are, and established Democrats for who they aren't.
We can worry about divisive questions of party affiliations later on, when we've got winning candidates preparing to take office and real coalitions to build. And then in 2020, when we've got elected people with proven records of fighting the good fights we can hold our own nomination from among the prominent candidates who have emerged to run for President, be they Democrat or Third.
The time is now. The opportunity has never been more huge for breaking the grip of ambition and corruption. The election is 2018. We need to prepare NOW.