Hope for the Best, Prepare for the Worst

By Bill Lee

Is hoping for the best but preparing for the worst always the best mindset? Doing so lessens shock, so when you go for a medical exam hoping for a clean bill of health but are prepared to hear you have an incurable illness and only six months to live, you’re not completely devastated. But this mindset is deeply pessimistic and can turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy.

In the case of Donald Trump, hoping for the best means praying he’ll be removed from office as soon as possible, and preparing for the worst means realizing he could be president for another six years. But in this case, hoping for the best seems the most realistic path. In America, the mid-term elections in which all seats in the lower House of Representatives chamber and one-third of the upper Senate chamber seats will be up for election are coming up in November. The Democrats’ chances of winning a simple majority in the House of Representatives are very good since they only have to win 24 seats, and with the announced retirements of many incumbent Republicans, including House speaker Paul Ryan, Republicans seem almost to be giving up on retaining their control. The Senate will be a harder challenge for the Democrats since, because of a skewed election map, many more Democrats will be up for reelection than Republicans, putting them at greater risk of defeat. Still the Dems only need to gain two more seats to grab a majority.

If the Democrats control the House, they can initiate impeachment proceedings, and with the help of several discontented Republicans, Trump could be impeached and thus removed from office.

Is that an overly optimistic prediction? Some would say so, particularly if the US economy continues to grow. But Trump’s personal scandals — including the probable arrest of his personal attorney, Michael Cohen — and chaotic administration may drag the Republican party, which Noam Chomsky has called the most dangerous organization in the history of humankind, down.

So continue to hope for the best and prepare for the best of the worst.

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