It's not the time to say goodbye to Bernie or Hillary. They are still here. They both do what they can to counter the damage that is beginning to mount as the harm of the Trump incursion is measured. He has not reached anything close to W figures but he is closing in on Obama and could soon pass him. I measure harm in total effects that actually hurt people, like ICE attacks on innocents and what the Gorsuch posture is already producing in the Judicial Branch.

Bernie has grown since the campaign and his step is youthful. Hillary has slowed down.

At a certain age, it is no longer your time. There are some Bob Dylan's among us as there were Marianne Moores but the presidency should begin and end toward the middle if life. It's a tough job.

Deval Patrick never fails to surprise

Ever heard of Deval? I bet Mitt Romney has. Deval was the 71st governor of Massachusetts, a total surprise. I happen to think he could out-Trump Trump. Oh and Mitt, Deval now works for Bain, your old firm. Wouldn't it be ironical if he was the Bain guy who made it to the White House?

This is an old Politico piece but it is today's news, at least on this page.

The story of Bernie and Hillary is that they are a done deal, elder statespersons, wounded warriors, not under consideration. Add to them Joe Biden and virtually any other Democrat who would hit seventy prior to 2020.

Deval was born in 1956. He is more experienced than Obama was by a long shot. He has an equanimity that is a balm to anyone who has nightmares during the Trump era.

Look forward

Looking closely at now or toward the future are our only choices. We can draw from the past and do constantly, but to make anything real there needs to be a present iteration. If Bernie was suddenly revealed to be only 50 and a Democrat to boot, he might be right up there. If Hillary was a single woman named Rodham and was thirty years younger and a fledgling Senator from Illinois, she might win that Oval after all.

But for a fantasy to work, it must happen now not then.

The fantasy for Democrats

Becoming real would do it for the Democrats. That will never happen by clinging to the past or even to present leadership. There is a slim possibility that Democrats will win the House next year and only the most fervent of prayers that it can win the Senate.

The best we can hope for is that some of the GOP will be sufficiently scared by Trump to jump ship and recover a bit of bipartisan capacity.

No, the real fantasy for the Democrats is to find a candidate remotely capable of defeating Trump. The weird thing is that unpopular Donald also seems like unbeatable Donald. Today I add Deval Partick to my list of Democratic hopefuls along with Tulsi Gabbard and Gavin Newsom. I am glad beating Trump is their problem and not mine.
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