Here is my argument for the third choice outline in the OP:
What it means if you vote for a sexual predator is easy: you support a sexual predator. Period. No ifs, ands, or buts. Don't vote for Joe Biden if you support survivors in any real sort of way. This isn't just watching some movie that a sex pest starred in and maybe some of your money winds up in their pocket instead of the corporation or another actor's or residuals-recipient-- this is
directly rewarding a rapist with even MORE power. That's what, materially, voting is, at least in this country- saying "yes, I want you to have power over me because I trust you to not abuse it and to listen to what I ask of you".
Biden has proven he cannot be trusted with that power. If you can live with yourself rewarding him for that, okay then, but don't guilt trip survivors who refuse to vote for him unless you really do want to out yourself as simply not caring about them.
Outside of those allegations, of course.... Those who think they're truly doing a good thing by pledging fealty to Biden before the primary is even fucking over? Don't be a fool. Vote for anyone but Biden in the primary. Obviously if you'd be okay with Bernie, that means Bernie. But all
you have to do is vote for anyone but Biden to prevent him from reaching the magic delegate number of 1991 that ensures him the nomination. Preferably you WOULD vote for Bernie regardless to help make it a closer competition and make the powers that be reconsider coalescing around Biden and put someone else forward with less skeletons at the convention, but any little bit helps if you're truly unable to hold your nose.
And in the general? Just don't support either rapist. Vote downballot.
But, you say, Biden would be better, so you can go against your morals and support a rapist? No, I disagree, especially now that I know his touchy-feely bullshit wasn't "old man with a weird head on his shoulders" (which I already SHOULD have made the argument for being disqualifying for him months ago, that's my mistake, and I apologize sincerely) but "active sexual predator". The only major difference between a Biden administration and a Trump administration on an actual material level that wouldn't be effected by who's in Congress and in local positions, is that Biden would maybe choose a liberal or centrist (but certainly not a progressive) judge for the Supreme Court. And, frankly, we already LOST the Supreme Court in 2016. A liberal or centrist to replace RBG wouldn't solve the fact that Roe v. Wade is in consideration for being overturned by a case RIGHT NOW, and would likely be unable to sway any on the fence judges.
And, well... That's about it for material differences. We know Biden has said he would veto Medicare for All, which speaks poorly of how he'd handle frankly more radical bills like a Green New Deal or Reparations, so a Congress
not filled with progressive voices to override his veto wouldn't be able to get anything actually good and helpful done under him OR Trump. Biden still supports spreading American-style imperialism, Biden still supports children in cages (and don't pretend he doesn't, he was in the administration that started it that was more to the left than he ever has been; at best they wouldn't be separated from their parents anymore, which is a hollow victory), and any support he holds for the LGBTQ+ and PoC communities is quite clearly lip service given his past stances... Lip service just like Trump. Wouldn't be surprised if he "compromises" with the right as he's so, so very good at doing, and enables some of the shit Trump has been whole-heartedly supporting. Perhaps a return to the "progressive" "Don't Ask, Don't Tell", hm? Most alarmingly, for me, is how Biden's environmental plans are woefully inadequate already and ripe for "compromising" with the right and corporations with vested monetary interests in leading our civilization to catastrophe. Like, we already treat refugees like trash, you think that's going to improve when millions, not just thousands, are asking to get in? Not unless by some miracle Trump or Biden is followed up by someone like AOC as a bare minimum and only gets better presidents from there.
So, I'm sorry, to me, the argument "getting Biden in would be better than Trump" is only true in the most marginal of senses and would maybe allow the privileged to sleep easy thinking they did a good job because they don't have to hear a report about Trump every day, while the disadvantaged still have to worry about getting food on the table, or if this injust system we're in (and that Joe Biden is okay with) will kill or otherwise harm them due to it's inability to prevent rape, harassment, hate crimes, or police brutality. So really, you're just trading a loudly spoken rapist bigot fascism enabler for a softer spoken rapist bigot who's preferred system- the system we had since Reagan at least- which will lead to another fascist in record time due to how the system
doesn't fucking work. Maybe we get to keep a liberal judge on a court that isn't going to listen to them anyway for it. Sounds like a raw deal for giving a rapist power to me, especially when we shouldn't be enabling rapists in the FIRST place.
But! If we vote downballot this November, get Democrats and, more importantly, progressive and leftist Democrats in office? You can make sure any judge either man puts up would be thoroughly vetted- perhaps we can even get a stonewall going akin to how Obama was if Trump picks a truly heinous individual, or to just prevent anyone but a truly progressive judge to balance out what Trump has done. We could get over the veto hump that'd prevent important progress. We could potentially prevent further disastrous wars, such as the hot one with Iran and the cold one with China Trump seems to ideate about, or the Iraq War which Biden helped spearhead. We could get those children not just reunited with their parents, but eliminate the cages AND ICE, and maybe, just maybe, give them an easier pathway to citizenship. We could get PoC and LGBTQ+ individuals into power and advocating for their communities. We could help prevent cockamamie schemes by the right and right-friendly center. We could actually, you know, prevent the ice caps from completely thawing, not have crop-destroying wildfires, cold snaps and droughts, and not have all coastline cities eradicated, leading to the rule of fascism if not the return of feudalism, for centuries.
And importantly- we could enact change on a grassroots-up level without willfully empowering a rapist! It will require work though- you can't just sit at home if you have the ability to do more, for the sake of those who must work or save transportation money when it's time to show up to the polls or lose their future -- or even their lives. You'll have to canvass, you'll have to protest. Even just signing up with a political campaign to phone or text bank, which you can do sitting at home! Can you do that? Do you, in fact, value morality and progress as you claim by inherently posting in political OTs on this site?
Or do you just want an unjust peace, where rapists run the show, because you're okay with that? Or, perhaps, you just pay lip service to the idea of justice, but really don't care on a base level as long as the bad things don't inconvenience you personally?
Support victims. Support progress. Do
not vote Biden, do not advocate for voting Biden in the primary OR The general. But importantly-
Still go vote.
Vote for Biden's VP should you be in a state that allows voting for the ticket separately they not be a rapist themselves if you don't think the association is too damning (which, understandably, may be, and I cannot blame anyone for not doing so). Vote for Democratic Senators and Progressive or Leftist Representatives, on a national and state level. Vote for mayors, for city councilpeople. Vote for progress. Or at least, vote to mitigate the harm either of these monsters will do.
And most importantly, for the sake of victims here, if you can't even do the minimum to support victims with your vote, at least don't crow proudly about how you're voting for Biden and how people are being "irresponsible" or "supporting Trump" by not voting for Biden. You're making victims of sexual abuse actively feel unsafe or unheeded, which we should be actively avoiding as a site founded on such progressive thought.
Here's a helpful link to help you on your way with finding who to vote for downballot:
Ballotpedia: The Encyclopedia of American Politics
ballotpedia.org
435 house seats up in the air once again grabs, 23 Republican seats to claim and 12 Dem seats to hold onto (or primary if the Democrat is acting insufficiently).
And here's a link to state legislative elections:
Ballotpedia: The Encyclopedia of American Politics
ballotpedia.org
Nevada, Alaska, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Michigan, Kentucky, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Delaware, New York, Connecticut, New Hampshire, and Maine are all holding those this year.
Find out who's running in those, who can mitigate harm or push progress, and campaign. Campaign, campaign, campaign. And again- VOTE THIS NOVEMBER.
Just don't vote for a rapist.
Enabling one rapist enables them all.
