Some of us remember Democratic PUMA (Party Unity My Ass) from 2008. The result of the GOP primaries on Super Tuesday shows that the PUMA strong is with the GOP. What will Nikki Haley supporters do now—revert to Trump? Stay home? Or (Perish forbid! say they) actually vote for Joe Biden? Anybody who tells you they know the answer is lying, whether to you or to themselves. But we don’t need the whole answer today.
At a July 4th 2008 picnic I met a Black woman who had made the agonizing choice whether to support Hillary to be the first woman president or Obama to be the first black president. As we talked about it I realized that she had had to justify her choice to herself throughout the campaign, and when Hillary had to concede, she was at first in denial, and was then working through the usual stages of grief, in this case for the death of a hope. I told her this, and she agreed with me. It was evident that she would come to support Obama strongly in the campaign and rejoice with the rest of us at his election.
But that was then, and that was our side.