Trump's self-destruction was epic — but this is America, so it might not be enough

In a sane, normal and functional democracy — and even in a mildly dysfunctional one, which is a widespread condition these days — Donald Trump’s appalling performance in Tuesday night’s presidential debate would not just have ensured his electoral defeat but ended his career as a public figure. Accurately reproducing Trump’s belligerent rants about Hannibal Lecter, Venezuela, his “radical left liberal” opponents who seek to perform “transgender surgeries on illegal aliens” and the million-dollar bribe paid to Joe Biden by “the mayor of Moscow’s wife” is like spending too much time reading H.P. Lovecraft’s “Necronomicon.” Certainly Kamala Harris deserves some of the credit, if that’s the right word, for Trump’s thorough self-beclowning. On the other hand, accurately transcribing and reproducing Trump’s belligerent rants about Hannibal Lecter, Venezuela, the all-purpose panacea of tariffs, his “radical left liberal” opponents who seek to perform “transgender surgeries on illegal aliens” and the alleged million-dollar bribes paid to Joe Biden by “the mayor of Moscow’s wife” — fact-check that, libtards! … We have a nation that is dying.” According to Alexander in Arizona, a young white man who leans toward Harris, “Our economy is dying, and the American dream for the next generation seems extremely bleak.” Tamara in Michigan, a young white woman who remains undecided, said, “We need substance from both candidates, and we are not getting it.” Debra in Pennsylvania, an older white woman who went into the evening leaning toward Trump, concluded, “I don’t want to vote for either of them.” Steven in Nevada, a middle-aged white man and likely Harris voter, was agnostic on Trump’s decline comment, but not in a good way.