Washington Post reporters fanned out across the country to ask Americans how they view this moment in the nation’s history. Their responses have been edited for length and clarity.
“Oh my goodness! No he didn’t!”
The text messages came so fast I couldn’t ignore them.
I flipped open my phone and responded so that everyone in the store who was shopping could hear, “Oh my goodness! No, he didn’t do that!”
The man next to me asked what was wrong, and I told him the news. In this part of South Texas, the Rio Grande Valley, people spend more time trying to survive than following national politics, but our proximity to the Mexican border and the recent influx of migrants had put us in the news.
“That’s what I thought,” he said. “When they told me he had COVID, I knew it was over.”
As a lifelong Democrat, I had hoped the party would unite behind Biden. Yes, his debates were awful. Yes, he’s old. But, God bless him. He was a really great president.
Kamala Harris isn’t very popular here, but I’d support anyone but her. [Trump].
– Laura Torres, 53, a property manager from Mission, Texas
“People are very frustrated.”
Actually, I didn’t vote for Trump in 2016, but he proved to me in his first term that he actually did what he said he would do, so I became his supporter, voted for him in 2020, and will vote for him again this year.
I don’t think we’ve ever been more divided. It’s going to be hard to top 2020, when everyone was stuck at home, and then the George Floyd incident happened, and we had racial unrest and rioting in the streets.
I think at a fundamental level we need to be more tolerant of other people’s points of view. People you know and love will have different opinions than you, but you love them because they are your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your mothers.
I think people are so frustrated because neither side will come together in Washington, D.C., to address the issues that affect most Americans.
– Francisco Gonzalez, 46, entrepreneur from Boynton Beach, Florida
“It really lifted my spirits.”
This whole mess is making me kind of depressed. I’m obviously anti-Trump, but at the same time, it’s not a good look to see the party in such disarray. I can’t stand the constant news and speculation. I just shut it off.
But now that this has happened, I’m really energized. And if I’m energized, I’m not super political, but I hope that all this energy will have a ripple effect and that the Democrats will actually get this together, organize, and put on a good show.
I don’t know much about Harris, but I think this footage of her as a prosecutor facing off against a convicted felon is too interesting to miss.
– Mark Lilly, 57, self-employed, Denver
My initial thought was that Trump would swamp any other Democratic candidate. Trump has the momentum. At this stage, with November fast approaching, are there other candidates poised to emerge?
I haven’t done much research, but I like Governor Newsom. California is a big challenge. What he’s done there is remarkable.
-Weston Lilly (20), Mark’s son and a student living in Boulder, Colorado.
“Where the hell do I go from here?”
I don’t usually follow politics that closely, but the past few weeks have been a total frenzy. I’m glad Biden dropped out of the race. He was too old. He performed horribly in the debates. I understand politics are complicated, but what was his end goal?
I will be voting Democrat in this election. The country and its people need people who will stand up for what they believe in. For me, that starts with the community, but for a long time they have been [Democratic politicians] We have taken the African American community for granted, I think they don’t really care about us.
Maybe Kamala is different, I don’t know, I just hope she stays true to herself and doesn’t let her thirst for power cloud her judgement.
It’s hard to even wrap your head around what’s going on in our country with this and the attempted assassination of Trump. Where do we go from here? I hope things calm down. I just want someone competent to lead us. Until then, I think we should all move to an island somewhere.
– Olivia Massenburg, 30, a corner store clerk in Minneapolis
“America has made some progress on racial issues.”
Vice President Harris’ selection as the Democratic presidential nominee will be remembered as a turning point in American history.
Her multicultural background as a candidate for president shows that America has made some progress on racial issues over the past 50 years, and I hope we will have an election that will unite the American people.
I fear that race will be used to further divide Americans. Race has been used to divide Americans before, but I think this election will be terrible.
I think the bright spot is that independent candidates will look beyond race and think about what’s best for the country.
– Larry E. Rivers, 73, a history professor in Tallahassee
“There’s a lot of fear in the world.”
With a candidate like Trump, I don’t think we’ll ever have a normal campaign.
But unfortunately, we live in a time when even talking to our neighbors or family members can turn into deep arguments. This is wrong. We need to be able to have these conversations, because we feel that we have so much more in common than we have differences.
I grew up in the military. My father served as an Air Force officer for 34 years. Both of my parents are buried at Arlington. I am a staunch conservative, so this is not some crank Democrat saying this. I believe there is great fear out there and that our democracy is at risk.
It’s hard for people to speak up. They don’t want signs in their yards.
It’s hard to judge history from this moment in time when we’re in the midst of history. But I think this is a very important point in history. I think this was a difficult and challenging thing for the party and for the American people, but I respect President Biden for putting his country first and serving out his term.
– Debbie McDonald, 67, a retired stockbroker from Celebration, Fla.
“Don’t put that stuff in the bar.”
I don’t really pay attention to what’s going on. As a bartender, I have to keep things simple, no religion, no politics, and keep all that stuff out of the bar.
But now I’m wondering: what’s the backup plan?
Trump is a nightmare. Watching this unfold is really depressing. I’m like, “Is this really how it’s going to end?”
I just think they [Democrats] You can find viable and great candidates that will be great solutions.
-Rob Salinas, 37, bartender, Lawrence, Kansas
“Leaving the country”
I’m moving to El Salvador. It’s cheap and I think it’ll be the next Costa Rica. I plan on becoming a digital nomad.
I care deeply about government and politics, and when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against him I was concerned. [Trump] Total immunity. I don’t think anyone should have that much power.
I was going to vote for Joe Biden. I’m going to vote Democrat, but I don’t think Biden could have won. I love Biden, yeah, but I don’t think he could have won. [Vice President Harris] Either one gets it.
I know of three other couples who are leaving the country. It makes me sad. I feel like I’m going to be kicked out. I didn’t choose to leave the country.
– Lisa Kinsinger, 40, small business owner, Baltimore
“It’s time for a woman to become president”
I could have been more like Joe, which means more like Biden.
But when you’re in your 80s, things start to go awry. That’s why, after more than 50 years in local politics, I’ve decided to hang up the bandana, a staple accessory I’ve worn while delivering live, evening COVID updates to San Antonio-area residents during the pandemic.
But when I retired from office at age 81, I knew my body would inevitably decline. I wanted people to see and remember me in good health, not in my decline. And I saw that with Biden on debate night.
Biden should have known better. He made the right decision, even if it took him too long to make it. He’s done a good job. But it’s time for a woman to become president.
– Nelson Wolff, 83, a retired San Antonio politician
“We need a strong man.”
When I thought about Joe Biden’s debate performance, there were a few colorful phrases (mostly in Spanish) that came to mind.
Lost illusions. Lost hope.
I committed a crime. It’s low caliber.
But really, there’s only one word to describe it: weak.
I had no intention of voting for him, but I did four years ago, before the Democratic Party turned away from me on issues that contradicted my faith, but I felt bad for the man I respected and liked to call “El Abuelito” (Grandpa).
I would have liked to see him “die with his boots on,” as we say in my native Puerto Rico, meaning to die with one’s boots on, or to stand by one’s principles in the face of adversity. But with all the wars and rumors of war, we need a strong man. I don’t think Biden has that. I don’t know if Harris has that.
My calculation is that the strength of Donald Trump’s personality alone, even if he were half-insane, might be enough to stop the war. I think Trump, being the man he is, is dominant and influential enough to persuade Putin to end the Ukraine war in exchange.
I come from a place where politics have always divided families, but families stay together. The United States is a place where differences of opinion are becoming insurmountable walls between people, and I don’t know what that means for us.
-Joe Alvarez, 65, an art teacher from Winter Haven, Florida
