The virtual Democratic National Convention has wrapped up.

The Biden-Harris ticket is now on the final sprint toward Election Day, and Senate and House races will decide control of the legislative branch.  Obviously, the ideological composition of the federal judiciary, a branch of government that often seems to be the first among supposed equals, will be determined by both Presidential nominations and Senate confirmations. Monumental decisions are dead ahead for our nation and our world.

Like many Americans today, I am very worried about what is happening to our country, so I am keenly interested in what Democrats propose to do to heal our economic, social, and racial divides.

I’m still waiting for the answer.

It seems odd, for example, that the shocking rioting and looting that ripped the hearts from so many American cities this summer—and is still occurring to this day—did not rate a major mention by Democrats over the course of four full days of talk, talk, and more talk.  

From an electoral strategy standpoint, I suppose this makes sense. It is easier to avoid criticisms of your proposals (and keep your fragile coalition from fragmenting) if you stick to generalities rather than details. However, the events rocking our nation and ravaging our urban centers are, without a doubt, a key issue for many, and avoiding these difficult conversations about race, inequality, and individual responsibility provides no useful information for those still making their voting decisions.

A reasonable person might want to ask, for example, whether a great deal of the damage this summer was caused by Democratic mayors who ordered their police forces to stand down and allowed violent mobs to take control of their city’s streets, which resulted in widespread destruction of homes and businesses.  However, this question was ignored by those hoping to defeat President Trump.  It is apparently easier for Democrats to blandly assure viewers that their policies will give much more non-specific hope to everyone and leave the pesky, problematic details for a later date.  

Many Democrats believe the urgent pleas by President Trump to support the beleaguered police departments of our country are merely the predictable quacking of a racist duck appealing to his racist duck-like followers?  Is President Trump simply trying to back up the “thin blue line” during a time of unprecedented national crisis?  How would President Biden respond to the same level of destruction and civil unrest were he in charge? These would have been helpful questions to answer, but they were studiously avoided, which is unfortunate and presumes voters will not notice the omissions.

Soon it will be the Republicans turn to present their case for control of the federal government, and the elections for every office will certainly be influenced to a huge degree by the outsized (and sometimes outrageous) personality and bare knuckle political tactics of President Trump.  This obviously had an incredible influence on the content—or lack thereof—during the Democratic National Convention.  Rather than offer specifics regarding their own contrasting policies, Democrats were certain it was sufficient to repeat (with only the slightest of variations) the same dreary message: Donald Trump is a bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad man—case closed.

The problem is obvious.

How Democrats plan to improve the quality of life for all Americans (other than speaking more sweetly and soothingly, I suppose) is anyone’s guess at this point.  We are pretty sure that whatever solutions there are will involve much more government and many more taxes, but the details were extraordinarily sketchy over the course of the four day Democratic gabfest.

At this point it is perhaps the proper time to focus on Joe Biden’s Acceptance Speech to the Democratic Convention—and America at large—in order to learn about the changes we should expect should he win the election in November.  His address was the capstone moment of his Presidential quest thus far, and it was the moment when a sense of determination and direction was vitally necessary.

It did not happen.

Although I suppose some will be thrilled with Joe Biden’s Harry Potteresque pledge to defeat darkness if he is elected President (which instantly raises the question of whether Vice President Pence is actually a Horcrux), Americans are left wondering just how any of his many budgetary priorities will be paid for in a Covid-19 world of crashing tax revenues and breathtaking budget deficits.  

Promising is easy; providing is a whole other level of challenge.  Governing in an age of skyrocketing government debt is going to involve choices, compromises, and sacrifices, but there was nary a hint regarding which existing programs would be cut to pay for vital spending elsewhere.  This is the level of detail we need to see and hear in order to make an informed electoral decision, and one can only hope it will be forthcoming—very soon.

Given that he has been in office since 2016, Donald Trump is a known quantity for our nation. There are no secrets whatsoever with our Tweet-happy Chief Executive, and every American is very well aware of both his strengths and weaknesses as a leader.  Joe Biden has been an elected official almost his entire adult life, and his record is both long and amazingly contrary to the image he now wants to present.  As a result, the choice for many voters will likely hinge on how both he and Joe Biden perform in the upcoming Presidential debates, so this election is still very much a toss up—despite what the pollsters now claim.  

Let’s put them on a stage together, see how they handle the pressure, and hear what they both have to say about where exactly—really exactly—they want to lead our nation in the difficult years ahead.  This will be the best possible way to decide how to cast our votes in November.