Fine. I’ll talk about it.

I’m upset. Very upset. Since I started this blog in February, I’ve been writing about the presidential election and advocating for John Kerry’s victory. Kerry’s loss on Tuesday night was bitter, disappointing, disheartening and disillusioning.

But I want to acknowledge that George W. Bush won his reelection fair and square. I’m not happy with the decision, but the vote was clear. Unlike in 2000, the popular vote was decisive and the swing state margins were large enough to discourage any legitimacy challenges. He may not have fairly earned his first term but he did secure an honest won second term.

But that doesn’t mean I’m happy about it. 120 million people voted and I had originally thought that a large turnout would benefit Kerry. Who would have thought that there were so many voters in red states that would rank "moral values" as more important to their vote than "terrorism", "Iraq" or "the economy." This really is a divided country. Most every state that voted for Bush in 2000 voted for him again. Likewise, most every state that voted for Gore in 2000 voted for Kerry. I’ve heard it jokingly suggested that we just split into two separate countries, with Bush as President of the Red States and Kerry as President of the Blue States. It’s crazy but it might not be a bad idea.

There are so many divisions in this country. Bush’s 2000 promise to be a "uniter, not a divider" failed miserably. Now he is extending an olive branch to Democrats, asking for our trust. That trust can only be won in actions, not words. It is Bush’s responsibility to move away from his neo-conservative, right-wing agenda, if he really wants to win our trust. The first indicator will be who he appoints as his Cabinet replacements and who he will appoint as Supreme Court justices. We cannot allow Roe v. Wade to be overturned. We cannot allow the Patriot Act to erode our civil liberties. We cannot wage preemptive wars with flimsy proof. We cannot allow the deficit to grow further. For the next four years, us Democrats must continue to work as the loyal opposition, keeping a watchful eye on the administration, working together on compromises but fighting for our core values and beliefs.