When protests over George Floyd's death erupted, I was fatalistic that little would change - especially in the short run. With McConnell in charge in the Senate and Trump bunkered down in the White House, it seemed dubious that anything would change - especially if protests turned disruptive, which they were bound to do.
Instead, we have Mitt Romney - America's whitest man - marching. We have protests made up almost entirely of white people in small towns. The BBC suggested that the confluence of the incontrovertible video evidence and high unemployment made conditions right for mass protests. I have to think that Trump's presence was also a catalyst. America feels fundamentally different under Trump, and a lot of the white people on the streets are no longer able to casually dismiss racism.
The Democrats in the House have entered a decent bill. Anything more aggressive stands no chance in the Senate - indeed, this one likely won't even get a floor vote. But it's a start.
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