U.S. President-elect Joe Biden, who has called for national unity

Now that Joe Biden is the President-elect of the United States, Republican supporters of Donald Trump, along with their candidate, are suffering the various stages of grief. It’s tempting for Democrats, after years of disgraceful treatment from many Republican voters, simply to tell Republicans, “I really don’t care, do u?” However, there are several reasons why some Democrats will want to take a less belligerent approach toward Republicans. For example:

–Some Democrats have Republican friends and/or family members, and want to repair and maintain their relationships.
–Some Democrats, perhaps taking the lead from Joe Biden, believe it’s in the best interest of the country to at least try to reach out to Republicans and create some national unity going forward, given the ongoing COVID pandemic and other big challenges we face.
–Some Democrats uphold the party value of empathy, and just cannot be jerks toward the Republicans, even though they would surely suffer Republican incivility if the tables were turned.

For these Democrats, therefore, the question becomes, what to say to Republicans that strikes the right balance between “shove it” and sacrificing their own principles? Here are some ideas:

Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign theme

Since the beginning of this year, as has been well-documented, Donald Trump has downplayed, ignored, and lied about the Coronavirus pandemic. He and fellow Republicans then flaunted the basic precautions that virtually every health expert agrees are necessary in order to curtail the spread of the virus, especially mask wearing and social distancing. Trump and the Republicans even mocked Joe Biden for strictly following these COVID precautions. Instead, Trump and his partisans continued to gather maskless in crowds at political events, such as Trump’s Tulsa, Oklahoma rally, the Republican National Convention, and, most recently, the reception for Trump’s U.S. Supreme Court nominee, Amy Coney Barrett.

Now, these chickens have come home to roost. According to the latest polls, Trump’s failed COVID response is killing his brand, and his presidential campaign. After attending Trump’s Tulsa rally, former Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain died of Coronavirus. Then the Barrett reception, held at the White House and featuring Republicans hugging, backslapping and close-talking, turned out to be the “super spreader” event that got many Republicans sick with COVID. The list of prominent Republicans who have now come down with the virus, many of whom attended the Barrett event, includes Donald and Melania Trump, former New Jersey Governor (and Trump presidential debate coach) Chris Christie, Republican U.S. Senators Mike Lee, Thom Tillis and Ron Johnson, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnerny, Trump advisors Kellyanne Conway, Hope Hicks and Stephen Miller, Notre Dame University President Rev. John Jenkins, Pastor Greg Laurie, and more. This is in addition to numerous Secret Service agents, White House staffers, and even housekeepers, all of whom are being put at great risk by Trump and his fellow Republicans. Indeed, as if to symbolize the political train wreck that Trump’s campaign has become, his campaign manager Bill Stepien (of Chris Christie/Bridgegate infamy), as well as Republican National Committee Chair Ronna Romney McDaniel, also have contracted COVID and are not fully able to do their jobs. Stepien is the replacement for Brad Parscale, who was recently arrested and placed on suicide watch after threatening his wife, apparently connected with criminal campaign fraud and theft allegations. Now, Attorney General William Barr, and even military leaders at the Pentagon, are quarantining after being exposed to COVID. At this moment, no one seems to be in charge of either the Trump reelection campaign or the country.