Prepare for Emotional Exhaustion

Hemingway wrote, “The sun also rises.” Interestingly, having worked with many in politics, from presidents and cabinet members to congressmen and local candidates – one phenomenon repeats itself each election: People run and vote, let out a sigh, and find they are emotionally spent.

Candidates, at every level, whether they win or lose, whether returns are fast or slow in coming, find they are so drained of adrenaline, serotonin, and endorphins, that they literally collapse, shut down, sleep for days, and only gradually regain their bearings, focus on next steps, and go forward.

In this election, oddly in my experience, more than half the nation has been engrossed – completely or almost completely consumed, in some cases to distraction, and preoccupation, as if watching a hurricane, tsunami, or big asteroid approach. This is, if I may say, not normal.

To be blunt, this is not how American politics usually works, not how we have historically viewed our shared political spectrum, which has been – until recently – relatively centered, both parties seeking similar ends by different means, more or less conservative, not hysterical or irrational.

This election cycle – perhaps the last two or three – is of a different cut, far more emotional, at times unhinged, harder to tame as people got hard over, obsessed with ideology, personality, and imagining a kind of Armageddon-style, end-of-the-world outcome if they should lose.

The rational argument for being consumed can be made since one party has lost its historical moorings. Democrats rifted away from their FDR, JFK, LBJ, even Carter, Scoop Jackson, San Nunn, and Tip O’Neil sensible-but-centralizing roots, to an almost unrecognizable, neo-Marxist brand.

Democrat leaders arguably did something worse than disorient their following; in many states, and across many demographics, they lost them. The national party became something almost unrecognizable, which for those center-left, center, and center-right, was deeply disturbing.

Many modern Democrats have allowed a historically unacceptable way of thinking to infiltrate their approach to the people. Intentionally or by accident, signs are everywhere and have been during this cycle. Pushed has been an ideologically leftist, top-down, dictate-and-enforce view.

Frankly, as various races settle and results are finalized, this shift is one part of why this election cycle has been so emotionally exhausting, and uncommonly stressful. People are frankly scared.

Another factor, now that the big day has passed, should be spoken of honestly. Anger over political dodging … Americans are roiled by a poor economy, costly energy, mandates on everything from cars to stoves, illegal immigration, crime, drugs, suppression of parents, cultural decay, disrespect for religion and rule of law, and public corruption. Many of these were largely sidestepped, often boldly ignored, instead addressed by double-talk. That too raised stress levels.

A third source of the emotional drain was the media – and a self-appointed cabal of rabble-rousers, finger pointers, and “emotionalizers” who decided the election was only about personality, Donald Trump’s. Personal attacks were over the top, scary, twice nearly caused his assassination.

Speaking bluntly again, that is not how Americans have typically run campaigns, and not how our media has typically behaved. What has happened is that demonizing, and inviting physical harm to a candidate, after seeking to jail him for his views, has become one party’s approach. That is scary.

Finally, the mere volume during this cycle – the strangely personal rants, speech canceling, sign pulling, threats against people of all kinds, just for holding a view, for exercising a 1st Amendment right, has been outsized, nothing seen in prior elections cycles.

So, here is the takeaway. As final results are tallied, and as various factions decide what comes next, most candidates and most voters are going to be exhausted. It will either hit you or creep up on you. It may just tire you, irritate you, frustrate you, even depress you. But this too will pass.

In the grand scheme of things, political elections are exhausting, and all-consuming for candidates, often for supporters, and then the storm passes. In this case, the election was brutal, arguably off-base, historically out of line with American politics. That only makes it more exhausting. So, take a breath, sit back, pause, and rest. As Hemingway wrote, “The sun also rises.”

Robert Charles is a former Assistant Secretary of State under Colin Powell, former Reagan and Bush 41 White House staffer, attorney, and naval intelligence officer (USNR). He wrote “Narcotics and Terrorism” (2003), “Eagles and Evergreens” (2018), and is National Spokesman for AMAC. Robert Charles has also just released an uplifting new book, “Cherish America: Stories of Courage, Character, and Kindness” (Tower Publishing, 2024).