Shafer: Biden's lifeline amid sinking polls

"If Biden wants to sugar his ratings, he ought to synchronize his promises with his accomplishments. In a normal world, Biden would be canonized by voters for delivering a $2 trillion spending bill. But because he originally proposed $3.5 trillion, he'll be punished in the approval game for 'failing' if only the $2 trillion measure passes. He'd be wise to consult the arc of the Clinton presidency. Clinton recorded worse numbers in his first year than Biden has, primarily because he failed to deliver on the promised fronts of taxes and healthcare. By switching to achievable promises, he rebuilt his approval ratings and, like Barack Obama, finished his presidency on a high note. Stop overpromising and start overdelivering, Joe, and you might become the new Ike." —Jack Shafer in Politico

Jack Shafer is the senior media writer at Politico.

MORE: Progressives win again: No infrastructure vote Thursday —The Hill

Bump: The real-world danger of lies

"Trump didn't win. Donald Trump lost. Those are words he loathes hearing, so he's done everything in his power to pretend they aren't true. And as a result, his supporters injured scores of police officers at the Capitol, and several gave their lives. As a result, frustrated supporters are wondering out loud when they get to murder the people Trump is saying stole the election. As a result, those musings are greeted not with condemnation but applause. This is not a trajectory on which the death toll doesn't grow." —Philip Bump in The Washington Post

Philip Bump is a national correspondent for The Washington Post.

MORE: Lawmakers examine social media's role in violent extremism —NBC News

LaFrance: History will not judge Facebook kindly

"When the most powerful company in the world possesses an instrument for manipulating billions of people—an instrument that only it can control, and that its own employees say is badly broken and dangerous—we should take notice. The lesson for individuals is this: You must be vigilant about the informational streams you swim in, deliberate about how you spend your precious attention, unforgiving of those who weaponize your emotions and cognition for their own profit, and deeply untrusting of any scenario in which you're surrounded by a mob of people who agree with everything you're saying. And the lesson for Facebook is that the public is beginning to recognize that it deserves much greater insight into how the platform's machinery is designed and deployed. Indeed, that's the only way to avoid further catastrophe. Without seeing how Facebook works at a finer resolution, in real time, we won't be able to understand how to make the social web compatible with democracy." —Adrienne LaFrance in The Atlantic

Adrienne LaFrance is the executive editor of The Atlantic.

MORE: Polish political parties complained Facebook favored polarized posts —The Washington Post

WaPo Ed Board: Don't fan flames of voter suspicion

"In the Virginia gubernatorial race, Glenn Youngkin, the Republican nominee, has indulged [election] falsehoods while seeking not to embrace them so wholeheartedly as to alienate suburban voters who don't buy them. Mr. Youngkin, a fresh face in politics, had the opportunity to tell voters frankly that the system worked in 2020. He chose not to. That made it all the more disappointing to hear Mr. Youngkin's Democratic opponent, Terry McAuliffe, fanning the flames of suspicion over the weekend among his supporters. Campaigning with Stacey Abrams, who lost a race for governor of Georgia in 2018, Mr. McAuliffe said Ms. Abrams 'would be the governor of Georgia today' had not the state 'disenfranchised 1.4 million Georgia voters before the election.' … Mr. McAuliffe would do well to…avoid unprovable allegations that will contribute to the corrosion of trust." —The Washington Post

MORE: Virginia counties shift election procedures to head off conspiracy theorists —Politico

Graham: Is the failed coup the New Lost Cause?

"This mythology has many of the trappings of its neo-Confederate predecessor, which Trump also employed for political gain: a martyr cult, claims of anti-liberty political persecution, and veneration of artifacts. Most of all, the New Lost Cause, like the old one, seeks to convert a shameful catastrophe into a celebration of the valor and honor of the culprits and portray those who attacked the country as the true patriots. But lost causes have a pernicious tendency to be less lost than we might hope. Just as neo-Confederate revisionism shaped racial violence and oppression after the Civil War, Trump's New Lost Cause poses a continuing peril to the hope of 'one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.'" —David Graham in The Atlantic

David Graham is a staff writer at The Atlantic.

MORE: Tucker Carlson draws bipartisan backlash for 'false flag' claim about Jan. 6 in new documentary —The Washington Post

Richie: Gerrymandering calls for a national solution

"As our Framers anticipated and as our leaders have acted upon since our nation's founding, there are times when federal election rules are needed for all Americans, typically drawing from election laws in our state 'laboratories of democracy.' Now is certainly one of those times when federal action is necessary. State legislatures are incentivized to gerrymander their congressional districts in increasingly outlandish ways. Politicians choose their voters, representation is distorted, and nearly all districts are lopsided for one party. Without a national solution, individual state reforms can equate to disarming unilaterally, and too often state reforms are falling short." —Rob Richie in The Fulcrum

Rob Richie is the president and CEO of FairVote. He is the co-author of "Every Vote Equal" and "Whose Votes Count?"

MORE: Illinois Dems embrace gerrymandering in fight for U.S. House —Independent

Fleming: Saving conservatism from populism

"At its heart, conservatism is not a set of positions; it's a set of principles, stemming from the idea that all humans are created equal, with God-given rights that are protected by the government only through the consent of the governed. That's what conservatives seek to conserve. Populists, on the other hand, want what they want when they want it because, damn it, it is what The People want. Unfortunately, populist urges are reactionary and unpredictable and can easily destroy on a whim the very things most of us hold dear." —Matt Fleming in The Orange County Register

Matt Fleming is a member of the Southern California News Group editorial board.

MORE: Rep. Adam Kinzinger, who voted to impeach Trump, won't run for re-election —NPR

An Open Letter to Former President George W. Bush

Dear President Bush,

Herein is a suggestion for how you can enhance your place in history. Begin by recognizing that you are uniquely placed to perform a pivotal service for your country. Should you do so, your standing in American memory is guaranteed to soar.

Whatever many of us might think about the policies you pursued during your eight years in the White House, nobody ever accused you of being an enemy of democracy or identified you as a wannabe autocrat. Fundamentally you are a decent and moral man who values the foundational principles of your country.

As you well know, the same cannot be said for a particular former occupant of the Oval Office. His character acts as a definition of human indecency. He stands condemned as a congenital liar, corrupt businessman, racist dog-whistler, and sexual predator. At present, he is working day and night to subvert the U.S. Constitution and effectively abolish majority rule in the United States. Most dangerously, the insurrectionist from Fifth Avenue is planning to once again run for president.

We know what you said to Hillary Clinton minutes after the completion of the man's inaugural address. You said, "That was some weird shit." Well, his entire term validated your succinct analysis—and everybody knows it. Astoundingly, however, the general acknowledgment of his failings has had little effect on a large swath of the electorate. The folks devoted to his nativist ranting remain determined to ignore his rampant dishonesty and dangerous incompetence. If the transparent grifter should ever again squeak by in the Electoral College, his destruction of American norms will resume without restraint.

Here is the suggestion, Mr. President: speak directly to the man's base. Tell the people who adore him the unvarnished truth. Deliver a speech that transcends partisanship and embraces love of country. Double and redouble the intensity of the great address you delivered to mark the 20th anniversary of 9/11. Only this time identify the danger directly; spell out the poison letter by letter as T.R.U.M.P.

Time is growing short, sir. Please step up. —Michael Carin, Canada

Ed. Note: Michael Carin has authored seven books, including "Guilty Men: They Made Trump."

The views expressed in "What's Your Take?" are submitted by readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff or the Stand Up Republic Foundation.