Maybe next time the Dems should run a candidate that at least pretends to care about what the voters want. That tends to help in elections.

All of this I agree with. Unfortunately it won’t happen until all the neolibs are run out of the party.

But trying to pretend like you didn’t directly elect a dictator by “abstaining” is not only absurd, but ethically reprehensible. Much of life is about choosing between lesser evils and lesser pains. Letting the worst options win because a perfect one doesn’t (and cannot) exist makes you a deliberate, willing accomplice.