So many of us are experiencing Trumpaphobia that I am compelled to write about the election again. We are afraid that he will do a lot of the things that he said he would do if he got elected. We have to watch and observe, but let us try not to be afraid yet. In our search for peace of mind let us remember that Barack Obama is still the president until Jan 20.
We try to respect the office of presidency, but can we respect the man who is holding the office? We usually do, but in this case, I don’t know. Isn’t Trump the man who taught us to disrespect the man in the office? How much respect did he give Obama? How much respect did he give the media? He said that the media is biased against him even though they gave him more air time than anyone else who has ever run for president. He complains about people being inappropriate, but who was more inappropriate than he was?
How many times did Trump say that the election was rigged? Now he is complaining about a recount. I disagree with the recount, but he is the one who planted the seed of doubt in our voting system. Years ago, he complained about the electoral college being outdated. Well, it’s how he got elected, because Hillary had 2 million more popular votes than he did. I do not understand that whole situation.
Trump has become president without following any of the usual procedures. He did not show his tax returns. He did not try to instill togetherness in the country. He has many lawsuits against him. He has many conflicts of interest in his maze of business affairs. He is parading his family before us and says that he is counting on them to take over his businesses. I believe they are capable, but I don’t believe that he is going to stay out of it. His family is the beautiful people. At least on the outside.
Many people did not like Hillary, but they weren’t afraid of her. He had planted the seed that she couldn’t be trusted. I trusted her to have the best interests of the country in mind. She has always looked out for the “little people”. She tried to reform health care when her husband was president, but they thwarted her and dismissed her efforts and all the work she had done. I admire her courage to even try for the office, because they have bullied and abused her for her whole career. Can you believe that they had her on the stand for 11 hours and could not find anything to charge her with? Yet, they still tried to shoot her down every step of the way.
Many years ago, one of our great thinkers and writers, John Kenneth Galbraith , said that elections were a choice between the disastrous and the unpalatable. It has not gotten any better. But I have read that the people best suited to run the country will not apply for the job because of all the scrutiny. So much for scrutiny with Trump. He seems to have some of the teflon that Reagan had.
I am so disappointed in our congressional leaders. They have proven themselves to be petty and personal and not fit for their positions. They decided at the beginning of Obama’s term not to co-operate with him. I have had this sinking feeling about our democracy because they have obstructed most of the good that he tried to accomplish. And thry still call themselves “leaders.’
I have great respect for Obama. He conducted himself with dignity and intelligence during his terms of office. He was full of character and integrity. We are going to miss that. He did not get credit for all the good that he did. In fact, they seem not to care about the millions of people without health insurance in the richest nation in the world. I hope they do not undo all the good he has done.
President Jimmy Carter once said, “The best way to enhance freedom in other lands is to demonstrate that our democratic system is worthy of emulation”. I hope that we don’t lose any of our core values. In fact, I am writing to take advantage of my freedom of speech while I still have it.
May the Power of God protect us. May the Love of God enfold us.
Claudreen Jackson
A Spoonful Of Comfort 
Thank you, Claudreen, for a thoughtful and reasonable statement that reflects what many of us are feeling right now. I am a Republican who voted for Obama and did not vote for either Trump or Clinton. I voted for one of the others, because I believe in exercising my right and privilege to vote, and that I also have a responsibility to do so. I tried to vote my conscience, as I always have – or have since I matured enough to think for myself, instead of following a party line in voting. Maybe I got it wrong. It’s become more difficult than ever to know the truth about any candidate, since media aren’t much more trustworthy than some of the worst of our politicians. I didn’t have to rely on media reports about Donald Trump, though, since his own behavior essentially told me all I need to know about him. If I hadn’t been done with him before, his mocking of a man with physical disabilities certainly affirmed my decision. I believed that Hillary Clinton would pretty much continue Obama’s policies but that she would not be able to work with Congress effectively to address issues with illegal immigration, improve national security, or work to change NAFTA. If she had been elected, I would have supported her and prayed for her success, as I do Mr. Trump. It is in my best interest that he develops into an effective leader. At this time, with potential for recounting votes, there is a slight chance that Hillary Clinton might become President. If the electoral votes are shown to belong to Mrs. Clinton, then it is right for her to take office. I want our system to work and I believe that it does. I understand why our election process uses the electoral college. If it didn’t, then citizens in about four states would determine the outcome of every Presidential election, leaving citizens in states with different interests than theirs without a voice. I don’t always like it, and on the face of it, electing a President without popular vote doesn’t sit well, but I still believe it is a process that serves us best. I pray for all of us, for our world’s leadership, as much as for our own government. I expect we’ll survive a possibly horrible four years of Trump leadership, though I hold out hope that it won’t be disastrous. We’re just so far away from what I expected us to be by 2016. It’s hard to have perspective about our failures, as a country. I suppose our political mess is just a refection of our society, and it’s not the other way around. I’m disheartened, sometimes. I don’t have a solution to the troubles in America. I barely survive, with any sanity, dealing with the struggles of my immediate family. I pray for wisdom and to become better than I am. Maybe that’s all I can do – and maybe it is also the best thing I can do.
Thank you, Dianne, for your response, and so fast, too. You are one of the people that I have great respect and admiration for, so your opinion means a lot. If you’ve noticed, I haven’t written for a while, but I have so much anxiety about the situation that I feel compelled to say something. I had a fuzzy idea of the electoral college, but you have helped clear it up. His mocking a man with a physical disability is one of my greatest sources of fear for our people. I am praying that our democracy works the way it is supposed to and we don’t lose any of the gains we made. Back in the 80s, I was very active in our state to increase autism awareness because i was so afraid. I feel that same fear again. I hope that I am wrong.
What a blessing you are to Chad! I know about the struggles and i know how long you have been dealing with them. God is keeping us sane (though sometimes we wonder) so that we can be there for our sons. It is always such a pleasure to hear from you.
Love,
Claudreen