President-elect Donald Trump
Here is a sampling of some of the reaction I am seeing to the victory of Donald Trump over Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential race:
"How could anyone who has a daughter - or a mother! have voted for Trump?"
"Women of this country, Y'all need to talk to each other about this. Almost half of you voted for an admitted sexual predator over what would have been the first woman president."
"So sad and demoralized that a man who abuses women, belittles disabled people, incites violence, cheats the system, is a racist and xenophobic will be our next president. I'm despondent."
"'I'm disgusted with this nation, voting against something rather than actually for something."
* * *
It was not misogyny that cost Hillary Clinton the presidency. The American people were more than ready to elect a woman. Just not that particular woman. There were other women who could have defeated Donald Trump. Elizabeth Warren is the first name that comes to mind.
It wasn't just the email controversy that cost Secretary Clinton the Oval Office. It did not help and it is part of one of the primary reasons that she lost. But it wasn't the sole reason. What are those two reasons? They are:
The perception that she is not to be trusted to be honest and open about what she is doing.
The fact that she is part and parcel of a federal government that so many have come to distrust as corrupt and responsible for the ever-growing inequalities of income and wealth. There is no difference between Democrats and Republicans in the minds of those who feel that government is biased in favor of the wealthy. Politicians of both parties and their votes in the Congress are bought and sold by the 1%.
Why don't people trust Secretary Clinton when there is proof positive that Donald Trump lied more than twice as often as she did during the campaign? Because in the minds of many Americans, she has been less than forthcoming for decades. All of the investigations into Benghazi failed to prove any criminal wrongdoing but that's not the public perception.
Whitewater
Travelgate
Earning $100,000 from an investment of $1,000 thanks to a political supporter
Pay for Play
Again, no wrongdoing was ever proven, although the Pay for Play may get a more in-depth investigation with a new U.S. Attorney General serving in a Donald Trump cabinet. But this isn't about proof of wrongdoing. It is about public perception. The perception of many who voted for Donald Trump is that Secretary Clinton is not someone they could put their trust into.
By the way, let's not forget that even though Donald Trump told many more lies during the campaign, that doesn't mean people don't see Secretary Clinton as someone who is not honest. She lied about landing under sniper fire in Bosnia, a lie that served no useful purpose. Independent Counsel Robert Ray, who investigated Travelgate concluded in his report that the then-First Lady "...made false factual statements" when questioned under oath in the investigation.
Why did her campaign lie about the fact that she had pneumonia? Just another example of the utter lack of transparency, and in a campaign where one of the key issues is the disgust of the electorate with the status quo in Washington of shady dealings done behind closed doors.
* * *
Any examination of who and what is to blame for Secretary Clinton's loss on Election Day must include the actions of Debbie Wasserman-Schultz and the rest of the power-players at the Democratic National Committee who kept Bernie Sanders from having a fair opportunity to win the party's presidential nomination.
There is no way to know if Bernie Sanders would have defeated Donald Trump, but it certainly seems that he had a better chance. Particularly given how he energized the bloc of millenial votes who were probably not happy at Hillary Clinton's description of them.
The comment about "...a basket of deplorables" is easily defended, as the misogyny, homophobia, racism and sexism that was to be found among that large portion of Trump supporters is in fact deplorable behavior. It's truly sad that in a campaign that saw Donald Trump sink to new lows of coarse and vulgar language, a comparatively benign statement resonated so strongly.
* * *
In the end, a woman did not get elected president and it was women who were the deciding factor. White working class women went out and voted for Donald Trump. Educated white women did not vote for Hillary Clinton at the level she needed.
* * *
Now it is over and Donald Trump will take office next year. Bear in mind that he cannot do some of the things he promised to do during the campaign with the stroke of a pen. Some he can. He can undo every Executive Order of President Obama. He will probably undo a lot of them, including that Executive Order where President Obama implemented a form of the "Dream Act."
He cannot unilaterally repeal Obamacare, although with Republicans in control of both the House and Senate, it will be a lot easier to repeal than at any time during the Obama presidency.
Presidents need Congress and Congress needs the President to get things done. The filibuster in the Senate will probably be used by whoever replaces Harry Reid as the Senate Minority Leader in an effort to obfuscate the Trump agenda. The Democrats in both the House and Senate will be just as strident and resolved to obstruct whatever Donald Trump attempts to accomplish in Washington. That's our system.
There are no good reasons to continue to discuss whether or not Donald Trump is qualified to be President. The majority of those who went to the polls today have spoken and in their minds, he is. I will no longer detail or discuss the absence of those qualifications or anything else as to why he shouldn't be President. He will be President.
But we can and must continue to discuss the things he will try to do as that President. We cannot allow him to try to limit the freedom of the press as he discussed doing during the campaign. We must hold him accountable to bring American jobs home. That's an area where he can and should now set an example by bringing the manufacturing of his clothing lines back into the U.S.
And we must discuss and ensure that President Trump does not act in a way as our nation's Chief Executive to directly or indirectly benefit his own personal financial interests. His assets should be placed into a blind trust to be managed by someone who is not named Trump.
We will learn a lot over the next few weeks as we see his transition team taking shape, and seeing the names of those he nominates to serve in his administration.
* * *
Many of us are scared about what will transpire in the days and weeks ahead. Rather than letting that fear fester, let us use it to energize ourselves to be part of the process over the next four years. And to work to change the system so that we can elect those who will truly serve our interests and not just theirs and those of the nation's most wealthy.
"How could anyone who has a daughter - or a mother! have voted for Trump?"
"Women of this country, Y'all need to talk to each other about this. Almost half of you voted for an admitted sexual predator over what would have been the first woman president."
"So sad and demoralized that a man who abuses women, belittles disabled people, incites violence, cheats the system, is a racist and xenophobic will be our next president. I'm despondent."
"'I'm disgusted with this nation, voting against something rather than actually for something."
* * *
It was not misogyny that cost Hillary Clinton the presidency. The American people were more than ready to elect a woman. Just not that particular woman. There were other women who could have defeated Donald Trump. Elizabeth Warren is the first name that comes to mind.
It wasn't just the email controversy that cost Secretary Clinton the Oval Office. It did not help and it is part of one of the primary reasons that she lost. But it wasn't the sole reason. What are those two reasons? They are:
The perception that she is not to be trusted to be honest and open about what she is doing.
The fact that she is part and parcel of a federal government that so many have come to distrust as corrupt and responsible for the ever-growing inequalities of income and wealth. There is no difference between Democrats and Republicans in the minds of those who feel that government is biased in favor of the wealthy. Politicians of both parties and their votes in the Congress are bought and sold by the 1%.
Why don't people trust Secretary Clinton when there is proof positive that Donald Trump lied more than twice as often as she did during the campaign? Because in the minds of many Americans, she has been less than forthcoming for decades. All of the investigations into Benghazi failed to prove any criminal wrongdoing but that's not the public perception.
Whitewater
Travelgate
Earning $100,000 from an investment of $1,000 thanks to a political supporter
Pay for Play
Again, no wrongdoing was ever proven, although the Pay for Play may get a more in-depth investigation with a new U.S. Attorney General serving in a Donald Trump cabinet. But this isn't about proof of wrongdoing. It is about public perception. The perception of many who voted for Donald Trump is that Secretary Clinton is not someone they could put their trust into.
By the way, let's not forget that even though Donald Trump told many more lies during the campaign, that doesn't mean people don't see Secretary Clinton as someone who is not honest. She lied about landing under sniper fire in Bosnia, a lie that served no useful purpose. Independent Counsel Robert Ray, who investigated Travelgate concluded in his report that the then-First Lady "...made false factual statements" when questioned under oath in the investigation.
Why did her campaign lie about the fact that she had pneumonia? Just another example of the utter lack of transparency, and in a campaign where one of the key issues is the disgust of the electorate with the status quo in Washington of shady dealings done behind closed doors.
* * *
Any examination of who and what is to blame for Secretary Clinton's loss on Election Day must include the actions of Debbie Wasserman-Schultz and the rest of the power-players at the Democratic National Committee who kept Bernie Sanders from having a fair opportunity to win the party's presidential nomination.
There is no way to know if Bernie Sanders would have defeated Donald Trump, but it certainly seems that he had a better chance. Particularly given how he energized the bloc of millenial votes who were probably not happy at Hillary Clinton's description of them.
The comment about "...a basket of deplorables" is easily defended, as the misogyny, homophobia, racism and sexism that was to be found among that large portion of Trump supporters is in fact deplorable behavior. It's truly sad that in a campaign that saw Donald Trump sink to new lows of coarse and vulgar language, a comparatively benign statement resonated so strongly.
* * *
In the end, a woman did not get elected president and it was women who were the deciding factor. White working class women went out and voted for Donald Trump. Educated white women did not vote for Hillary Clinton at the level she needed.
* * *
Now it is over and Donald Trump will take office next year. Bear in mind that he cannot do some of the things he promised to do during the campaign with the stroke of a pen. Some he can. He can undo every Executive Order of President Obama. He will probably undo a lot of them, including that Executive Order where President Obama implemented a form of the "Dream Act."
He cannot unilaterally repeal Obamacare, although with Republicans in control of both the House and Senate, it will be a lot easier to repeal than at any time during the Obama presidency.
Presidents need Congress and Congress needs the President to get things done. The filibuster in the Senate will probably be used by whoever replaces Harry Reid as the Senate Minority Leader in an effort to obfuscate the Trump agenda. The Democrats in both the House and Senate will be just as strident and resolved to obstruct whatever Donald Trump attempts to accomplish in Washington. That's our system.
There are no good reasons to continue to discuss whether or not Donald Trump is qualified to be President. The majority of those who went to the polls today have spoken and in their minds, he is. I will no longer detail or discuss the absence of those qualifications or anything else as to why he shouldn't be President. He will be President.
But we can and must continue to discuss the things he will try to do as that President. We cannot allow him to try to limit the freedom of the press as he discussed doing during the campaign. We must hold him accountable to bring American jobs home. That's an area where he can and should now set an example by bringing the manufacturing of his clothing lines back into the U.S.
And we must discuss and ensure that President Trump does not act in a way as our nation's Chief Executive to directly or indirectly benefit his own personal financial interests. His assets should be placed into a blind trust to be managed by someone who is not named Trump.
We will learn a lot over the next few weeks as we see his transition team taking shape, and seeing the names of those he nominates to serve in his administration.
* * *
Many of us are scared about what will transpire in the days and weeks ahead. Rather than letting that fear fester, let us use it to energize ourselves to be part of the process over the next four years. And to work to change the system so that we can elect those who will truly serve our interests and not just theirs and those of the nation's most wealthy.
posted by me at 1:32 AM
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