We're Smarter Than This, Right? Right??

Okay, this is the part of the program where I piss a lot of people off.

 
(Oh dear cripes… let me get my coffee.)

You might want to put another pot on. When I post about politics here, I usually try to stay pretty balanced, but jeezum crumb. I can't bite my tongue on this page anymore. It's time I come right out and say it in this blog, and this is the last political post I'll write before the upcoming election:

Donald Trump cannot be President of the Unites States.

(Grabs popcorn and waits….)

When I hear people say they support Trump, their reasoning generally falls into one of two categories: 1) They're tired of the status quo in our government; or 2) they will not vote for Hillary Clinton because of what she's "done" in the past.

*blink blink*

Here's where I proffer my opinion that neither reason is a sufficient reason to cast a vote for the Donald. And yes, these are my opinions. This is my blog, and if you don't like them or don't want to hear them, there's the back button on your browser right up there.

First, the "crooked Hillary" argument is so full of hypocrisy I just can't even. She killed four people in Benghazi!!! She should be indicted! Really? So I assume then that those making such an argument are equally calling for the indictment of those in the Bush administration "responsible" for the dozens of embassy attacks and deaths during Bush's tenure.

But they're not.

She deleted 33,000 emails! She should be indicted!!!! Really? So I assume then that those making such an argument are equally calling for the indictment of those in the Bush administration "responsible" for the deletion of over 22 MILLION emails.

But they’re not.

Her charity is crooked! She should be indicted!!! Really? So I assume then that those making such an argument are equally calling for Trump and his sons' indictments for his charity's alleged funneling of charitable funds into Trump's pockets for personal purposes.

But they're not.

Look at what Bill Clinton did/said to women! She can't be president!!! Really? So I assume then that those making such an argument are equally calling for Trump to drop out of the race.

BUT. THEY'RE. NOT.

Why not? Blind party allegiance? Ignorance? Simple hatred? I don't know. And I don't care. Because I'm not defending Hillary Clinton. I'm pointing out the incredibly disappointing shortsightedness of those who use this line of reasoning to support a man, and this is where we get to the second major point of this post, that, despite being outside of the status quo, has no qualifications whatsoever to be President.

You don't like the status quo? Fine. Vote for Gary Johnson. Write in Kasich. But dear cripes, do you really think a reality TV star with a history of failed business enterprises, one's who's been caught flat out lying in two presidential debates and at nearly every turn of the campaign trail, one who has shown at every opportunity his racism, misogyny, xenophobia, and outright ignorance of how our government functions, is qualified to be president?

Example: He blamed Clinton for not being an effective Senator and for her failure to bring about tax reform. Well, see, Mr. Trump, any bill relating to revenue generation has to originate in the House of Representatives, so Clinton, as a Senator, had no power to promote legislation to that effect. But hey, maybe if you knew anything about our government, you would understand that. Just like you'd understand that threatening to jail a political opponent when, like it or not, she's already been investigated for that of which you accuse her, threatens our very nation's democratic foundation.

You don't even have to get to the leaked tape and what was simply more evidence of what we already knew about his degrading and yes, deplorable, view of women.

You don't even have to get to the fact that he's chosen as a running mate a man who, in 2016, refuses to acknowledge the proven fact of evolution.

The man has proven time and time again that he is unfit to lead this nation and hold the highest office in our land.

Name me one qualification the man has to be President. To be the executive of the most powerful nation in the world. To lead our military.

Even one.


I'm waiting.

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And I'm going to continue waiting. Because you can't. The man bankrupted a casino. A CASINO. How in the actual fuck is that even possible?

Look, I'm not saying Hillary Clinton should be president. I'm not endorsing her. But holy sweet bejeebus cripes crap on a cracker. Put aside your hatred of her. Put aside your disillusionment with our current system. Put aside your partisanship and look at the man himself.  

I get that you're pissed. I get that we have problems in this nation. I GET IT. But if you can't understand that electing Trump is the literal equivalent of cutting off your nose to spite your face….

Stop deflecting away from the man's inadequacies. Stop condoning his behavior. Stop pretending that he is the answer to what ails this nation. He's not, and deep down, you probably already know that.

And if you don't…

For the love of God, educate yourself. Investigate the man. Don't rely on Fox News or Wikipedia or Snopes or any other social or media outlet. Do. The. Research. Don't just listen to what you hear; KNOW THE FACTS. Had Republican voters done that to begin with, he wouldn't be the Republican candidate. We wouldn't be a month out from the election and having this discussion.

You don't like Hillary Clinton? Don't vote for her. But have some pride in your nation. Maybe Gary Johnson might have a chance if those fed up with the system actually do something to back up what they claim to support; change in the status quo. I'm not endorsing Johnson either, but I can't imagine a world in which he wouldn't be a better president than Trump.

Of course, I couldn't have imagined a world in which Donald Trump would have ever been a major party candidate for President of the United States either. But, disappointingly, shamefully, here we are.

Trump is far more status quo than his supports will admit; look no further than his proposed economic policy. If you examine it, it's basically a regurgitation of Reagan's failed economic policy that eviscerated the bank accounts of the middle class. That's the change you want? You want to regress? Of course, if he's elected, he'll do anything in his power to reverse grants of civil liberties, too, so I guess you have to ask yourselves what kind of person you are if you support such policies.

Is that judgmental?

You're goddamn right it is.

This is my country. This is my future. This is where I proudly live and work and eat and breathe. Are you a sports fan? Okay, look at it this way – Would you want someone who's never watched a football game coaching your favorite team? Someone with no experience with the game, or knowledge of its purposes and strategies? I mean, he's already demonstrated that he hasn't the first clue what really happens in a locker room….

We are smarter than this. We have to be smarter than this. We have to have the foresight to know that you don't give the fox the keys to the henhouse. We have to know that someone who has unabashedly denigrated women, minorities and immigrants and admittedly promotes policies that infringe the rights of women, minorities and immigrants, has no business running a nation of which those three classes of citizens are an integral part.

"I care less about what Trump said than what Hillary did."

How about you try caring less about what he says and more about what he says he'll do.

I'll sign off here saying goodbye to those I know I'll alienate with this post, and wish you the best of luck. If Donald Trump is elected president, you're going to need it.

Me? I'm writing in Opus and Bill the Cat. They want to get rid of the second space after periods. As a writer, that's got my vote.

© 2016 J.J. Goodman. All rights reserved.