They say American democracy is a shining beacon to the world. But this year perhaps more than ever, friends and family members aren’t talking to each other because of their choice of a presidential candidate. Surely there must be some way to disagree and discuss and argue without hating one another.
Remember the run up to the Iraq war? The Bush Administration made the case to invade based on a bunch of what ifs. Now the Democratic Party and its standardbearer Hillary Clinton is theorizing that Russia may have been behind hacks of the Democratic National Committee and seems willing to provoke a possible new cold war with our former rival. The logic seems very familiar.
Donald Trump keeps saying that the election might be stolen from his supporters. The main reason that he cites â voter fraud â is nonsense. But election fraud is a real problem. From Florida in 2000 to Ohio in 2004 to the Democratic primaries this last year, there have been very troubling examples of presidential elections that have been corrupted. But media gatekeepers don’t want you to think about that.
“Love trumps hate.” It’s a cute bumper sticker and a cute T-shirt. But it’s a little rich coming from Hillary Clinton. Whether you support or oppose her, there’s no question that the one thing she doesn’t represent is love. The bombs that she voted to drop on the people of Iraq are not full of love. When she made jokes about watching the deposed dictator of Libya being disemboweled with the bayonet, she didn’t seem to be oozing with love. So what the heck are they talking about?
Twice, during the second presidential debate, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton said that the United States is good and that Americans are good people. The problem with that assertion, of course, is the fact that we betray our supposed values so often that you have to ask yourself whether they are our values at all.
Donald Trump called for a lot of outrageous things throughout his presidential campaign. He wanted Muslims to be banned from entering the knighted states. He wanted to build a border wall and deport 11 million illegal aliens. He called for beating up protesters at his own rallies. Oddly, none of this made him less popular. To the contrary. What did him in, or at least looks like it might, is an open microphone moment in which he talked about grabbing women’s pussies.
What supporters of Hillary Clinton fail to understand about many Donald Trump voters is that their argument that Trump would destroy everything is doomed to fail precisely because that’s what they want: to see the system blown up.
After an anonymous leaker mailed Donald Trump’s 1995 tax return to the New York Times, the paper’s editors congratulated themselves and their reporter on the scoop of the century. It’s been so long since they did real investigative reporting that they’ve forgotten what it is.
If nothing else, Donald Trump provides a sort of truth in advertising: he’s rude, obnoxious, loud, abrasive. This is reflective of his policies. On the other hand, his vice president running mate Mike Pence deploys a calm Midwestern demeanor to mask his disgusting homophobic and sexist politics. Americans need a law that will force politicians to label themselves in accordance with the content of their beliefs.
Donald Trump’s call for a wall between the United States and Mexico ignores an inconvenient fact: since 2005, more Mexican nationals have returned to Mexico in search of work than have come to the United States because of the fact that it’s easier to find work there. Maybe this provides a defense for Trump.
