My Post Election Thoughts, for now

OK, the election is over. This is certainly not the outcome I had hoped for. And yeah, it really sucks. I mean really. I’ve been trying to process all this, reading a lot of stuff, listening to a lot of people. Here’s what I think.

I’ve seen a lot of pieces saying “Don’t worry, the President doesn’t really affect your own life very much. There are so many checks and balances… And really, what’s more important is your local government, your teacher…" Normally, I would agree with that. But not this time.

Checks and balances?. After this election, Republicans basically run this country. Not only did they win the presidency, but they also have control of both houses of congress. Soon the Supreme Court will be conservative as well. And don’t forget, the Republicans control about 70% of the state houses, and 70% of the governorships. Have no doubt, the country is owned by the Republicans. I don’t see a lot of checks and balances here. I can only hope that sane republicans fight against an insane president. But I don’t hold out a lot of hope on that.

And as far as the “the president doesn’t really affect your life much,” here is part of an article I saw on facebook:

“People are scared they will lose their health insurance. People are scared that their skin color will make them unwelcome in the country. They're scared that hate crimes will be on the rise because the vote justified it in the eyes of the racists. (Some white supremacists took this vote as a thumbs up. That's a reality.) LGBT friends are left wondering whether their marriages will still be legal. And whether their children will still be both of theirs legally if the marriage is undone”
(see the complete post below)

Also, a retired friend of mine on Obamacare was trying to figure out if he needed to get a full time job now, just for health care.

These are real fears. And I just pointed to a few. There are lots more. Lots. Maybe they’re imagined, and maybe they won’t come to pass. But to these people, the fears are real.

And no, this is not just because their side lost. This is not a football game. A Romney presidency would not have caused nearly as many of these fears. But this is different. It doesn’t feel like a loss, it feels like a death. This article explains it much better than I ever could.

So what to do? I have read article after article that go something like this:

“Like it or not, Trump is now OUR president. You have to accept him as such, because the people have spoken. Don’t put party first, put America first and we should all work together to move this country along.”

Really? Accept him as our president? I understand that, I really do. But let me remind everyone. When Barack Obama was elected, Trump himself didn’t accept him as president. He said that Obama was born in Kenya, so was therefore an illegitimate president. Trump himself was the number one repudiator of Obama’s presidency. But now we’re supposed to accept him? And work together? Just like the Republicans didn't do with Obama? We haven’t forgotten that the GOP spent 8 years obstructing every single piece of legislation or judgeship that came their way. But now, we’re supposed to work together? Really?

If the last 15 years have taught me anything about politics, it’s that working together gets you defeated. I hate to say that, and it shouldn’t be that way, but that’s what happens. After unprecedented obstructionism, the Republicans own the country. Yet the Democrats are now supposed to be nice and “just get along” and “be the better person.”

I like taking the high road as much as the next guy, but I’m having a little trouble with that this time. This is going to take me some time to process.