On the 2016 Election Results
Today I have scores of families/friends/colleagues who are either ecstatic & thankful or horribly depressed & angry about last night's returns. Each of them are intelligent, kind, thoughtful individuals with high character and a love for people and our nation. How is it they can see this election through such vastly different prisms?
I'm one for one on predictions... the sun did rise this morning!
Congratulations to President-elect Trump, his family, his team, and his supporters for shocking the political establishment. I think a special shout-out to Kellyanne Conway, the first female to run a victorious presidential campaign, is appropriate. Has anyone performed better, especially under such challenging circumstances?
Congratulations, and thank you, to Secretary Clinton for not only the hard fought campaign, but also the service you've provided over many years. You've obviously been an inspiration to millions. It will be interesting how you approach the next chapter of your life.
The Parties as we know them today will never be the same.
Have we ever seen a victorious candidate not only attack his own party leaders, but also appear to so openly reject the support of the so-called party leadership? And how about Trump's eight-point victory in Ohio without the support of the two-term governor in his own party? I think it's safe to say that Trump effectively assumed the outsider/change agent role.
And where does the Democrat Party go from here? Senator Schumer and Representative Pelosi will lead Congress, Senator Kaine returns to the Senate, and Senator Warren should maintain her national platform. Who else will step forward? Will there be new faces? What are Senator Sanders' supporters thinking today? And what will be the short- and long-term impact of the DNC's apparent unequal and unfair support of Clinton over Sanders? If I were a betting man, I'd bet we haven't heard the last of the controversy.
How would you compare and contrast this race with the UK vote to exit the EU? To better understand the results, it's probably wise to research the Brexit results a bit more.
Do you buy the argument that the polls were wrong because many Trump supporters didn't want to admit to a pollster that they were voting for him? I think there might be some truth to the idea that some so-called "concealed voters" didn't want to openly wear the controversies surrounding Trump, so they just remained silent. The reasons for voting are complex, but in the year 2016, many in our society are quick to label.
In years past, I seem to remember states trending Democrat at the tail end of the vote count. The theory being the large urban centers were usually the final counties and precincts to report. That didn't happen this year. I'm guessing that the significant increase in early voting was a major factor.
Saw a report that showed Trump spending $4.57 per vote and Hillary spending $8.80 per vote. In this new information world, maybe big money doesn't mean as much as it used to?
Saw another report that showed median income has remained unchanged since 1999. That's after 8 years of Bush and 8 years of Obama.
In their respective campaigns, neither Clinton nor Trump spoke much about the problems associated with our national debt and annual deficit. I wish they had.
I really enjoyed listening to the post-election speeches by Trump, Obama, and Clinton. If you haven't watched them, I recommend you do - they each hit the right tone. Disagreements and political fights will certainly continue, as they should, but I think these three leaders helped to lay a healthy foundation going forward.
The so-called experts in the media, who once again got so much so wrong, will continue their attempts to drive narratives and influence thought. Be critical and expansive with your news sources. Probably smart to also actively listen and calmly discuss with each other in-person, and not rely so much on our media and social medial outlets.
Unless or until Chelsea or George P consider running for national office in the future, it appears the Clinton and Bush years are done. For those of you who don't like political dynasties, I'm sure you are relieved.
Take a crack at answering these two questions: When will we see Trump's tax returns? Will donations to the Clinton Foundation decrease now that neither Bill nor Hillary will be in office?
A few more questions: Does it help to have celebrities actively campaigning for a candidate? How much, if any, do endorsements help? Do people vote for someone because someone else, especially someone they don't know, tells them to? Might it even have the reverse effect and push them away? Look at all the opinions tossed around on Facebook. Do they have any impact other than damaging friendships?
I didn't attend any campaign events, but reports seem to indicate Trump rallies were, in general, better attended by more enthusiastic supporters. Is that one reason why Clinton relied heavily on celebrities in the final days? No doubt the celebrities brought attention, energy, and increased crowd sizes. But did they also make her look smaller? If so, would the same conclusion apply to her sharing the stage with President and Michelle Obama?
In the end, I guess, for us is to understand this vote and all the complexities surrounding it, we'll need to seek out and talk with thoughtful people who think differently. If all we do is bounce our ideas off of people who already think like us, and all we do is invest our time with the same news and advocacy outlets that only reinforce -- rather than challenge -- our current mindsets and beliefs, I think we cheat ourselves and our nation's future.
