I’m still waiting for someone who voted for Trump, just one person, to be brave enough to admit they made a mistake. As the time has gone by, it is now really okay to say you didn’t think that he would be THIS crazy and THIS unstable. You didn’t know he would be so mean every single day. You didn’t know he would lash out all the time via tweets. You didn’t know he would put his HUGE ego before the good of the country. You didn’t know that his administration would advise him and not be heard, and that many left due to frustration. You certainly didn’t know he would purposely break the law, and do things that were against the pledge he took. You didn’t realize he would reach out to foreign leaders to find dirt on his political opponents. Maybe you knew he was a playboy and didn’t value marriage, but you didn’t care as long as he did ‘something good’ for you, for your paycheck, for your rights. You were willing to overlook who he was as a businessman who took some of his companies into bankruptcy over the years, and left thousands of employees high and dry.
Maybe you really didn’t care that he said things that were bias against groups of people. Even when campaigning his rhetoric was horrid, but perhaps you thought he would change with the prestige and the honor of the office of the presidency. Maybe you felt he was relatable even though he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth.
And, maybe you never believed that he actually started the whole ‘birther’ question, about Pres. Obama, and that he purposely questioned Obama’s US citizenship to damage him. You didn’t know that he could also turn on so many people he considered friends so quickly, and how he loved to watch TV and put down newspeople and celebrities. And, how would you get that he was so ‘stuck’ and could not get himself beyond the comparisons to Obama – or Bush? And, that he feels the need to hold rallies to feed his ego? You didn’t know he would spew out false claims so often. Every day.
So: You know, I get that you wanted to believe in him. I get that you wanted something different in our leadership and you wanted someone who said they would put America first. I also get that certain media sources promoted this way of thinking, and encouraged you, and even pushed you to accept him. I also know the ‘other side’ is not innocent. BUT… this isn’t about the ‘other side’… it isn’t about the two parties fighting, and wanting to win no matter what. It isn’t about the fact that Americans are so disappointed in our leaders in general, and the way we need to get back to voting in ‘statesmen’ (and women) again.
This post, and this place we are in right now, this division we have now – is about a man who knew nothing about how democracy should work and was not willing to listen to those who did. It is about a man who continues to feed his ego no matter what. He doesn’t know how to compliment another person without putting himself in it. He will do anything to make himself look good.
My opening hope in this post is that SOMEONE who supported the election of Trump can now see with open eyes ALL (and I mean ALL) that he has said, done, hurt, divided, lied about, and put down since he became president.
You might respond that the Dems went after him — but in reality he did this to himself. Open mouth insert foot – every day. Tweet and tweet. Push around his power. Act like a dictator. Blame others.
I have not brought up immigration, because I know some of you wanted a wall – and you really believed him when he said the Mexicans would build it. I know some of you wanted much tighter immigration restrictions. Okay. I get that. And, his backwards thinking and de-regulations for our climate – his ignorance on the need for a clean and safe world for generations. Maybe we disagree on that.
BUT – We all really want businesses to pay their fair share in taxes. We want to get rid of loopholes. We want business leaders to take care of their employees. We want everyone to get a fair, living wage. We want sensible medical care. Not free. We want to know we are ‘not taken’ by big business, including the pharms. And yet, we want to live without too many restrictions put on us.
When you think about it, there are some REAL hopes we ALL want for ourselves, and for our families and communities. But, please admit to me, that the guy you voted for turned out not to be the one you thought he would be. You made a mistake. In life we all do. It happens.
Let’s look to the future and really consider who can come in after Trump and bring back truthfulness, and integrity, and will not get caught up in the day to day ‘soap Opera’ of our political world. Who will rise above it? Who will work for everyone? Who will respect the office?
I’m waiting…
Marla’s Musings 