President-Elect Donald Trump, like President Obama before him, is not President by my vote. Of course, Secretary Clinton did not get my vote either! The whole election was what it was and what it was was depressing.
Yet there is a family tradition of saying nice things about the souls created in the image of God for whom we did not vote. We did it for Obama and for Clinton. Now we turn, with difficulty, to thankfulness for what is good about our President-Elect. Since I have lit many pixels opposing Bannonism and will surely burn out more in the future, I shall list ten things to be thankful for in our President-Elect.
First, Mr. Trump gave a gracious speech after he won the election. He did not have to be nice or try to unite the nation, but he was and did.
Second, Mr. Trump reached out to workers left behind in this economy. I always knew Trump would carry my home state of West Virginia, because both parties have ignored the problems of the Mountain State. Democrats have pandered on coal while driving away coal jobs when in office. National Republicans have done nothing to bring good jobs to the state. All of Appalachia (Georgia to Maine) saw Mr. Trump promising to help them. That is a good thing.
Third, Mr. Trump is following through, so far, on his promise to end the evil of legalized abortion. The House GOP and Senate will defund Planned Parenthood and (for now) we can expect President-Elect Trump to sign.
Fourth, Trump ended the national nightmare of the Clinton dynasty at least for this time (Chelsea waits in the wings). He finished off the kleptocratic dynasty that had controlled the Democratic Party for most of my adult life and did what no other Republican has ever done: he beat a Clinton.
Fifth, Mr. Trump is pressing ahead with nominating a judicial conservative to replace Mr. Scalia. One more change and we might restore the rights of states to regulate marriage, end federal abortion laws, and restore federalism to the center of the Constitution.
Sixth, his choice of Mike Pence as Vice-President has turned out well. Pence won his Vice-Presidential debate easily. He has moved the lobbyist out of the transition team and taken out the Christie mob. Pence has strong relations with the best Republicans left in Congress and has used those to begin some exciting legislative initiatives (replacing Obama Care).
Seventh, our President-Elect has chosen to work with Speaker of the House Ryan and not against him. Ryan represents the best side of the GOP and Trump with Bannon treated him roughly during the campaign. The President Elect did nothing to stop Ryan from being Speaker of the House and this shows political wisdom. He did not “waste his shot” on a Party squabble that would have harmed the nation.
Eighth, Mr. Trump is not taking a salary as President. This is generous of him and such generosity should be applauded as Americans did when Franklin Roosevelt called for “dollar a year men.”
Ninth, his appointment of Mike Pompeo is a sound choice for the Central Intelligence Agency. If he makes more appointments like this one, we can expect a different, but sound Republican administration in foreign policy. His willingness to meet with Governor Romney about the job of Secretary of State is also a good move, even if Romney does not take the job or is not offered the position.
Finally, Trump has made certain self-appointed elites fear for their unearned and unmerited positions of privilege and power. There was a guilty pleasure in seeing those who thought history had given them a mandate finding history was more complicated than they believed. Simply watching MSNBC and the over-the-top outrage at the President-elect ignoring the media while going to dinner without a press pool was good for the soul.
His refusal to listen to the global culture that dominates the academic world is refreshing. Not all experts are, as his victory without spending a billion dollars shows. Well done, President-elect Trump. Keep ignoring those who fought Brexit!
As usual, here is a bonus: Trump is moving toward allowing religious freedom for religious educational institutions and this has simplified my life considerably. Thank you, President-Elect Trump!
And now back to the loyal opposition to nationalistic Bannonism. God save the Republic and our President-Elect Donald Trump!
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