I cannot bring myself to congratulate Donald J. Trump on winning the Presidency, mainly because it seems to me he won in spite of himself. As even his supporters acknowledge, his flaws are as obvious as they are legion; they have been amply cataloged by others, so I won't list them here. It is simply unprecedented that someone of such stunning lack of integrity, dubious morality, inexperience and inappropriate temperament should be considered a viable candidate, let alone elected. And yet, here we are.
Nor can the blame be placed on voters. Clearly a majority of voters in States where it mattered in terms of the electoral college felt it was in their interest to vote for Trump. And not only Trump, but for the most part, Republicans down ballot as well. The details of the how and why of this will be gist for the mill of polysci professors and pundits alike for the duration of Trump's Presidency, but there is one noteworthy ironic element.
Republicans in general, their moneyed supporters, and their acolytes in the media have made a fetish of “big government.” Ronald Reagan famously said, “government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.” Republicans in Congress have spent the last eight years engaged in nihilistic opposition to Obama's proposals and actions. There have been few visible efforts to compromise on any issue. One can only wonder why, if they are so convinced of the futility and failure of government, they so strongly desire to take it over.
Well. Having made this argument that government is the problem, Republicans now have complete control of it. They are now responsible for governing. Trump's campaign was so innocent of real policy, that no one really knows what his priorities will be, though it's scary to think that he might act on the things he ranted about. But we know pretty clearly what the priorities of the Republican party are: lower taxes on corporations and the wealthy, fewer regulations on business, higher spending on the military, and limits on reproductive options for women to name a few. We can reasonably assume Obamacare is toast, though the what, when or if of the vaunted Republican replacement are open questions. And it is reasonable to assume Trump will approve Republican legislation. So, we shall shortly feel the effects of the election, and all of us will be able to assess how well our interests are served thereby.
I sincerely hope that my pessimism about the likely course of events in the next four years is unfounded and that the country prospers materially and morally under President Trump. I understand that the electorate has opted for change, apparently regardless of the potential for chaos attending it. For myself, I intend to continue to be engaged, to support policies I consider beneficial to the nation, and to oppose those which I consider to be harmful.