Final thoughts on the US presidential election, from a Brit
This is mostly a British politics blog, and despite being a politics student, I don’t use this a lot anymore and I am by no amazing expert in US politics. So this post is a rare one, one to describe my thoughts and my opinions on the US election today.
This is a two person race - it’s either Clinton or Trump. You could vote Jill Stein or Gary Johnson but it’ll be difficult for them to win the support of a whole states never mind the whole of the US. I am not a fan of tactical voting but it is necessary in this case. Neither of these candidates are perfect by any means, and both are very flawed individuals with perhaps very questionable backgrounds.
However, it is impossible to deny that there is a level of unpredictability with Trump; his policies are extreme and we do not know what will happen next.
He is a mysogynist - if his creepy comments about his daughter weren’t enough to put you off then his comments about grabbing women by the ‘pussy’ should be. As a woman, his treatment of women to me, and to all of us should be unacceptable. He does not see them as human, just objects. And in that sense he fails at least half of the electorate.
He is a racist - building a wall for Mexicans, his treatment of his foreign employees and simply the attitude of the supporters that turn up to his rallies scream that Trump is a racist allowing intolerance to foster and grow. And to allow that man to lead America would be a shame… to value someone more/less on the colour of their skin is disgraceful, and following the black civil rights movement in particular, it would be horrible to see America go backwards after some big steps to achieving equality.
He is a loose canon. His policy (or lack of) on defence scares me. His opinions on the economy, on things such as Britain leaving the European Union scares me. His lack of clarity should scare people because they should be educated on exactly what they are voting for - that is a key part of democracy! It more than anything else suggests ignorance and a total lack of knowledge when it comes to politics in many areas, especially the economy. He alone cannot directly destroy the US economy, but his lack of understanding could lead to changes in law that do hurt the economy.
Overall, change is why people vote Trump - he is a vote against the establishment. Understandably, the American people are fed up. Fed up of corrupt politicians who do not do what is always in the interests of the people but in the interests of power and money. But that does not mean he is a safe pair of hands, or just because he wants change his change is best. Most likely, Trump’s policies will hurt the American people far more. If you are not a man, not white and not rich, you will be worse off. Trump is a step backwards even if he claims to be a step forwards. Civil liberties are not just the right own a gun, and the chances of losing out because of voting Trump are too damn high.
Unfortunately, both options are not great. As I wrote earlier, Clinton is not perfect either. But she is a more safe option than Trump. Perhaps she is similar to the past establishment politicians America has had but she is far better than letting an extremely mysognistic, racist, psychotic loose canon take the presidency. Please, do not protest vote. Because your vote not only affects America, it affects the entire world, and the chaos that would unfold from Trump being elected terrifies the majority of us across the pond and across the globe.
