Editorial: Vote for Hillary’s credibility; vote against the demagogue

In the race for president of the United States, the choice should not be close. Hillary Clinton’s positions on the major issues are rational, well conceived and on-target. She has experience in Congress serving as a U.S. senator and her years as Secretary of State have equipped her with the knowledge and experience to handle foreign affairs in a firm but steady manner. And, as a former First Lady who lived in the White House for eight years, she understands the demands of the presidency better than almost any other. As many have said, she may be one of the most qualified candidates for president in U.S. history, and certainly in modern times.
No doubt many Americans have bought into the right-wing media’s 25-year campaign to sully her reputation, almost all of which is built on half-truths, innuendo and lies, while others simply don’t like her personality. And, true, she has her faults and is no Bernie Sanders, who could have, by comparison, rallied Democrats to their core values and brought hope and inspiration to a new generation of Americans.
But a vote for Hillary Clinton is at the very least a vote for a highly qualified candidate whose policies would help the lower and middleclass, provide a steady hand on foreign affairs, address the ills of climate change, reduce student debt, make housing more affordable and address the obscene accumulation of wealth in the hands of a few mega-billionaires and within the board rooms of a few dozen select businesses.
That, at least, represents some hope.
Republican Donald Trump, on the other hand, has no relevant qualifications for the job. Not only has he never had elected office of any kind (most likely not even of a neighborhood committee), he is ignorant of the governmental process. Time and again he demonstrates that he is unaware of how congress and government work. His comments also demonstrate he has no knowledge of, or respect for, the laws of the land. And his policy statements are based on sound bytes for political impact, not on any prescribed plan that would solve the nation’s problems.
Even worse is Trump’s flawed character and lack of personal morals. He is a habitual liar. Indeed, his entire campaign has been based on telling one lie after another to demean his opponents, then deny he said what he said, and then suggest that the lie may still be true because other people are still saying it. Even when his lies are disproved, he has trouble admitting the truth and then refutes his role in the defamation. The pattern is well known by now after having demeaned and slandered 16 other Republican nominees to win the party’s nomination, while offending huge Republican constituencies in the process.
Worse, yet, he is racist, misogynistic, and a demagogue. Specifically, he uses racist arguments and comments to pit Americans against each other while cementing his support among the most extreme believers; a sexist pig, in the parlance of the 1970s, he has little respect for women’s professional abilities and it is obvious to most Americans that he views women (the slim, good-looking ones, at least) as sexual objects to conquer (and the rest need to get out of his sight); his boasts of sexual assault against women is so repugnant it’s a wonder he has any support among Christian Americans, or any American who understands this man for who he is. He is woefully ignorant of the complex issues facing the country; he is accustomed to abusing his personal power over others because in his world everyone works for him and they’re fired if they step out of line; he has a documented history of stiffing businesses who do work for his companies, and he relies on suing others with the intent to settle for less than he owes them. Is this really the candidate who will make America great again?
Hardly. He’s a 70-year-old con man with coiffed hair and a bronzed spray-on tan who knows how to entertain an audience and buffalo his critics.
He is a lecherous creep who preys on women half his age because, as he says, “when you’re rich, they just let you do it.”
He’s a fool on international affairs; a blowhard on how to use military might; a threat to our national economy; and he has the personality of a dangerous dictator if ever he were to gain power.
There is a reason why 350 economists, from all political perspectives, recently stated that the national and world economy would be in peril if Trump were elected. There is a reason why scientists around the world fear a Trump presidency would reverse the progress made on climate change. There is a reason why many business leaders are hoping for a Clinton win because of the prolonged instability a Trump victory would cause. There is a reason why prominent newspapers around the nation that have never supported a Democrat for president, are now supporting Clinton over Trump. In each case their collective assessment is that Trump is unfit to serve as president.
If the American voter rejects that collective wisdom, tears will be wept for a 220-year-old democratic experiment that failed. For if that is the collective wisdom of our people, we are a once-great nation in decline.
Vote this coming Tuesday as if your future depends on it, because in this election it does.
Angelo S. Lynn

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