Honestly, I don't really have a hangover from last night because I went to bed relatively early (around half past midnight) because as soon as it was confirmed that Ron Johnson (R-WI) would win reelection in his senate race I knew Donald Trump would win Wisconsin and the presidency. There's no way that Ron Johnson would have won on a split ticket. He needed a down ballot push from the top, no question. He was the canary.
But here are a few thoughts about last night's historic election...
1. Now we'll really see how a completely Republican-controlled country will look and how it will function. This is to also ask if President-elect Trump will just fall in line with Republican orthodoxy or will he buck the party that propelled him into office? I suspect a lot of hardship coming due to fiscal austerity.
2. Obamacare or the Affordable Care Act, if you like, is done.
It's a shame really because I have personal experience with using the Affordable Care Act and it worked for me. The premium was high because of a preexisting condition, but it would have been triple the cost with the ACA, if I could have gotten insurance at all. Granted I live in a state that set up an exchange, but I believe that if opened up interstate competition and mandated a price structure, the problem with the rates could have been fixed. Unfortunately, Democrats couldn't fix it because they didn't have the numbers and Republicans hated it because it wasn't their legislation.
We'll go back to the way it was and healthcare costs will against start to explode.
It's difficult for me to imagine how taking away health insurance from 20 million people is going to be good politically but we'll find out.
3. What's always worried me is that Donald Trump never released his tax returns and now there's no cause for him to do so ever. I'm not comfortable with just 'hoping' that he is not personally beholden financially to some government or more accurately Russian oligarch. Conflict of interest needs to be extremely scrutinized by the press at all times. Because he didn't release his tax returns, it's required.
4. I think our interaction and leadership in the world is a necessity for this country, and I do believe that leadership position for the United States will end during Trump's time in office. Our standing in the world will be greatly diminish. For example, going against trade simply on principle is a mistake. Technology eliminates a lot more jobs than trade. We are no longer that shining city on a hill as Ronald Reagan had described.
5. Foreign Policy and Military Action are now a complete wildcard. I have no idea what's going to transpire. We'll just have to hold our breath on this one.
6. Regardless of what you think of Hillary Clinton, she's not a bigot. And maybe Donald Trump isn't one either, but he embraced bigotry in a big way and this country voted him into the presidency. We now live in a country that accepts bigotry - it comes from the top. That's putting it mildly even. Hard truth, but it's the truth.
7. Democrats are screwed.
Hillary Clinton wasn't the answer, and no Bernie Sanders wasn't either. But who steps up now? I just don't see who it's going to be. The OK news here is that individuals in this day and age can rise very quickly, e.g. Barack Obama, Donald Trump.
8. The culture wars that we all thought were over are going to all come back hard and I think we're going to headed toward the extreme right. Republicans have been given full license to fulfill the entire wish list. Roe v. Wade is now on the table. This will be bitter in the worst way.
9. For all those who didn't want Donald Trump as president, and I was one of those people, I'll say this: It's going to be OK... We'll be OK. At least for now.
10. We're "The States of Trump." United only by paper. And we've embraced Trumpism, which isn't Americanism. America, as a concept (see the last sentence of point 4), is on hold.
Good Night and Good Luck.
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