There is nothing good about what just happened to America.
But there’s no need for me to bring more darkness; by the time you read this your psyche will have been swimming in darkness for several days. And keep in mind that Clinton won the popular vote and Trump won because of what he insisted was a “rigged system.” So, much as this might surprise you, let’s take a look at where there is some hope… none of it coming from Trump himself, but rather from the contortions we are all about to go through.
There’s No Mandate
Because of how often his putrid personality has already been captured on tape, there is no Trump mandate. Further, there is no Republican mandate because the GOP was clearly divided about Trump right up until the final seconds. Yes, they now control all branches of government. But they will do that without the approval of half of American voters. Voters have elected an ill-informed racist and misogynist with no political experience, but this does not mean that they have said they want a poorly run racist and sexist country.
The End of Exceptionalism
Previous to Trumpocalypse there has been a lot of talk about “American exceptionalism”, the idea that we are different or even better than other countries because of who we are and what we’ve been through. Many felt that superior attitude made for bad vibes on the planet. But now we have freely elected a moral vacuum tube and potential despot with as much proven cupidity as any tin pot dictator in any banana republic. I still love America, but we just told the world we don’t think we’re so special that we deserve a good leader instead of an illiterate colon polyp. This might help alleviate some hostile feelings towards the U.S. (NOTE: Putin has already confirmed this.)
Politics is not Entertainment
Years ago I worked on a TV pilot that would have been much like “The Daily Show” albeit a few years ahead of that program, so I’m as guilty as the next guy on this: We came to assume that politics should entertain us. Well, it has. Now we pay. Some had the message that Trump wasn’t funny, but now we all know. Taking elections seriously from now on (Hello, corporate media…) is bound to make us stronger in four years.
Running the Store
Let’s say a grocery store in your neighborhood was run by a manager who thought he could grab women by their genitalia, dump on Latinos, lie about being a billionaire and conceal his taxes, and make denigrating comments right to the faces of his female customers. You’d stop shopping there. Trump now has to actually run the store. With help from petulant children like Newt Gingrich, Chris Christie and Kellyanne Conway you can expect a wet clean-up to be overdue in most aisles. This will keep our nightmare trimmed back to four miserable years.
Civil Disobedience
Trump doesn’t pay taxes, why should we? The number of potential platforms for organizing behind the message “He’s not my President” is virtually unlimited. More importantly, I have a hard time believing anybody with experience in the military is going to accept Trump as their commander-in-chief. “Aren’t you the guy that knows more about ISIS than the generals do?” our Joint Chiefs of Staff will chortle. Men and women in the military are going to knowingly walk into danger because the “grab them by the p***y” guy told them to? I don’t think so.
Education and Feminism
Yes, Black Tuesday was a setback for women all over the world. Especially because of women who actually voted for Trump, a mystery that cannot be explained. But in the faces of the young women who were weeping in despair at Hillary Clinton’s concession speech I saw a whole next generation of feminists who will vow to themselves to never hurt like that again. I saw future school teachers carefully explaining to students that a woman is not an inflatable sex toy and that ignorance can have global implications of the very worst sort. I saw college students who will study politics and law after living through the worst Presidency in American history. I saw the kind of disappointment that leads to renewal and commitment. I saw hope.
