Quite frankly, I don’t like talking politics. I stay involved and practice my civic duties, but I don’t like being loud about my opinion. This isn’t about my personal political views, it’s about the thoughts that came to mind when first listening to Donald Trump’s victory speech. Everyone knows it has been a long, awful, campaign season. This article asks a lot of the questions I had while listening to Trump’s speech, but also reflects what was running through my head so late at night after the election.
I wondered why Trump chose to be nice after he won. He thanks Secretary Clinton for her service to the country, but you never saw that kind of behavior from him over the past several months. But then I remembered that we live in a society where “the nice guy finishes last.” Throughout the course of the presidential campaign, neither of the candidates were nice. Neither of them conducted themselves in a way that portrayed them in the best light.
It is time for us to come together as a united people. Do I realistically see that happening? No. As a people, we stand divided on many issues, and that’s entirely okay. The problem lies in the way we try to overcome those differences. Obviously, as president, I hope Trump can unify the people of the United States more than he divides them, but how will he do it? Why didn’t he stand for a more united nation while running for office?
Trump said we will get along with all nations willing to get along with us. I completely agree that as a nation we should seek to find greater peace with other countries, but what about those countries that do not want to get along with us? There are a lot of different ways a disagreement might occur with other nations, and a lot of different routes one could take toward a resolution of such problems.
What is Trump’s definition of success? Clearly, from his lifetime, his personal success is based on monetary gain. But what does he want success to be for America? Success is once again being a united nation. Success is improving the economy. Success is giving opportunities for people to find their own personal success.
Here’s where Trump starts to ramble. To him, everyone is great. That seems to be his go-to word. Maybe he should try branching out a little more. Thank someone for being supportive, intelligent, creative-anything but “great.” Also, he should keep better tabs on his friends so he can actually find them in the audience instead of wasting time searching for them.
Donald Trump, don’t let the American people down. Many people are already discouraged because you were elected. You certainly weren’t eloquent during your campaign. Many acts of hatred and violence have stemmed from your election to the office of president. Like you said, your work is only just beginning. Work for something that makes life better for all Americans. Work for a country that loves instead of hates and uplifts and supports instead of beating down. I want to say I’m proud to be an American and mean it.
How much of what he said did he actually mean? I don’t know, and no one knows but the man himself. One can only hope that the future president will hold fast to his word to reunite our country, and bring a nation of chaos to peace. So, President-Elect Trump, I urge you to hold tight to the words of your victory speech. As vague as it was, you spoke of an America I desire to live in. A united country working for improvement for all Americans.
