On Monday, November 3, 2008,
I took a picture from my home office window of the setting sun outside. It was
the night before what I knew would be the election of Barack Obama and I wanted
to preserve the last sunset on what was left of America as I knew it. Sounds a
bit melodramatic, I know, but, what can I say -- I wasn't in the best mood that day. Turns out,
it was for valid reasons.
On Inauguration Day 2009, I tried to be optimistic and, at the very least, revel in the history we were making by having the first black president. But I couldn’t pretend I didn’t know what Barack Obama represented in his leftist policies and therefore, couldn’t ignore the uneasy pit in my stomach. Unfortunately, things turned out even worse than I feared.
After eight years of Barack Obama, America’s enemies laugh at us and our friends no longer trust us. Our military is depleted, our dependence on food stamps has soared, our traditional institutions have been obliterated, and the word “hate” is now freely applied to anyone who openly supports and tries to live the loving teachings of Christ, while their livelihoods are stripped away.
I don’t know what kind of president Donald Trump will be. But I know he fundamentally differs from Barack Obama in that Trump openly proclaims his love for America, while Obama promised to fundamentally change it.
Trump wants to build on and improve what makes America great, while Obama spent years apologizing for it.
Trump respects our law enforcement and military, while Obama often took the side of thugs, set race relations back by decades, and used our military as a playing ground for social engineering and other reckless experiments.
I don’t know what America will look like four years from now under a Trump presidency, but looking back at Obama’s, I see the wreckage strewn about. I see anger, division, and many other consequences of the identity politics to which we were all subjected for so long.
I don’t know if terrorism will be diminished in four years, but I trust Trump won’t bow to foreign kings, ignore our open borders, make deals with our enemies that put us all at risk, or treat our best ally in the Middle East, Israel, like dirt.
I don’t know what the employment rate will be in four years, but I know Trump understands and acknowledges the merits and efforts of hard work, and would never wag his finger at us, denying that our accomplishments are our own. Instead, I foresee a president who would inspire Americans to work hard, pull their weight, and do their best.
I don't know if Trump will go to church regularly as president, but I trust he would never deny our country's Christian heritage, put Christians on the same level as fanatic Muslim terrorists, or, as Hillary Clinton did, promise that we'd not be allowed to use our moral or religious beliefs as grounds for objection to reprehensible things like abortion.
I don’t know of any Republicans who smashed windows, bashed faces, set fires, or threatened murder as expressions of their disapproval of Barack Obama. But I have seen plenty of those who have done these very things to express their disapproval of Trump, including CNN who shamelessly ran a story recently about how President Obama could continue his presidency if Donald Trump and Mike Pence were to be assassinated before being sworn in.
And while I give Barack Obama credit for his seemingly gracious behavior as the transition of power takes place, it would have been nice to hear him condemn the violent oppositions to Trump and CNN's despicable story, or at least berate his fellow Democrats for their very ungracious boycott of Trump’s inauguration. That’s okay now – I suppose it’s about to all be water under the bridge - as long as we can reverse the direction that the water's been flowing for eight long years.
What stands out the most is that, despite all this, Americans did not give up. We did not cave in to these eight years of anti-American rhetoric, nor allow that path toward destruction to continue under a Hillary Clinton presidency. Here's to hoping that, under Donald Trump, we can undo some of that damage and turn back to a better path.
Do I think Trump is perfect? Definitely not. There are some areas, in fact, that I wish he'd do differently in his approach to some things, but I'll address those things as - and if - needed. Today, though, is about the end of an era that was negative, unjust, and damaging, and the chance we have now to turn things around. To Trump's naysayers, I humbly say, give him a chance, and at the very least, respect the office of the presidency. We really are all in this together.
It's been a long, weary eight years. I'm so ready for a change, and more than anything, I'm ready to see the sun shine on our country once again. Happy Inauguration Day!
On Inauguration Day 2009, I tried to be optimistic and, at the very least, revel in the history we were making by having the first black president. But I couldn’t pretend I didn’t know what Barack Obama represented in his leftist policies and therefore, couldn’t ignore the uneasy pit in my stomach. Unfortunately, things turned out even worse than I feared.
After eight years of Barack Obama, America’s enemies laugh at us and our friends no longer trust us. Our military is depleted, our dependence on food stamps has soared, our traditional institutions have been obliterated, and the word “hate” is now freely applied to anyone who openly supports and tries to live the loving teachings of Christ, while their livelihoods are stripped away.
I don’t know what kind of president Donald Trump will be. But I know he fundamentally differs from Barack Obama in that Trump openly proclaims his love for America, while Obama promised to fundamentally change it.
Trump wants to build on and improve what makes America great, while Obama spent years apologizing for it.
Trump respects our law enforcement and military, while Obama often took the side of thugs, set race relations back by decades, and used our military as a playing ground for social engineering and other reckless experiments.
I don’t know what America will look like four years from now under a Trump presidency, but looking back at Obama’s, I see the wreckage strewn about. I see anger, division, and many other consequences of the identity politics to which we were all subjected for so long.
I don’t know if terrorism will be diminished in four years, but I trust Trump won’t bow to foreign kings, ignore our open borders, make deals with our enemies that put us all at risk, or treat our best ally in the Middle East, Israel, like dirt.
I don’t know what the employment rate will be in four years, but I know Trump understands and acknowledges the merits and efforts of hard work, and would never wag his finger at us, denying that our accomplishments are our own. Instead, I foresee a president who would inspire Americans to work hard, pull their weight, and do their best.
I don't know if Trump will go to church regularly as president, but I trust he would never deny our country's Christian heritage, put Christians on the same level as fanatic Muslim terrorists, or, as Hillary Clinton did, promise that we'd not be allowed to use our moral or religious beliefs as grounds for objection to reprehensible things like abortion.
I don’t know of any Republicans who smashed windows, bashed faces, set fires, or threatened murder as expressions of their disapproval of Barack Obama. But I have seen plenty of those who have done these very things to express their disapproval of Trump, including CNN who shamelessly ran a story recently about how President Obama could continue his presidency if Donald Trump and Mike Pence were to be assassinated before being sworn in.
And while I give Barack Obama credit for his seemingly gracious behavior as the transition of power takes place, it would have been nice to hear him condemn the violent oppositions to Trump and CNN's despicable story, or at least berate his fellow Democrats for their very ungracious boycott of Trump’s inauguration. That’s okay now – I suppose it’s about to all be water under the bridge - as long as we can reverse the direction that the water's been flowing for eight long years.
What stands out the most is that, despite all this, Americans did not give up. We did not cave in to these eight years of anti-American rhetoric, nor allow that path toward destruction to continue under a Hillary Clinton presidency. Here's to hoping that, under Donald Trump, we can undo some of that damage and turn back to a better path.
Do I think Trump is perfect? Definitely not. There are some areas, in fact, that I wish he'd do differently in his approach to some things, but I'll address those things as - and if - needed. Today, though, is about the end of an era that was negative, unjust, and damaging, and the chance we have now to turn things around. To Trump's naysayers, I humbly say, give him a chance, and at the very least, respect the office of the presidency. We really are all in this together.
It's been a long, weary eight years. I'm so ready for a change, and more than anything, I'm ready to see the sun shine on our country once again. Happy Inauguration Day!
No comments:
Post a Comment