The Choice of A President

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With the first presidential debate slated for 9pm EST tonight at Hofstra University in Long Island, NY and the latest survey showing Trump ahead of Clinton by 2 points, it’s much too easy to get lost in the noise created by the media and the frequent and highly misleading polling result and forget the most important aspect of an election, to choose the best candidate who will take the country to a better tomorrow.

It’s really not that difficult; in fact, it’s the easiest choice to make in a very longtime. There are only two candidates, Donald Trump for the Republican Party, Hillary Clinton for the Democratic Party. For more than two centuries now, the choice has always been very simple: Republican constituents vote for the Republican candidate; Democratic constituents vote for the Democratic candidate. And the constituents who have labeled themselves independent – if there is such thing – would vote Democrat or Republican depending on which party their beliefs and ideals align most closely to and with. That is pretty much how the country has been electing its presidents.

So, what makes the choice so difficult now? Besides the media, nothing. In fact, it has never been easier to elect a candidate for president than it is now. Before Trump managed to garner this much support (44% as per the latest survey) from the Republican constituents, I was very much supportive of his candidacy; when most – including those who now support him – derided him, laughed at the idea of a Trump presidency and even discarded him as a serious candidate, I was in support of his candidacy (you can read about it here) and when his challengers finally woke up to the possibility that he may become the Party nominee, they all ganged up against him and formed the #NEVERTRUMP coalition; I was very much against the movement (you can read about it here) and during that tumultuous time in the Party when most constituents started to “freak out” at the possibility that it was really happening, Trump is about to clinch the Republican nomination, I had already predicted a few months prior that was going to be the case (you can read about it here). Of course, I was dismissed for being naïve. Who is naïve now?

I said all that to make the following point and repeat what I said earlier: before, way before Trump’s fans, supporters and avid Republicans even considered supported him as the nominee, I did encourage his candidacy; way before you realized Trump could become the nominee, I could, did and wrote about it. Today however, I have a different message, a very important message, probably the most important in a lifetime: I did not flinch or hesitate a second to decide that Hillary Clinton is the best choice for the country because by any measure and analysis Donald Trump is not qualified to be the president of the United States. The choice is really that simple.

Of course hatred for the Democratic Party might tell you NEVER to vote for a Democrat; in fact, your hatred for Hillary Clinton might convince you that Donald Trump is a better choice. But contrary to all the noise in the media which promotes the idea that to choose between Hillary and Donald is a choice between two bad candidates, this is not so. The choice is between one candidate (Hillary) who takes the job of the presidency seriously and one (Donald) who doesn’t; it is the choice between one candidate who is every bit qualified in all matters politics and one who can barely spell governing; it is the choice between one candidate who understands how geopolitics works and one who doesn’t even grasp the true meaning of geopolitics; it is the choice between one candidate who can make alliances, negotiate compromises and decide the best course of action for the country (and the world) and one who simply ignores the complexities of world politics; it is the choice between one candidate who understands that respect for other heads of states is necessary in the fight against terrorism and one who disrespects heads of states.

Yes, the choice for the 2016 presidential elections is very simple; don’t take my word for it. Many smart people in the Republican Party have already come to the same conclusion. In addition to top Republican officials (some from former administrations) including former Republican President George H. W. Bush who have publicly endorsed Hillary Clinton, for the first time in 75 years, a Republican leaning publication, the Dallas Morning News, has endorsed Hillary Clinton, a Democrat nominee for the presidency; also the Cincinnati Enquirer, another Republican leaning publication which has consistently endorsed the Republican nominee of the Party, broke tradition and threw its endorsement behind Hillary Clinton.

It is indeed true that the choice of a president this time around is the easiest in a very long time. Don’t let your ego get in the way; don’t let your emotions drag the country in the mud of a Trump presidency. Donald Trump is the least qualified individual who has vied for the presidency since the creation of the Republic. While his slogan – Make America Great Again – is appealing, Mr. Trump is every bit wrong for the country.

Yes, the choice of a president is simple and easy. It is definitely NOT Donald Trump.

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