I voted for the first time on November 8, 1988. When the presidential elections roll around this fall, I will have been voting for 28 years. In that time, I have voted for Republicans, Democrats and at least one third-party candidate. In all that time, one thing has never changed. I have always believed that no matter who won, the United States would be okay. With this election that has changed.
The purpose of this post is not to convince you to vote for Secretary Hillary Clinton, Governor Gary Johnson, Dr. Jill Stein or Evan McMullin (the newest Independent candidate). If you want to write in Senator Bernie Sanders name that is up to you. You need to research each candidate and decide who best represents your values and political beliefs. What I am here to say is the one thing I’ve never said in 28 years of voting. There is a candidate that absolutely cannot be President. That candidate is Donald Trump.
I am trying to imagine him as a diplomat. Instead of reasoned arguments, we will get heated diatribes. Donald Trump doesn’t believe in reasoned arguments. I am not even sure he believes in listening to anyone but himself. In March, he was asked who his foreign policy advisors would be. The answer, his number one advisor would be himself. That’s gonna make for great foreign policy.
Can you imagine his interactions with Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel or the UK’s Prime Minister Theresa May considering the misogynistic attitude he has displayed many times? We only need look at his attacks on Fox News’ Megan Kelly to see his attitudes in full display. Will he even consider them his equals? Somehow I doubt it.
The United States needs to have strong relationships with it’s closest neighbors. How can we maintain a strong relationship with Mexico if Donald Trump wins in November? He has said that Mexico is not our friend and that Mexican immigrants are rapists and drug dealers. I suspect that relationship will go south pretty quickly with Donald Trump in office.
Are you concerned about national security? Then Donald Trump is not the candidate for you. There is a reason that 50 Republican national security experts are refusing to vote for Donald Trump. They are convinced that “in the Oval Office, he would be the most reckless President in American history.” Is that the man you want responsible for national security? His temperament makes him absolutely incapable of protecting this country.
Want to look a little closer to home? The President of the United States is also our Commander-in-Chief. How can Donald Trump maintain good relationships with those serving our country in the military when he has shown he is willing to attack former POWs like John McCain and Gold Star Parents like Khizr and Ghazala Khan? I think it will be very hard. I know I cannot support anyone who would denigrate those willing to fight for our county and the family members of those who made the ultimate sacrifice. Can you?
You need to look no farther than some of the things Donald Trump said in just the last week to know he is unfit to hold office. First he implies that gun owners should assassinate Secretary Clinton or federal judges. He claims it was a joke. Even if you believe him, I don’t think we need a President who makes these kind of jokes.
Then he makes the claim that President Obama and Secretary Clinton co-founded ISIS. A conservative talk show host tried to clarify his position by asking if he meant as a result of their policies. His answer. “I meant that Obama founded ISIS literally.” Now he claims he was being sarcastic. How can anyone want this man to be our President.
The idea of Donald Trump becoming president truly frightens me. He is a narcissistic, hate-filled, violent, misogynistic, racist who is willing to discriminate against members of a minority religion. He lacks the temperament and knowledge necessary to be our President. I am not the only one who feels this way.
The list of Republicans not willing to support Donald Trump is growing. Earlier I mentioned the 50 GOP national security experts not willing to support Mr. Trump. They are not the only ones. One of the latest to announce they will not be supporting Mr. Trump in the fall is Senator Susan Collins from Maine.
I will not be voting for Donald Trump for president. This is not a decision I make lightly, for I am a lifelong Republican. But Donald Trump does not reflect historical Republican values nor the inclusive approach to governing that is critical to healing the divisions in our country. –Senator Susan Collins
Meg Whitman, the president and CEO of HP, a major GOP donor and former candidate for governor in California has stated she will be voting for Hillary Clinton this fall.
To vote Republican out of party loyalty alone would be to endorse a candidacy that I believe has exploited anger, grievance, xenophobia and racial division. Donald Trump’s demagoguery has undermined the fabric of our national character. –Meg Whitman
These are just a few examples of Republicans stating publicly that they are not supporting Donald Trump. This list is only going to grow longer before November. Can you remember another election where so many prominent members of a candidate’s own party have come out against him? I can’t.
I care about the United States. I feel that I am truly blessed to have been born in this great nation. I love this quote from Alexis De Toqueville.
America is great because she is good. If America ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.
I believe the United States is a great country. I know Donald Trump is trying to convince you that the U.S. is no longer a great country and only he can fix this problem. I would argue this is still a great nation and will remain so unless Donald Trump is elected.
I know that many of Donald Trump’s supporters truly hate the idea of Hillary Clinton as President. I know that if you are in this camp, you will never vote for Hillary Clinton. Just take some time to consider if you can really support Donald Trump. Is he truly the kind of leader you want for this country?
Think hard. Our nation depends on it.
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