The date was January 27, 2016. The presidential primaries were well under way to putting Donald Trump, self-made billionaire extraordinaire, in the White House. I posted this picture
on Facebook and wrote the following on that date:
Most of you know I steer clear of political posts because I prefer to appear neutral and would rather not get into heated discussions on SM. But I fear we are headed in a most frightening direction. I have not ‘heard’ one person support the Donald, yet we are told they’re out there. I find it odd that those who support him are quietly doing so, as if even *they* know how absurd the man is. These quiet supporters somehow admire the man for his audacity. I can see it now, if he gets into the White House, there will be a Presidential Reality TV show called: You’re Fired! And hey, why not vote for the wacko — how refreshing it will be to have someone completely out of control IN control. <Sarcasm.
I captioned the image with: Rolling over in their graves.
The most interesting thing about this post, as I look back on it now, is there were a few ‘likes’ from die hard Trump supporters (I know now). But at that time they were the ones either quietly supporting him or they did not support him and agreed with me back then that this man is a complete wacko. And they later changed their minds.
I’ve spent far too much valuable time, breath and energy trying to understand the mind of a Trump supporter. I’ve gotten absolutely nowhere. I’ve been kind, calm, and curious until the name-calling. I’ve been called libtard, libturd, stupid, angry, idiot, and more. The irony is I didn’t even know I had such liberal viewpoints until the name-calling ensued. I blame Trump. I do. He made me a Liberal, with a capital L.
It’s almost comical to me, a person who has always been pretty much right in the center. I’ve voted for republicans and I’ve voted for democrats over the years. I only voted for Obama once. I place my vote based on the person and their values. I am open minded and am concerned about the issues, the policies, the integrity of the politicians I vote for. I understood from the beginning that I would never place a vote for Donald Trump.
On November 10th, 2016 I posted this on Facebook:
Yesterday I was in shock, like many Americans. Part of the shock waves that rocked me was observing how angry the winning side continues to be (from my observation). The majority of the losing side is expressing sadness, including real tears, and fear. I’m trying to move on.
I’m hearing from civil people, like President Obama and Hillary Clinton and political experts: “We owe Mr. Trump a chance to prove himself as our leader.”
I contemplate that. As a rational, critical thinker that doesn’t make sense. I don’t ‘owe’ Mr. Trump anything, not even my respect. He OWES all of us an apology. If that were possible, if he could or would sincerely show remorse for his horrendous behavior insulting every group of people he despises, my heart would soften and I would agree that we owe him that much. But respect is EARNED. It’s not automatic, except for those who live under dictatorship. Then it’s the law.
It’s a sad day in America when half the country cannot converse with the other half. A whole lot of Thanksgiving Day dinner tables will have empty chairs around them because of the depth of the divide. Political correctness is not a bad thing. It’s common decency and creates a civil society. Before Donald Trump stood up and proudly offended everyone while touting the evils of political correctness, we kept our racist, bigoted selves quiet. All decency went out the window as America spoke loud and clear with their votes. And please don’t bother telling me that he is the lesser of two evils. You voted FOR him. You owe him that chance to prove himself.
This post turned into an education. Real friends, people I knew and loved in real life, evangelical Christian friends, spewed hatred for my viewpoint and shouted that Trump was good, kind and caring. Whaaaaat?? It was beyond disturbing and I still remember the day and how shocked I was by the responses.
I do not understand the mind of a Trump supporter. I do understand folks are angry and it’s apparently easy to pass blame. I was rather ignorant to the fact that a segment of the population hated Barack Obama. I believe some of it was racial bias. Some of it was based on the unfortunate timing of Obama taking office – he was handed a real mess with the incredible economic recession. And blame they did. I told my husband when Obama won the election in 2008, that he would take the blame for the economic downfall even though he inherited it. That’s how it works.
Then there was Russia. Of course, that is to be continued.
Never in my wildest imaginings could I have anticipated a president who hates as much as Trump hates. He makes no bones about his hatred and seeks to divide America because that somehow makes him feel good. I remember his New Year’s Eve tweet:
As our Country rapidly grows stronger and smarter, I want to wish all of my friends, supporters, enemies, haters, and even the very dishonest Fake News Media, a Happy and Healthy New Year. 2018 will be a great year for America!
Stick with us. Don’t believe the crap you see from these people, the fake news. … What you’re seeing and what you’re reading is not what’s happening