Cursory Remarks on the Current State of the Union

From: The Atlantic, Nov 2016

For only the third time since its founding in 1857,  The Atlantic endorsed a candidate: Hillary Clinton. Worth repeating  was The Atlantic's rejection of the other candidate:

...but we are mainly concerned with the Republican Party’s nominee, Donald J. Trump, who might be the most ostentatiously unqualified major-party candidate in the 227-year history of the American presidency.

Much to the dismay of the popular will of America,  and not as independent of the popular will of Russia, Donald Trump was elected by the Electoral College to be our the next President of the United States of America.

What the Hell?

Where does the Majority of Americans–those of us who voted for Hillary–go from here?

How could this have happened to America?

Congress said it is going to investigate the Russian intervention of our electoral process.  And Congress should–but it won't–investigate the Giuliani/Flynn connections to the FBI that affected the outcome of the election.

As for those who voted for Trump, we are ashamed of you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFqCJfUKlls

 On January 23, 2016, in making a point about the loyalty of his followers, Donald Trump said, "I could stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn't lose any voters okay."

Donald Trump was right. No matter what he did or said, he didn't lose voters.  No matter what the Press discovered and revealed about him, he didn't lose voters. No matter who he bullied or ridiculed, he didn't lose voters.

And now he is on the doorsteps of the White House, and the majority of Americans are ashamed.

As for the Trump followers, those who voted for Trump–our brothers, sons, fathers, sisters, aunts, uncles and yes, former friends–they have lost our respect. They have made America morally bankrupt.

Do they really think he is going to make America Great again?

Drain the swamp! Did he?  Not by the looks of his cabinet choices.

And how about all those Russian connections?

Are you proud of yourself?

Aren't you afraid of what Trump can do to our country?

We are very afraid.

And we are ashamed of you for making us feel this way.

Hillary Clinton's Biggest Mistake

I, like most Democrats, am still shocked by the outcome of the Presidential election.  Around the middle of October, it appeared that Hillary Clinton would become the next President of the United States.  Trump was imploding, Republicans were abandoning ship, and there was even talk that the Democrats were going to retake the Senate.

On October 19th, Jason Easely wrote an article for PoliticusUSA reporting that Trump's own campaign manager did not agree with Trump that the election was rigged: The Rats Flee the Sinking Ship as Trump's Own Campaign Manager Throws Him Under the Bus.

On October 20th, Nicholas Lemann wrote in The New Yorker about the disarray of the Republican Party and "Trump's apparently inevitable defeat:" The Long Decline of the Republican Establishment.

On October 21st, the website Five Thirty Eight gave Hillary Clinton an 86.5% chance of becoming the next President of the United States.  And it gave the Democrats a 73.5% chance of retaking the Senate!

Even the USC/L.A. Times Poll had Hillary ahead on Oct 24th and 25th!

What happened?

Rudy Giuliani happened.

Rudy Giuliani happened to be at the Al Smith Charity Event in New York City on October 20th.  And Hillary Clinton made her biggest mistake! She belittled Giuliani for calling Trump "a genius" for not paying taxes.

And Giuliani was not amused:   Huffington Post Article: Giuliani Was Not Amused....

On October 25th, Rudy Giuliani appeared on Fox and Friends, chuckled and said that the Trump camp still had a few surprises up their sleeve.  When asked if they were October surprises, he chuckled again and said, "You'll see...:"

On October 28th, James Comey released his bombshell that the FBI was looking into more Clinton emails.  And Rudy Giuliani was still chuckling!

On November 2nd,  Fox News' Bret Baier reported that an avalanche of evidence had the FBI heading toward an indictment of the Clinton Foundation.  And Rudy Giuliani couldn't stop chuckling!

Note in the tweets above what Gen Flynn said.  Also note Rachel Maddow's comment about the FBI leaks.

On November 4th, CNN's Don Lemon called out Giuliani for hinting about the Comey letter two days before it happened.  Did Giuliani use his FBI contacts to stir the pot and get even with Hillary?  One of Giuliani's companies represents the union of active and retired FBI agents.

On November 4th Fox News' Bret Baier apologized for his "incorrect story." And Rudy Giuliani was still chuckling!  Side Note:  Didn't Dan Rather get fired for "falsely" reporting about George Bush's National Guard Service?

On November 6th, James Comey reported that the FBI had completed their investigation and had turned up no new damaging emails.  But the damage had already been done.  On Nov 6th, the USC/L.A. Times poll had Trump ahead again:

48.2% to 42.6%

And Rudy Giuliani was still chuckling!


You know the rest.  The Clinton campaign never recovered.  Trump voters voted down the ticket.  Trump won the election, and the Republican party retained control of both houses.


And now Rudy Giuliani believes he "earned" Trump's nomination to be Secretary of State.

And yes, Rudy Giuliani is still chuckling!