这是一个芝加哥郊区高中四年级学生的大选后感言。
“Donald Trump is our new president and he will be inaugurated into office on January 20th, 2017. Until then, Obama lives out his last months in office and will probably drop a couple of pardons towards the end like any other late president does. Trump can rest easy knowing he will be the next president, and Hillary will work on accepting her loss despite winning the popular vote.
But what will the American people do? Many hated Trump for his racism, sexism, and extremism while others hated Hillary for corruption and a lack of integrity.
Some people claim that Donald Trump will cause the end of this country, that his flaws will set us back a decade, or even more specifically, that his hands are on or near the nuclear codes. Others claim that he will “make America great again”, as his campaign slogan suggests, in contrast to those who say America is already great. The bottom line is that there is a great divide in the American people. There are those who see the sky falling and those who see a country made safer. Inevitably, in the weeks and months to come with Trump as president, the sky will be exactly where it is. One man can’t bring down a country as strong and important as this one. One vote can’t tear apart a nation, but us people–the ones who work and vote–can.
In every election, there is a winner and a loser, and no matter who wins, life goes on. Trump as president is not the end of the world, but that is ultimately up to us as the people of this country. The only thing that could possibly bring down the United States after this last election is our reaction to it and how we deal with it. Of course, this is true for every election, but it is most important for this one. Those who love Trump are currently celebrating, while those who didn’t are probably amazed that the sun came up the morning after. The truth is that everyone needs to accept the election and the legitimacy of our government system.
Don’t worry about the end of the world, because Trump won’t cause that.
Don’t worry about the fall of America, because Trump won’t cause that either. But we might.
We need to unify, now more so than ever, and not only accept who our president is but trust our national government. There is no use in getting caught up in the results of this election for the next 4 years, because then we cease to progress and improve. By holding onto this defeat, we are setting this country back a decade on our own.
Who cares if your friend supported Trump. Who cares if your family member supported Hillary. The only thing that could truly set this country back is us. We all need to put this election behind us and look towards the future with our heads held high. I may not have supported any candidate in this election, but throughout it all and into the future, I support this country.
