To all Republicans I know--This election year has really hurt. I've had many people question my intense distaste for the Republican Candidate for President. I believe if you saw things from my perspective, you'd understand why.
Back in the year 2000, as an 8 year old girl, I started following elections. We even had a mock election in our school. My Mom and Pawpaw were Democrats voting for Gore, and as the most important people in my world at the time, I certainly thought that's how I needed to vote. I went to a public school, and the stances of each candidate were explained to me. The whole school was involved, and I fell in love with everything about it. It was then, as an 8 year old, I decided I would rather choose Bush, and I became a Republican. I promptly told my Pawpaw that I would run for President someday, sharing my new political views, and I asked if he would vote for me. He quickly told me no, as I was not only a Republican, but also a woman. (Yes, a Democrat said that!) I've never been the type to be deterred, so I looked further into politics, and I read all that I could. I fell in love with the Reagan-era, and championed each election, even when I couldn't take part.
I stood for the Republican Party in every way I could. In my Freshman year of college, I initially attended a private liberal arts school. Multiple people told me it was wrong to be a Republican, so I transformed a t-shirt I had to say, "I am a Conservative Republican". I wore it everywhere, along with my, "I only date Republicans" t-shirt. I was so proud of the party I identified with, and I could not wait for the moment that I would get to be involved in ushering in someone to be my generation's Ronald Reagan. What made it even better was the fact that my birthday happens to be January 20th, the day they inaugurate presidents.
That being said, each year of my adult life it seems that the Republican Party deteriorates. This year, I believe everything I thought about the Republican Party has fallen to pieces. This year should have been the GOP's year to win. We were facing Hillary Clinton. All we needed was a strong candidate. We needed a true statesman, someone to champion American values. Someone who could be a beacon for Republican women to know they were supported, and someone to usher in the value of minorities in Republican voting. Instead of any of those things, what we got was Donald Trump.
Why did we pick him? I believe it is because the GOP is at the weakest it has ever been. The platforms are still great platforms, but the GOP continues to struggle to connect with people my age. Instead of seeing strong people with a moral code, they see no differences in lifestyle from the Democratic Party. Republicans have stricter ideals for spending, healthcare, and big issues as a platform, but as real people they don't follow that same code. People aren't stupid, and my generation loves explanations. If we aren't backing up our viewpoints with our lives what is the point? If we champion things like cutting government spending, but bankrupt ourselves, people don't believe it. If we are not okay with abortion, but treat women in general like trash, people don't believe it. If we say we want to fix immigration issues, but we treat those of a different race like lesser members of society, PEOPLE DON'T BELIEVE IT. If we ridicule Bill Clinton for his wrong actions, but have conversations about actions we've taken similarly, people don't believe it. So, what is the issue with the GOP? People don't believe us anymore. People don't believe the platform because they see the lives of our people. This is the problem I have with the candidate we have selected, but to be fair, it isn't just Donald Trump. It is the Republican Party as a whole right now.
All of that being said, I'm not saying we're any worse than Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party, what I'm saying is we should be better. We should be much better. We all know that Obamacare doesn't work, and the debt this country has doesn't work. What are we doing to change it? Are we saying we support one thing, but condoning another? This is the underlying problem here. As much as it is hard to say, it is not just Donald Trump. Truthfully, was anyone really surprised by the awful things he said? Not at all. That is the hard part about seeing this election unfold. We aren't shocked, and we aren't concerned. We're apathetic solely in the name of trying to mindlessly defeat Hillary Clinton.
Unfortunately, however, we're at a loss of choices here. For those of you hoping for a third-party candidate, how I was initially, it isn't going to happen. Right now, we're trapped in a two-party system. Although this election has shown me what the party is doing, it's a bit too little too late. We have two options. Choose wisely, and unfortunately, there are going to be repercussions to either of the candidates, one just may be a little less. The lesser of two evils is still evil. I think with this kind of situation that maybe it will give America a chance to wake up. I hope we take it. And a reminder, no matter who is President, it doesn't change Who is in charge. Our world is not over because the GOP selected a bad candidate. Sometimes we need a wake up call. I'm hoping everyone uses this as one. 2 Chronicles 7:14 says, "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." It's not a great situation, but there's always hope.
