Trump supporters accuse opposition of overreacting…
…based on a biased American media.
Okay, so let’s leave American media behind and go elsewhere. It’s very late at night and I should go to bed soon, so I don’t have the time to go poking all around the world’s newspapers, but I pulled up some interesting articles from Germany’s Der Spiegel. And of course you are able to do your own poking around and not just rely on mine. Don’t worry, they’re in English:
“Donald Trump’s election has put establishment politicians in Europe in a state of panic. In Berlin, nobody knows what the US president-elect intends to do. In Brussels, fears are growing he will put wind into the sails of the growing anti-EU populist movement.” —Concern in Brussels and Berlin: Trump Spells End of Normality for Europe
“[Martin] Schulz: We’re at a historical juncture: A growing number of people are declaring what has been achieved over the past decades in Europe to be wrong. They want to return to the nation-state. Sometimes there is even a blood and soil rhetoric that for me is starkly reminiscent of the interwar years of the past century, whose demons we are still all too familiar with. We brought these demons under control through European structures, but if we destroy those structures, the demons will return. We cannot allow this to happen. Just how important this cohesion is will become clear as soon as Brexit negotiations begin. As soon as the British have determined their strategy for the negotiations with the EU, we will be confronted with a united British position.
“SPIEGEL ONLINE: It’s not only in Europe that right-wing populists like the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party are on the rise. In the United States, a right-wing populist could even become president. What would it mean for the EU if Donald Trump landed in the White House?
“Schulz: Trump is not just a problem for the EU, but for the whole world. When a man ends up in the White House who boasts about not having a clue and who says that specialist knowledge is elite nonsense, then a critical point has been reached. Then you will have an obviously irresponsible man sitting in a position that requires the utmost degree of responsibility. My worry is that he may inspire copycats, also in Europe. That’s why I hope Hillary Clinton wins.” —EU Parliament President: ‘Trump Is a Problem for the Whole World’
“Two days after the US election, Europe finds itself gripped by a mixture of disbelief and desperation, only imperfectly masked by formulaic messages of congratulations sent to Washington. Chancellor Angela Merkel even made her cooperation with Trump dependent on his adherence to fundamental values. A German head of government admonishing a newly elected US president to uphold freedom, democracy, the rule of law and human dignity? Normally such a thing would be the height of impudence.
“…Now, another Putin admirer is moving into the White House. The president-elect has praised the Kremlin autocrat several times for the strength of his leadership and has sought to allay suspicions that Putin tried to influence the outcome of US elections — despite US intelligence agencies’ conviction that he did. The fact that Trump has indicated he will demand that European NATO allies pay more for US military protection, and has even called America’s own loyalty to the alliance into question, has triggered widespread concern, particularly in Eastern Europe.
“…’But fear can lead to unity, and in this case, the fear is that America may no longer be there.'” —Running Out of Allies: Trump’s Election Triggers Deep Concern in Europe
“A man who insults foreigners, women and people with disabilities, who preaches hate and snubs America’s most important partners, will run the most powerful country on Earth. It is a political catastrophe….The American voters have opted for change, though no one knows what it will look like. Given Trump’s Islamophobic, nationalistic, hateful statements during the election campaign, only one thing can be said for sure: It won’t be good.” –Roland Nelles, Trump’s Victory Ushers in Dangerous Instability
“Most in Europe were expecting to wake up to President-elect Hillary Clinton. But now that Trump has won, many political leaders in Germany and the EU are in no mood to celebrate — with some exceptions.” —Europe Reacts to Trump: ‘The World Is Crumbling in Front of Our Eyes’
This shows you that over in Europe, even the leaders are very worried about Trump. They’re worried not just about him, but about a growing number of populist leaders in Europe, a trend of nationalism and right-wing politics which they fear will lead them back to the warring Europe of past centuries. This isn’t some imaginary bugbear made up by the American media and liberal outlets.
People are concerned because of this guy’s character, not just because of a year and a half of campaigning. I’ve been hearing about this guy for some 30 years and have always seen him as a narcissist, even before I knew what a narcissist was. In recent years I also saw him as a blowhard and wondered why the heck anyone even cared what he thought about anything, let alone politics. I certainly never saw him as presidential material.
Does he really believe the crap he spewed about Muslims, Latinos, etc. etc., or was it just campaigning? I don’t know. I do know it stirred up an unsavory element from the dregs of American society. Can it be quickly put back underground? Possibly. But then again, minorities have been trying to tell us for some time that the racist undercurrent is still in American society, even though whites often deny it.
But it’s Trump’s tendency to rage that has European leaders worried, along with various claims and threats that affect European interests.
I’m also worried about the ripple effect his election could have on sexual assault victims, and women who have suffered other forms of harassment (which, I hear, is pretty much all of them). Will we shut up again as we’ve often done, or keep speaking out? I’ve heard the tape; that was no media fabrication. I’ve also heard his “apology,” from start to finish, and I don’t believe it was real, because of all the earmarks of a false apology contained in it.
And yet look how the Republican leaders went after Bill Clinton for Lewinsky and other women, even going so far as to impeach him for it.
I’m also concerned about full Republican control of Congress, because for years Republican leaders have fought to repeal and change various laws that I feel are important, and now they have their chance to do so.
I am concerned about conservative control over the Supreme Court; I have always felt that a balanced court–half liberal, half conservative, and a swing–is far more conducive to fair and balanced judgments. And the same goes for a balanced Congress. In recent years, Republicans have tried to pass laws which I find both alarming and wrong. This gives them the chance to carry them through with very little opposition.
My own state has been under Republican control for several years, and it’s in terrible shape now: Dearly held rights have been gutted; teachers are fleeing; the openness of the government has been in jeopardy; the infrastructure is crumbling; the state colleges are struggling; the state Supreme Court is showing obvious corruption and bias; and the state government is rife with corruption that–thanks to a corrupt Court–we can’t root out. Walker has been entrenching himself by abolishing the very programs which were put there to keep corruption out of the state government. I fear the same thing happening to the country now.
You don’t have to be “hysterically afraid that Hitler’s been elected” to have these fears about the future of your country. These things are enough to make us fear that our interests will be steamrolled over by the up and coming US government, even though we are half the country.
And as for the Electoral College–The popular vote not lining up with the Electoral vote has been extremely rare. But now we’ve seen it twice in a span of only 16 years.
And both times, it tipped toward the Republicans.
The first time we saw this happen, Bush got elected–and then took us on a path of unnecessary war, veterans with lost limbs and brutal PTSD if they returned home, torture, and the loss of respect from other nations. Oh, yeah, and that Great Recession thing.
That will make people nervous. It’s ironic that Trump claimed the system was rigged, but it turns out the Democrats are seeing it as rigged.
Many of us are also well aware of how narcissists behave, and that they will do or say anything to get what they want. We have no reason to believe anything Trump says–whether vitriol and threats during the campaign, or appeasing speeches afterward. He has changed positions so many times over the years that who knows what he really thinks.
Telling us our concerns are just made-up and caused by the media, is gaslighting.