This year’s extraordinary election is less than two months away. Like most Americans, I am not pleased with the choices we have before us. With all of the negative generalities coming from both sides, I decided to try to put on paper specifically what concerns me.
I really am not looking to start an argument or to defend any candidate–please consider this to be a personal interim report, subject to change as more information becomes available in the coming weeks.
Concerns I have about Donald Trump/Republicans/Conservatives
The temperament of the candidate and focus on himself. Petulance and his need to denigrate others on a personal level.
Too close to big corporations and too much crony-capitalism, like the ethanol gift to farmers and tax breaks for every lobbyist’s interests.
Not moving fast enough with Congress to rein in spending, reduce regulations, and reform taxes to reduce rates and close loopholes, which, if actually done, would create huge job growth in small and medium businesses.
Uncertain about his faith experience and beliefs.
Over-simplifying job loss as mostly a rigged trade issue, when technological change and productivity are major
contributors, setting up expectations for job creation that cannot be met and/or would actually be detrimental to the economy as a whole, increasing the prices of many goods.
While correctly exerting more world leadership from the front, mistakenly not involving as many allies as possible, and stumbling into nation building without a clear plan of how to do it, and with whom.
Concerns I have about Hillary Clinton/Democrats/Progressives
The candidate’s long history of focusing on herself and her personal interests in every aspect of public and private life.
The general advance of the State into every aspect of our lives: regulations, taxes, education, medical care, etc. Not only will she not slow it, she will accelerate the State’s meddling and the State’s cost burden on all of us.
The appointment of several more Ginsburg-Sotomayor type Supreme Court justices who will insure the further unraveling of our nation’s founding principles, as the Constitution is abandoned.
Too close to big corporations and too much crony-capitalism, like the ethanol gift to farmers and tax breaks for every lobbyist’s interests. In her case, this process abetted by the mixing of people and roles in the government, the Clinton Foundation, and the political campaign: All three exist primarily to support and sustain Hillary and Bill.
Never moving to rein in spending, reduce regulations, or reform taxes to reduce rates and close loopholes, thereby never creating job growth in small and medium businesses. Instead, more of the same disastrous lack of economic growth and poor job creation.
55 million babies aborted since 1973. Both the moral elitism of telling mothers that it’s OK to kill their babies, and the impact on our nation of not having those people and their children in the fabric of our society and our economy.
Uncertain about her faith experience and beliefs.
Internationally, leading from behind, creating a void to be filled by bad actors.
The continued emasculation of our military through cutbacks and politically correct social experimentation.
Proven inability to solve Veterans’ issues.
The continuation of the utterly failed War on Poverty (50 years) and the further enlargement of the Entitlement Plantation mentality.
More Government-To-Union-paybacks-for-Votes schemes, which under Democratic leadership has bankrupted, 
or nearly so, Illinois, Detroit and Puerto Rico, to name the largest defaulters, which are simply the harbingers of our coming national default if we continue to run up debt. Our debt is now at $20 trillion, double what it was just eight years ago. Progressives, not just Hillary, will never stop its destructive rise.
By kowtowing to every whim of the NEA Teachers Union, she willl promote the further destruction of our public schools by restricting and eliminating local parent-led reforms and voucher funded schools.
Lying to the parents of those killed in Benghazi to create a false story to win an election.
“Misplacing” law firm files in the White House for two years, making a great profit on pork belly futures without any investment experience, lying about being fired upon in Bosnia…on and on. All examples of self-aggrandizement at the expense of others.
Complete disregard for national security through gross negligence using her own email system, all in the name of personal secrecy and a separate set of rules for elites like her.
Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, Huma Abedin, Cheryl Mills, and Bill Clinton.
Obamacare, the way it was rammed through by buying votes, the lack of coverage, the complexity, concentration of providers, large deductibles, and increased rates. And what the Democrats may now plan.
The War on Women waged maliciously by Bill Clinton, with Hillary in a supporting role.
Appointments to 6,000 key government leadership posts, which determine how the government actually treats its citizens: the IRS, EPA, Justice Department, etc., etc. What a continuing disaster that would be.
Conclusions as of Mid-September, 2016
As I look at these lists I note that in general the first has to do with temperament and process, while the second has to do with policies and beliefs. Presumably and possibly the first can be changed more easily than the second. I will continue to think through them. If you have constructive input, please Comment.
And I will look again at the Libertarian Party (www.lp.org) and www.balancedrebellion.com as a possible third party alternative. If no candidate receives 270 Electoral College votes, then the new House selects the President from the top three vote-getters, and the new Senate picks the Vice-President. Each Senator has one vote, but in the House each state gets one vote, so Wyoming carries as much weight as New York. One has to think that the Republican states in the middle of the country will control the outcome. Would they vote for a former Republican governor, Gary Johnson, over Donald Trump?
More to follow!
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