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The American Presidential Election This article is about the US Presidential election and looks at what will and may lie ahead. This President-elect has made history, but there are remaining questions about his temperament, personal characteristics and suitability for high political office that will test his term as POTUS; and most of these questions could be answered by the end of April next year. After a grueling Presidential election, following eighteen months of campaigning, the results are in; Americans, particularly those who opposed Donald Trump, and the world, must now get used to the fact that he has been elected to succeed President Barack Obama in 2017. It was a shock result for many, and a predictable result for some.
But let’s not be too disappointed or too self-satisfied by the result. This is how history is made. For the first time since George Washington held office, the next incumbent is a man who is not a Politician and who has never served in the military. At seventy, he is also the oldest President-elect. But the first hundred days of the new President’s term will determine what kind of leader has been elected to serve the American people. A President who will really make America great again by showing leadership internationally; demonstrating military strength when required; building the economy; healing the divisions between and within America’s political parties; reaching out to former political rivals, including Hillary Clinton; and demonstrating a Presidential persona far removed from his combative and questionable persona during the campaign process. Will he divide his country or unite it? The President-elect’s first test may be his relationship with the news media. Will it be friendly and accommodating; or hostile and adversarial? The second test for the 45th American President will be his appointment of the members of his Cabinet. Will loyal supporters such as Rudolph Giuliani, Chris Christie, Ben Carson and others be rewarded with Cabinet positions? Will some of his key campaign staff, the loyal architects of his victory, receive the recognition they deserve? How representative of the US population will these appointments be? How many women, African-Americans, Hispanics, Gays, even Democrats will fill key positions? The perceived suitability and capability of individual appointments will tell us something about the President-elect’s managerial capability and his decision-making prowess. The third test will be the new President’s inauguration speech, on 20 January, which will formally introduce him to international leaders and, more importantly, set out his domestic and international agenda for the first four years of his administration; a speech that will reflect a sense of what Americans and the world can expect of the United States of America until the next Presidential inauguration in January 2021. The fourth test for the new American President will take place during the first one hundred days of his administration. This period, ending around 30 April 2017, will demonstrate, in a practical way, the kind of POTUS Donald Trump will be; whether he will effectively demonstrate leadership, judgment, expertise, collaboration, national security, decision making, compassion, common sense, diplomatic prowess, communicability, likability, a good temperament, gravitas, knowledge, inner strength, and all the other qualities and characteristics that make a good POTUS. The fifth test will be the manner in which he exercises power, domestically and internationally. Although the Republicans hold both the House and the Senate, how will he work with the Democrats in Congress when bi-partisan collaboration proves necessary? Will he sow discord and division or build bridges and facilitate cooperation and collaboration? Of course, a relatively short period of one hundred days only provides an indication of what can be expected of the new incumbent in the future, and of course cannot with certainty predict what kind of POTUS will actually serve the American people until 2021, or perhaps 2025 if Republicans will accept a second-term candidate at age 74. Expectations about the next President might also be determined by unanticipated events such as previous US President’s have had to deal with, for example the Cuban Crisis and Hurricane Katrina. There are also campaign promises to keep. Politicians often make promises to get elected and then fail to implement them when elected. The POTUS cannot afford to be seen as a leader who reneges on promises. Voters would regard this behavior as signifying dishonesty, unreliability or weakness; not the qualities of a good leader. For this reason, the new POTUS will try to see that promises are kept, if only in the hope of ensuring election to a second four-year term. However, all presidents are also determined to leave a good legacy behind when they leave office, and President Trump can be expected to follow their lead. Other important questions arise. How effectively and skillfully will the new POTUS address the problems of illegal immigration, national security, economic growth, job creation, medical care, the appointment of Supreme Court judges, and a host of other contentious domestic issues? As far as international issues are concerned, how will the new POTUS address relations with, for example, Russia, Iran, Israel, North Korea, the EU, Africa, Cuba, Venezuela and Mexico? An aspect of this election that is very clear is that Americans have overriding concerns about national security, illegal immigration and the economy, arguably Donald Trump’s strong points. Another important aspect is that both the news media (domestic and international) and the pollsters got this US Presidential election very wrong indeed, probably because they went with hope and emotion instead of cold facts and common sense; the fact that President-elect Trump has won the election, and might even win (the results are not yet final) the electoral contest against Hillary Clinton by as much as fifty-one Electoral College votes (321 to 218), and Hillary Clinton could lose by as much as fifty-two votes, says it all. The President is not only the leader of the United States; his leadership and decisions can also impact on the rest of the world. That’s a good reason to wish him well and not make an unnecessary enemy of Donald Trump as the next POTUS, when he takes office in about nine weeks from now. Trump, as the decisive victor, deserves acknowledgment for winning a difficult campaign that pitted Democrats, Libertarians, the Green Party, the Republican Establishment, the US news media and the pollsters against him. Earlier this morning, this election was too close to call and personally I did not have a clue who would win. However, because no Democratic President has ever succeeded a Democratic incumbent, except when the incumbent died in office, I gambled on this fact to speculate that he could and perhaps would win, but I’m still surprised at his margin of victory. Finally, those who opposed the victor of the US Presidential election need to get used to the result and hope for the best; those who supported him need to hope their chosen candidate can deliver on his promises; and all Americans need to be aware that in a time of great uncertainty, there could still be some tough years ahead. There could also be some very good ones. Duke Kent-Brown p.s. My up-coming book “Hail to the Chief" will be launched soon. If you want early notification with a special EARLY BIRD offer, contact me and request this via my Contact Form.
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