On the eve of the inauguration of
our 58th president, it looks like most people have a vested interest
in the transition. For some, it’s all about money. Many profited enormously from
the rise of the stock market after the elections, but others didn’t, like major
Democratic donor George Soros who lost a billion dollars betting that the stock
market would crash if Trump were elected. So much for the consequences of pessimism.
Those who voted for Trump, on the
other hand, are buoyed by the optimism of his promises. But will the new
president be able to deliver? His opponents have signaled that they won’t help.
Democratic members of the Senate led by Chuck Schumer, for example, have declared
they will do everything to thwart President Trump’s ambitions, beginning with
trying to derail his appointees in the on-going confirmation hearings. They
will also oppose the “repeal and replace” of Obamacare and any attempt to pass
a budget that will defund Planned Parenthood. And that’s just for starters.
The opposition to change was not
unexpected. But the vitriolic claim that Donald Trump’s presidency is
illegitimate was. It’s one thing to examine the causes of a stunning defeat—a
flawed candidate, poor messaging, etc.—but quite another to insult the American
electorate by saying it was blindly misled by Russian hacking. For the first
time in memory, scores of legislators, following the disappointing example of Congressman
John Lewis, have declared they will not attend the inauguration in protest. So
much for the respect for a solemn ritual and the tradition of a peaceful transition.
Donald Trump may not have been the
first choice of many voters, including me. But all Americans, regardless of
their opinion of the man, must unite in honoring our system of free and open
elections and respecting the office of the presidency. Doing otherwise brings
dishonor on those who should know better.
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