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What I’m thinking about this election season

In the interest of having my thoughts written down and expanded upon somewhere, here I go!

I voted Hillary Clinton predominately because I think Donald Trump is a whack job, unfit for President, and that Hillary better represents my social values. Going into Election Day, even though media coverage leaned strongly towards Hillary, my thinking was that I wouldn’t be surprised if Trump won. And then he did, and I was surprised, but not really.

Some people close to me are in the minority groups subject to Trump’s hate speech (LGBTQ, non-white). Other people close to me probably voted Trump, although I haven’t yet talked to them about it directly.

I’m a registered Independent, and would consider myself socially progressive, fiscally conservative, and politically libertarian. In less contentious political arenas, I voted Kate Brown for Governor of Oregon, no to Measure 97 (increased corporate income tax), and yes to Tualatin City Council term limits.

I don’t think Trump won because he’s a racist, misogynist, and bigot. I think he won for the same reasons the congressional approval rating is at 13%, voter turnout was 55% (a 20 year low), and I myself have been largely politically apathetic for the majority of my voting career. Most Americans have lost faith in the US government — they don’t think their elected politicians are effective representatives of their interests.

I don’t think most Trump voters are ignorant, hateful, etc. Given the divisive state of affairs in this country, the only path forward is respect, mutual understanding, and compassion. I’ve been sharing op-eds from Trump supporters because I think it’s important to listen to their stories. I’ve also found these articles illuminating:

This morning, my wife and I attended service at West Hills Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, my first time at church in years. Reverend Tracy gave an amazing sermon titled “Compassion and Action“. The audio will eventually be posted to that link, I think.