1) You have to actually vote if you want your favorite candidate to win. Voting for a fringe candidate doesn't count. I like Jill Stein and Gary Johnson but I didn't want to waste my vote. Republicans did a better job getting people to vote this year.
2) Protests, marches, and rallies would be much more effective before election day. But go ahead and have a protest. I hope it makes you feel better.
3) I wish I had a dollar for every woman who told me that Hillary Clinton deserves to become president because she is a woman. A lot of nations have had very good female leaders. No one convinced me that Mrs. Clinton would make a better president than any other woman.
4) My state has an overwhelming Democrat majority. Yet two of my candidates won the election for county school board. We have a Republican chief executive for Howard County. My Maryland governor is a Republican too. This is all important because local officials are the minor leagues for national politics. Republicans have more governors and state legislators.
5) Democrats usually claim that Republican nominees support the Klu Klux Klan. You can repeat that over and over but that doesn't make it true. When asked about David Duke, Trump said he didn't know who he was. Within hours Trump said he was against David Duke and the KKK. I don't think most Republicans believed that Trump was racist.
6) This was the first election cycle that Republicans didn't accuse the Democrat nominee of being a liberal. Liberals are cool this year. Bernie Sanders is a liberal Democrat. Donald Trump is a New York liberal Republican. Trump used to support the Clintons.
7) Having the media on your side isn't always a good idea. Trump gave reporters access several times a day. He actively sought headlines. But every once in a while he would bully or insult the media. Trump didn't want to seem to cozy with reporters. He insulted Fox News at least once a month. If Trump said something embarrassing it didn't matter. He could generate a dozen more headlines each week. The media never understood that Trump was smarter than all of them.
8) Ever since the election, disappointed Hillary supporters have been marching, sobbing, and blocking traffic. They can't accept the election results. Have you noticed that no Republicans are trying to stop them? Every night I see Democrats burning something or acting crazy. Mean while the Republicans are well behaved and law abiding. Trump is acting calm and very presidential. I hope the Democrats keep up their protests for the next few weeks. Every portest adds to Trump's mandate.
9) I have heard commentators saying that President Trump can't keep all of his promises. That is probably true. I expect Trump will convince me that he is doing me a favor every time he has to break a promise. Trump is clever enough to convince people to believe anything.
10) Trump ran a successful campaign with a tiny staff and one tenth of Hillary's budget. He is a genius at getting free media attention. For an old man, Trump is very skilled at using social media. Anybody as clever as Trump has a good chance of becoming the next president.
11) Trump is a deal maker. He won by a narrow margin. He actually lost the popular vote. He needs to close the deal. He is about to go on a charm offensive. Trump won the election but he still needs popularity. I expect him to offer something nice to every type of Hillary supporters. I wouldn't be surprised if he offers reparations to the descendants of former slaves.
12) Trump will be a master of foreign affairs. The Russians were waving American flags in Moscow after the election. They now have a friend in the White House. The Chinese will offer Trump some small concessions. The Chinese will be happy with any deal that Trump offers them. The rest of the world will be happy with Trump's focus on domestic issues. He is less likely to interfere around the world. Countries are more likely to obey their trade deals with the US. The world is a much safer place than it was a week ago. Trump hasn't even taken office yet.
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