5. We need to move on and make peace
This election has revealed a painful chasm in our electorate. Democrats are scratching their heads wondering how they lost their appeal to the rural working class. Establishment Republicans are scratching theirs, wondering how they, too, dismissed that large segment of the electorate that rejected their preferred candidates. Bernie Sanders—a socialist—was a champion of the people to many voters. The one thing that most voters have in common is a rejection of the political establishment. Yes, we have different views of what our government should do, how it should behave, and what policies are best for our country, but there is a majority opinion that it has become corrupt and no longer represents us. We call that common ground, and if we make good use of it, we might actually be better for it.
Somewhere along the line we lost the ability to talk to one another. Instead of listening to each other we launched meme warfare, gobbled up fake news, and developed anxious dread about anyone who doesn’t see the world exactly as we do. We lost the ability to stand together where we agree and argue on principle where we don’t.
The election is over. Do we really want to live through another chapter?
As counter-intuitive as it may seem, the best foot forward begins with leaving the battle of 2016 behind. A presidential pardon for Hillary Clinton would be the closure we need, and if President Obama won’t do that for us, as a nation, I certainly hope that President Donald J. Trump will see that it is the right thing to do.
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