HARLAN RICHARDS
November 10, 2016

The Blame Game

Who's to blame for Donald Trump winning the election? Was it WikiLeaks and their steady, daily dribble of emails? Or FBI Director James Comey's October letter to Congress reopening the email investigation? Or the news that premiums for health care under Obamacare were going to rise dramatically? I think I know who to blame for Donald's victory/

Let's blame all those Democrats who voted for Hillary in the Democratic primary. Let's blame Debbie Wasserman-Schultz for rigging the primary process against Bernie Sanders during the primary. Let's blame all those super delegates who voted from Hillary's nomination at the Democratic convention.

It was well-known during the primary process that Hillary was very unpopular outside of the Democratic party. Poll after poll showed Hillary doing poorly with independents in match-ups against potential opponents. At the same time, polls showed Bernie with widespread support among all voters. He had the passion, the enthusiasm, the energized millennials who were willing to go the extra mile to put Bernie in the White House.

The Democrats, knowing they had a sure winner with Bernie, chose to nominate Hillary instead. Was it their desire to elect the first female president? Or a reward to Hillary for her years of service to the Democratic party? Or just plain cronyism? Hillary was one of the Democratic establishment stalwarts while Bernie was the upstart outsider.

Until the end, everyone thought Hilllary had the election won. Not because she was the best candidate or would make the best president, but because Donald was such a loose cannon that she was viewed as the lesser of two evils. That's a poor reason for supporting a candidate and not much of an enthusiasm builder. Donald, on the other hand, wackjob that he is, had zealous supporters. Their fanaticism overcame all hurdles and swept him into office. That same enthusiasm was what would have made Bernie unbeatable in a general election had Democratic stalwarts not sabotaged him in the primary.

For the next 4 years, every time the Republicans and Donald enact another piece of their radical agenda, just remember that the person you have to blame is the same person you see in the mirror every day.