WTF America?

This is the worst possible outcome for our country. A president Romney? That would have been bad. A president McCain (with a vice-president Palin)? Equally bad. But President tRump? That is a disaster.

On top of that, the Republicans retained control of the House and Senate. It's true that their margins were narrowed. But for at least the next two years the best we can hope for is no change. The worst? Well - every stock market is tanking because they know what's coming. The value of the U.S. dollar is plunging worldwide. For those who voted for tRump - have you checked your retirement accounts this morning?

In numerous states, in the electoral vote and the popular vote - it was essentially a tie. We don't do ties in presidential elections though. We wanted Clinton to win; we hoped for a blowout. Instead, we are looking at 4 years of President tRump. The rest of the world is shocked and concerned. Our place as a beacon on the hill is greatly diminished as we have elected a misogynist, racist, ignorant bully with no clue as to how the government works.

One has to wonder - was he elected because of his horrendous verbiage on women, minorities and non-Christians, or in spite of it? I would like to believe the latter. I would like to believe that a great number of my fellow Americans wanted change and didn't care about the things he said. Yes that's white privilege (and male privilege) at its worst, but to believe otherwise is to make me very depressed and wary about the sickness in the hearts of all those people.

Was the hatred for Clinton really that strong? Did the hype really overshadow her intellect, lifetime of service, and skillset ready-made for her to be effective on Day One? Did people really revulse from the idea of a Madam President?... from another Clinton presidency? I know that is the case with the anti-intellectual crowd, but I have to hope it wasn't most of them. To do so forces me to avoid the "red" part of the U.S. for the rest of my life. I cannot feel safe among a group of people with such hatred in their hearts. I am already disappointed that so many bought the bullshit peddled by tRump and Russia. I would not blame the best and brightest from foreign lands if they had second thoughts about (legally) immigrating to the United States.

I am disappointed that the glass ceiling remains intact. I am sad that young women will take the lesson that a strong intelligent woman is still not enough to beat a crude unqualified man for the office of the president. It feels like an episode of "Mad Men", except not entertaining.

I hope that Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the rest of the SCOTUS can hold on another 4 years. They are our last firewall.

I don't want to write paragraph after paragraph of doomsday scenarios. You've already created them in your imagination, and would only make you more depressed and worried. So I am going to try to find some brighter spots to focus on.

The first one is just how close this was. As of this counting, Clinton is actually ahead in the popular vote, meaning more people who voted wanted her to be president. But like losing a football game to one bad call late in the 4th quarter, it's a technicality and doesn't change the outcome. Still - I take some solace in that. There is no "mandate".

We suffered through 8 years of Bush, with a Republican-controlled Congress most of the time. Yes, that greatly diminished our country, but we got through it. We'll get through this.

There is also the reality that the Republican party leadership is fairly "moderate" compared to tRump, and are not about to sign on to his more radical nonsense, like building a wall, banning Muslims, or mass deportation of immigrants here illegally. We may actually see immigration reform, because Rubio and Graham want it, and they're willing to make it a "win" for a Republican president.

The margins of control in both houses of Congress have also narrowed significantly, so blocking heinous legislation should be quite doable. Expect to see a lot of filibusters over the next two years. Also - we have another chance of taking control of the House and/or Senate in 2 years.

For now, though, we have reaped the wheat that has been sown. America - I hoped you're ready for it. This is what you asked for, this is what you bought into. Get ready for some buyers remorse.