#NotMyPresident: Why Trump’s presidency should be challenged

Jillyan Mobley, Features Editor

If you have been on any form of social media in the past few months, you are fully aware of the varying emotions that surround the recent election of President-Elect Trump. Between the influence of mass media, the increase of fake news stories, the desperation of citizens, and the shocking behaviors of the candidates, ill-appearing intentions and excessive negativity dominated the campaign season. But how did so many voters allow the shock value of scandals that flooded the Internet to determine how they voted before fully considering the impact of a candidate’s policy and competence?

I am the first to admit there’s no perfect candidate, especially with the many factors threatening our nation’s current security. However, at what point do we, as a country, ignore a candidate’s vulgarity and his / her underdeveloped plans to pursue an unrealistic ideal or spiteful predisposition of a past event?

Blanket statements, such as “bring back the jobs,” “keep the second Amendment,” and “make America great again” all sound intriguing. But when accompanied with crude comments degrading everyone other than rich, white, Christian men, the speeches made by president-elect Trump began to sound like they were made in the early 1800s, or by a certain dictator related to World War II.

Even without his insensitive comments and blatant ignorance to the struggles of all but the top one percent of Americans, our future President plans to pursue policy that will undoubtedly harm our nation. With his rather non-diverse cabinet, President-Elect Trump intends to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership and thereby reduce America’s international ties, drastically cut funds for renewable energy, withdraw donations made to the UN for environmental preservation, and repeal the Affordable Care Act all within the first 100 days of his presidency.

And even with these very conservative changes, Trump has “changed [his] mind” on many of the promises made that excited his voters. Trump has fallen to the same reality that many have known from the start: Mexico is not paying for the wall. The $12 to $25 billion dollar investment will have to be funded in full by the American government. In addition to this, his claims of a “total Muslim shut-down” and a deportation force for all illegal immigrants have been lessened to further screenings and restrictions. And though some of these changes are sighs of relief for those who oppose him, many of his supporters will be thoroughly disappointed with his lack of resilience and honesty.

A man who uses obscenities to get attention like a child throwing a tantrum and makes uninformed statements and decisions regarding the future of our nation all while going against the wishes of both his opposers and supporters is not a man I want as my president.

While I do not plan on protesting every federally funded event or constantly streaming my disappointment on Facebook, I will also not look up to this man as I have admired President Obama or the other great men that I have learned about in history class. My favorite president, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, once said, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” However, FDR did not have to live through Trump’s presidency.