Election: Country wanted change

Published 12:36 pm Thursday, November 10, 2016

Donald Trump did what many believed was undoable. He won. It wasn’t clear his campaign even thought he had a chance. Early Tuesday night, the campaign was already laying the groundwork to blame “the establishment” for his defeat.

While much of the polling world and most major media outlets gave him little chance of reaching 270 electoral votes, by 10 p.m. it was clear he was heading toward victory.

Trump and his supporters knew something the rest of the country did not. They knew that the country was ripe for change and the candidate leading the charge was less important than the movement itself.

Subscribe to our free email newsletter

Get the latest news sent to your inbox

The pendulum was primed for swinging and boy did it swing.

Change was more important than Trump’s horrible behavior. Change was more important than the lies he told. Change was more important than any leaked audio recording. The country — or least much of it — couldn’t stand the thought of another Clinton in office.

Would Joe Biden or Bernie Sanders have fared any better? Maybe, but it’s clear the nation was ready to push back against the Obama administration.

Trump’s team and his many local supporters deserve congratulations. They were right when so many talking heads on TV were wrong. (Hillary Clinton deserves credit for conceding graciously and calling for unity).

It’s clear the so-called “mainstream media” is out of touch with a big chunk of the electorate. It’s also clear that the media’s “facts” mean little today. People will seek out and find “facts” that reinforce their ideology. No amount of newspaper investigations or leaked audio tapes will make much of a dent in that.

It’s a new world with a new United States leading it — or at least it will be in January.

So many of Trump’s supporters have thanked God for his victory and see his win as proof that God’s hand is still on America. We hope they are right.