On Nov. 8, the American people made a decision to elect Hillary Clinton President of the United States; yet, due to an outdated, archaic system designed in the late 1700s by men who feared the full impact of democracy, Donald Trump won the election. The following is a real email that I plan to send to the electors in an effort to correct this error.
To Whom It May Concern,
In 2008, John McCain centered his campaign on the motto “Country First.” Not “party first.” Not “state first.” Country first. While he may have lost that election, his message ought to stand as a reminder of what all Americans should strive for, a reminder that the security of the nation comes first. Today, I ask you to follow John McCain’s example and put country first by voting to elect Hillary Clinton to the presidency. I understand that this decision will not be an easy one. It requires voting for a candidate that you might not like, who doesn’t belong to your party, who didn’t receive the majority of the votes in your state.
However difficult that decision may be, I believe that one day people will thank you for it. Not only is this vote necessary to preserve the sanctity of the democratic process, sending a message that the candidate who receives the most votes nationally should become president, but it is necessary to ensure that Donald Trump does not ascend to the presidency, thus preserving the nation. As you are likely aware, Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by a margin of over two million. In any fair system, she would win. A majority of United States citizens do not want Donald Trump to be the President, a majority of United States citizens did not vote for Donald Trump to be the President and thus Donald Trump should not be allowed to become President.
In casting your electoral vote for Donald Trump, you may have been led to believe that your responsibility is to act in the interests of your state and political party before conscience. I ask you to realize that we have reached a point where we can no longer think of ourselves through political and regional divisions, but rather as one nation. This December, I ask you to reject regional and political divisions and cast a vote for the person that the American people elected to the presidency, or at the very least reject Donald Trump, who they didn’t. The will of the nation matters most.
I understand your reservations in terms of ideology. Hillary Clinton is a Democrat, which you are most certainly not. Hillary Clinton was a member of the Obama administration, which it is very likely you had strong disagreements with. I imagine we may share some of those disagreements. But I urge you not to fear another Clinton presidency. With a Republican Congress in power, her first two years would at worst be a period of stalemate, in which very little gets done. In the meanwhile, America’s reputation around the world would be safe and we can sleep well at night knowing that no matter how much we may disagree with the President, we have someone who is experienced, intelligent and pragmatic at the helm. And, in four years time, the Republicans can try again for the presidency and hopefully nominate a candidate with a far better tempera- ment than Donald Trump, one who appeals to the values of tolerance and fiscal responsibility that represents the best of what the party can be.
But if the virtues of Hillary Clinton do not sell you, please understand the full consequences of allowing Donald Trump to take office.
Throughout his campaign, many have raised concerns that his behavior has been less than presidential. He appeared to have a complete inability to think before speaking. I can admire a candidate who is straightforward and honest, who doesn’t apologize for what he believes in and stands up against political correctness, but Trump oftentimes appeared to be tactless, immature, petty and rude.
We were assured that once Trump won the nomination, his attitude would change. It didn’t. We were then assured that once Trump won the election, his attitude would change. It hasn’t. We are now assured that once Trump becomes Presi-dent, his attitude will change. It won’t.
Let’s for a moment excuse everything Trump said during the campaign. Let’s assume that anything we didn’t like was just rhetoric, intended to get votes and nothing more. Let’s assume that nothing he said prior to election day that upset us, that disturbed us, that gave us pause, that by every measure should have disqualified him will be at all indicative of his performance as President. Let’s just look at how he’s acted since he’s stopped having to care about getting votes.
While we’re at it, let’s ignore all the appointments he’s made. Let’s give Steve Bannon the benefit of the doubt, although as a proud Jew I am more than a little disquieted. Let’s pretend that he hasn’t made any appointments. Let’s only look at how he’s spent his time and where he’s directed his attention these past few weeks.
It hasn’t been attending intelligence briefings, as he hasn’t had one since the election. Instead, according to his former campaign manager, as reported by The Independent, Trumps gets his information through “a number of other sources.” Clearly, national security is not vital enough to attract the attention of our President-elect.
Instead, Mr. Trump has spent his time getting into a feud with the cast of “Hamilton,” an incident as trivial as it is disturbing. You might agree with Trump’s assessment that the cast’s treatment of Mike Pence was unfair, although you should know that Mike Pence didn’t mind it. Regardless on the fairness of the matter, it is concerning to see the leader of the free world so worked up, so irritated over a Broadway musical, because a group of actors with no political influence want- ed to express their concerns, however unfair you may believe their methods to be.
In addition, Donald Trump has gotten into a feud with Alec Baldwin and the producers of “Saturday Night Live” over their impersonation of him. Can you imagine Ronald Reagan calling up Phil Hartman to complain about their imperson- ations of him, let alone publicly ranting about it?
And what evidence do we have that this attitude will change when he is President? Maybe we can buy that he will start getting intelligence briefings after inauguration day, he likely won’t have a choice, but why should we believe that he will delete his Twitter account, that he will stop picking fights with celebrities, that he will be able to hold his tongue in order to engage in needed diplomacy. How would it look to the international community if our sitting President caused an international incident because of some tweet about some perceived slight?
We often dream of a President who is not a politician and that’s what we got in Donald Trump, but we didn’t elect a businessman either. We’re getting a celebrity, with all the downsides that come with it: the feuds, the nonsense conspiracy theories about vaccines, the rants on twitter, the adultery, the multiple marriages, the constant bragging about his sex life and the size of his genitals, obsession with material possessions and abhorrently inappropriate behavior towards women.
Donald Trump is everything wrong with Hollywood celebrity culture, and yet he is slated to be the most powerful individual on earth. He is unable not to respond to anyone who mentions his name, and yet come Jan. 20, he will control an arsenal of nuclear weapon large enough to end humanity. He has failed to attend a single intelligence briefing since election day and yet he is expected to be our Commander-in-Chief. He bragged about the size of his hands and genitals during a debate and yet he is expected to uphold American values.
In closing, I ask you to confront the reality that Donald Trump would be the least qualified President in the history of the country, not just in terms of experience but in terms of morality and emotional maturity. I ask you to do what is right, not for the Republican Party political establishment, but for the United States of America, for its people, for the world and the for the preservation of the greatest nation on earth.
Country first.
All the best,
Jesser Horowitz