Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. (Romans 13:1)
This election season seems to be the most absurd in history, or at least in my own personal memory. As I look back over the last several months, I am still stunned to see where we are ending up. I remember when Donald Trump announced his candidacy, running as a Republican. I didn’t pay him too much mind. His candidacy had to be a joke. No seemingly intelligent individual could possibly support him. Nobody could honestly think that the “You’re Fired!” guy from The Apprentice would actually make a good President.
But as we’ve seen, jokes appear to be becoming nightmarish realities.
And here we are, essentially facing an election between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. Quite possibly two of the most despised political figures ever. Somehow we, as America, could not find any other people, more qualified to lead our nation. Of the over 300 million people in our borders, these are the two people that we thought were the “best”.
I mourn for the state of our country if that is really the truth.
But with Primary season wrapping up, and it is coming down to these two figures, what are we supposed to make of it? Should all of us conservatives simply “tow the party line” and throw our votes behind Trump? Should we buy into the whole “lesser of two evils” message like we have always done?
I, for one, will do no such thing.
My fellow conservatives may gasp at me, and call me a traitor, but I don’t care. I will not vote for Trump. Period!
But to not vote for Trump is the same as a vote for Hillary? Right?
We all know that if Hillary wins she will make it her mission to fill the Supreme Court with liberal Justices, and the conservatives will never win another case again? Right?
Hillary will do everything in her power to destroy the second amendment, and make abortions even more widespread? Right?
Letting Hillary become the next president is the worst possible thing for America? Right?
No!
The worst possible thing for America would be for us to lose sight of what is right, and what is wrong. The worst thing for America would be for us to turn our back on good, or even worse, to unashamedly support evil. And that is what a vote for Trump is. A vote for Trump is an active support of evil. And I will have none of that.
But isn’t Donald Trump the only choice left for conservatives?
Just because he has an “R” next to his name, does not make him conservative. Donald Trump is no conservative. To those that accuse me of betraying my conservativism, I cry foul! Trumps political affiliations have been fickle at best, bouncing around between Republican, Democrats, and for a while in the “The Reform Party”. For the first decade of the 21st century he was by-and-large a Democrat, contributing quite heavily to Bill Clinton’s campaigns. In a 2004 interview with CNN he straight up said he identified more with Democrats. While in more recent years his track record may lean a little more towards the Republicans, it seems more evident that he throws his money and support behind whoever he think will better impact the bottom line on his portfolio. He has no principles that guide him, other than his own personal gain. So to those calling me traitor I say no, you are the traitors to conservatism, by allowing this man who spent so many years supporting Democrats to even call himself a Republican candidate, let alone actually vote to give him the nomination. Those of you who are trying to make this wolf in sheep’s clothing our shepherd are the real traitors to the cause, not those of us who are calling him out for the wolf that he really is.
But even if Donald Trump is not terribly conservative, isn’t he still better than Hillary? Isn’t he the lesser of the two evils?
Every election cycle I hear the “lesser of two evils” speech. I’ve actually said it myself in the past. But where has that gotten us? Every election we nominate candidates that nobody really likes or supports, and we find ourselves voting against the one we dislike the most. And then we bemoan ourselves for having terrible leaders. Enough!
Even still, I am not convinced that Donald Trump is even the lesser of the two evils. Donald Trump, in just about every facet, is a despicable person. He spews garbage every time he opens his mouth. He never speaks love, only hate. He never preaches unity, only divisiveness. He never seeks peace, only conflict. He is quick to go into fits of rage even while in the public eye. He is demeaning to everyone who stands in his way. He has no respect for anyone. He is particularly demeaning to women. He has been married 3 times to women that he allegedly abuses (there have even been allegations of rape). His current wife is widely known for being a bikini model in “Sports Illustrated, Swimsuit Edition”, and even posing nude for British GQ magazine (could you imagine the scandal that would ensue if any other presidential candidate had that skeleton in their closet). He calls himself a Christian, but says that he does not need forgiveness for any sins, which by definition means he cannot possibly be a true Christian.
Conservative commentator, Matt Walsh, best describes Donald Trump as:
“… a left-wing vulgarian who, when he’s not bragging of his adultery or fantasizing about dating his daughter or mocking POWs and the disabled, has taken to perpetuating conspiracy theories about how his former opponent’s father killed JFK. … But this is par for the course with Trump. He’s not above calling your wife ugly if you cross him or sending his surrogates out to accuse you of being a serial adulterer. As a guy reportedly linked to the mob, and who’s been credibly accused of brutal rape, and who used to pal around with an infamous international pimp and pedophile, you’d think he’d shy away from repeating rumors. But Trump doesn’t shy away from anything, save the truth … He lies about everything, all the time, relentlessly. Even when there’s no real need or reason, like when he brazenly lied about Mike Tyson’s rape conviction after Tyson endorsed his campaign. And so on. I don’t need to list all the times Trump strayed from the facts, nor the conflicting positions he’s taken on every issue, nor the litany of other charges that can be leveled against him. All of these things are known, yet he was still handed the banner of the Republican Party and appointed its standard bearer.”
Mr. Walsh then continues by listing a myriad of similarities between Trump and Clinton:
“…They’re both elitist progressives. Both pathological liars. Both morally bankrupt. Both narcissists. Both entirely unconcerned about the issues and willing to take whatever position assures them more power. Both Statist. Both authoritarian. Both tyrants, the only difference is that Trump actually ran on a platform of tyranny – promising to murder women and children and squash dissent. etc. – whereas Clinton has to pretend she’s not a tyrant. That means Trump will have a mandate for tyranny that Clinton will, much to her chagrin, not be granted.
“These two could not be more identical. That’s why they were such good friends. For God’s sake they’ll both be under investigation for crimes during the general election. Clinton for her email scandal and Trump for financial fraud. It’s like they’re fraternal twins or something. It would almost be kind of cute if they weren’t harbingers of national doom.”
Supporters say they like Trump because he “tells it like it is”. What they mean is he has no filter … at all. He is constantly as intentionally outrageous and profane as he can possibly be to make as many headlines as possible. He doesn’t “tell it like it is”, he tells it such that he can stir up as much controversy in the tabloids as possible, because everyone knows there is no such thing as bad press. Meanwhile, every time he opens his mouth he makes a mockery of himself, and our nation for actually taking him seriously. If we weren’t on the verge of giving him the launch codes to our nuclear weapons (think about that the next time Trump publicly goes into an uncontrollable rant), the world would be laughing at us. Instead they are trembling that we might actually elect him.
Some of his supporters agree that Trump is an outrageous buffoon, but they assure me “… nobody really believes that he will follow through with any of his outlandish statements once he is President, but Hillary will; we should be more concerned about that!”
So you will vote for a person, based on your assumption that they will renege on what they say they will do? You are voting for someone BECAUSE you trust in their inherent untrustworthiness? Are you listening to yourself? You would rather throw your support behind the evil that you don’t know and understand and can’t predict than the one that you do? That is true insanity.
Yet, even if Donald Trump was the lesser of two evils, when did we lose sight of the fact that the lesser of two evils, is still evil? When did we decide that it was okay to support “Hitler” as long as his opponent was the Devil? When did we stop looking for someone admirable, and instead go for the one who is the least despicable? When did we stop seeking good, and settle for just minimizing the bad?
Donald Trump is no conservative, and there is no reason to think that he is the lesser of two evils. And even if he were, I cannot stomach the idea of supporting evil, just because it might be a lesser evil than the alternative.
Quite frankly, I’m not sure what I’m going to do. I will not vote for Hillary. But by the same token, I will not vote for Trump. I’ll probably vote Libertarian, which quite frankly I’ve been feeling more of a connection with lately than the Republican Party anyway. And to all my nay-sayers: To not vote for Trump is not the same as a vote for Hillary. A vote for Hillary is a vote for Hillary. Not voting for Trump, is just that, a refusal to support Trump. Just because a majority of “Republicans” were insane enough to nominate Trump does not mean that I am under any moral obligation to support him. If he is unable to defeat Hillary, it is their fault for nominating literally the only person more repugnant than Hillary. The threat of a Hillary victory is not enough for me to turn my back on what I know to be right, and support what I know to be wrong.
And to those that preach of the doom that is sure to follow if Hillary wins, I ask this: Are you putting your hope in the office of the President? If you are, you have no hope, no matter who wins. You have already lost.
I am not a “Conservative”. I am a follower of Jesus Christ. My faith in God, and belief in the truth of His Word, makes me to tend to a “conservative” perspective. But I do not put my hope and trust in a political ideology. I do not put my hope and trust in any political party. I do not put my hope and trust into any presidential candidate. My hope is in God.
Yes, if I don’t vote for Trump, Hillary might win. In reality, even if I do vote for Trump, Hillary will probably win anyway, and I’ll have sacrificed my integrity on the alter of Donald Trump for nothing. But whoever wins, I can rest easily knowing that God has ultimate sovereignty and authority over all. I can rest easily knowing that “… all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God.” (Romans 13:1). Whether Hillary wins, or Trump wins, I take comfort knowing that God allowed it, and He does not make mistakes.
Hillary may try and destroy the First Amendment, and remove all semblance of religious liberty. She may get the Supreme Court to rule it illegal for anyone to voice any opposition to the LBGT cause. Freedom of religion and freedom of speech may disappear, but my hope is not in the First Amendment. My hope is in God and I will follow him no matter what our Government says my rights are.
Hillary may try and repeal the Second Amendment (or even better “Executive Order” it into oblivion), taking away our right to own guns to protect ourselves. But my hope is not in a gun, or in any weapon other than the Word of God which is the Sword of Truth.
Hillary may continue to push open our borders and flood our nation with even more illegal immigrants. But my hope is not in a political boundary. My hope is found within the borders of the Kingdom of God, the walls of which can never be shattered.
Hillary may try to dismantle our armed forces, leaving our country weak and defenseless. But my hope is not in any earthly army. My hope is in the power of the Lord, who can obliterate any forces of evil with a single whisper.
Hillary may do all of these things, and more, but Trump promises no better. The threat of any of these horrible things is not enough to throw my support behind Trump. I will not choose the path leading to nuclear holocaust at the hands of a raging lunatic just so that I can say, “At least I still have my guns!” while my skin is melting off my bones.
Hillary may lay the seeds of destruction for our nation, leading our nation to implode in on itself. As heartbreaking as that would be for me, I can rest easy knowing that, “… in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)
Even if everything that once made this country great burns to ash, and our culture marches toward its own demise, I know that my salvation and my place in eternity is secured in Jesus Christ. My hope is not in America. My hope is not in a President. I will place my hope in something far greater, that I know will not disappoint.
I’m not saying that the Presidential Election is meaningless; quite the opposite in fact.
My point is that it is important enough for us to demand more of our candidates than simply to be the lesser of the two evils. It is important enough for us to expect more of them than to simply be the least despised. If we want our country to be great we must expect more of leaders, just as we must expect more of ourselves. And for that reason, when Election Day comes, I cannot vote for someone as unambiguously despicable as Donald Trump, even if his opponent is Hillary Clinton. America deserves better than that. America needs better than that.
God may ultimately decide to put Hillary, or for that matter Trump, into power to serve some purpose that is beyond my human understanding. That is His decision to make in His divine wisdom. But for right now, I cannot use the power of my vote to support a candidate who is so far removed from anything good. I’m not saying a candidate should be perfect, no candidate ever is, but they should at least be decent, and Donald Trump is nowhere close to that.
At the end of the day, if America insists on electing one of the two evils put before us, it will break my heart. But it will not dissolve my hope. Because whoever becomes my President, Jesus is still my Lord, and that is something that no election can ever destroy.
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The Faithful Engineer 