The results of the 2016 presidential election are in, and what has happened on Election Day is the final result. While the electoral college will not vote until December 18th, there is very little chance that they will change their mind. It is safe to say that the Republican nominee Donald J Trump will be the 45th President of the United States of America. While people do not necessarily agree with that decision, it is imperative that people respect other people’s positions on this, and have civilized discussions on the outcome and what it means going forward. The only problem with that? Social media isn’t necessarily the best place to have calm discussions, with one person tweeting, “We can’t let this happen. We should march on Washington and stop this travesty. Our nation is totally divided!” at 11:29pm, and later tweeting, “Lets fight like hell and stop this great and disgusting injustice! The world is laughing at us.”
Who is this person you may ask? It happens to be Donald Trump himself reacting to President Barrack Obama getting reelected as president in 2012. Well, if you think the nation was divided before, then you better get prepared for how big the division is today. If you happen to look on any form of social media, you will see videos, pictures or a live feed of protests across the country with people yelling, “Not my president” and, “Donald Trump must go!” While some people are going to the streets to voice their opinions, others are going on social media to express their ideas and feelings as well. People have been quoted asking, “Is this all a dream?” with some saying that this is a bigger disaster than Brexit. The overall tone is not a cheery one; in fact not even the Republicans are expressing extreme happiness in light of this event. House Speaker Paul Ryan has expressed the election of Donald Trump as “an incredible victory” and he is “eager to work hand-in-hand with the new administration to advance an agenda to improve the lives of the American people.” Along with Speaker Paul Ryan, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has been quotes stating, “As we start the work of putting our country back on track, our leaders should look to Wisconsin and be willing to make the decisions needed to enact serious reforms, just like we did in the Badger State.”
With all this commotion taking place on social media, it was none other than our current president, Barrack Obama, who came out and told the world his thoughts on Election Night, and what he thinks about the election. The president was quoted, “This has been an exhausting, stressful and sometimes downright weird election for all of u.,” He also said, “We’ve been through tough and divisive elections before and we’ve always come out stronger for it.” The president had ensured America that nothing was going to change drastically by reminding the American people that “no matter what happens, the sun will rise in the morning.” This message was also repeated by late night talk show hosts Seth Meyers, Stephen Colbert, and Trevor Noah, who also agreed that America should come together rather than become more divided.
In the end, whether your candidate won or lost, it is important that we realize what lays in front of us moving forward. We have to learn to understand the other side of the political spectrum and see people with opposing views as human beings, and not as crooked individuals or a bunch of deplorable people. It is time for America to take a little rest from this hectic election period, and to come back to its senses to make a better America, and a brighter future.
