Ten thoughts on yesterday’s election:
1. How long until the Billy Graham Association relists Mormonism as a cult, and a particularly disappointing one?
2. I wonder who is feeling more relieved today, Barack Obama or Mitt Romney?
3. President Obama’s main argument for reelection was that he was not Mitt Romney. He succeeded in disqualifying his opponent, but now what? If he governs on the platform he ran on, is he going to govern as “not Romney” for four years?
4. I don’t intend this to take away from either of Obama’s victory, but it’s true that both times he ran against candidates that the Republican base didn’t particularly like. Obama’s victories may have been even larger if the Republicans had fielded a “true conservative,” but it is interesting that both of Obama’s victories came against candidates who couldn’t rally their own bases. I guess that does detract from his wins, but I didn’t mean it that way.
5. I suspect that most people this year voted what they were against rather than what they were for. Republicans voted against Obama rather than for Romney, and Democrats did the same but in reverse.
6. I don’t think either candidate ever leveled with the American people about the reality of our situation and the sacrifices that must be made. Often I wished they would treat us as adults rather than condescend to us as kids, but in retrospect they’re probably right. If you want any chance of being president you’d better pretend you’re Santa Claus.
7. As many others have noted, it’s astounding that the people reelected the same president and congress that they so vigorously dislike. How can we be so unhappy with the present stalemate in Washington and then vote for more of it?
8. The direction of the country seems to be moving against the values of evangelical Christians (note yesterday’s wins for gay marriage in states such as Minnesota, the Obama’s administration’s attack on the religious liberties of employers, and the widespread belief that Christians are extreme when it comes to abortion). We may no longer have the majority support for many of our values, and the next few years may be very interesting for the church.
9. If you’re a white man and someone asks you about rape, the right and only answer you should give is it’s an abomination. End of story.
10. Get ready for 2016, when Hillary returns. Bill owes her (remember Monica?) and Barack owes Bill (see his speech at the DNC). No one on the Democratic side would have a chance against her. Let’s hope for Republicans’ sake that they also find a way to nominate someone they believe in who might also appeal to the majority of Americans. If Jeb Bush changes his name, he might work.
Mike Wittmer 
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