United States presidential election of 2016

Wednesday, 9 November 2016 - 11:50 pm (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination:
Category/Kategorie: General, Editorial
Reading Time:  8 minutes

© Lipton sale/cc-by-sa-3.0

© Lipton sale/cc-by-sa-3.0

In the face of the 18-month presidential election campaign, which more and more degenerated into the mud fight, not only the Americans will be happy about the fact that at least this very inglorious episode has now been surpassed. The US voters initially elected the electors of choice in their federal state. On 19 December 2016 the so-called Electoral College will officially elect the new president. The inauguration of the president of the United States will take place on 20 January 2017. Until then, Barack Obama fortunately remains still US President.

Over the past eight years, it has become clear that Democratic US President Barack Obama, to whom nearly Messianic powers have been attributed at the beginning of his first term, but has then been significantly blocked by the Republican Senate and Congress, couldn’t walk on water or share the sea. Nevertheless, much has been achieved. This includes the economic turnaround of the US through clever and prudent economic policy, to cushion the consequences of the legacy of the predecessor George W. Bush and the effects of the bursted real estate bubble and the following financial crisis, the still great health care reform, which has some start-up difficulties, but allows the majority of Americans affordable access to health care plans for the first time, the creation of several 100,000 new jobs, the Iran Deal and the beginning of reconciliation with Cuba, but above all that the President has succeeded in significantly improving the image of the United States in the world, regaining trust and confidence, and reasserting dignity in the office of the US President. There were no presidential scandals. On the contrary, the First Family has presented itself as a role model and still looks gorgeous. Where the sun is shining, there is always shadow. In this case, it is the further alienation of the Republicans and Democrats, and an increasing social division, which is particularly noticeable in economic terms. While the US economy is recovering more and more from the crisis years and is able to generate solid growth rates, an increasing part of the population is slipping through the grid. Particularly far away from the big metropolises, in the rural areas, the economic decline has not yet been completely stopped and this has consequences. One of these is the most irresponsible presidential election campaign the United States has ever experienced. Foreign policy shadows are above all the non-closure of Guantanamo blocked by the Republicans and the not always successful policies in the Middle East and North Africa. The full reorientation of US foreign and economic policy hasn’t been achieved yet. These include the Transpacific Partnership (TPP) and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). Unfortunately, a US president can only act for a maximum of two terms. Given the excellent rates of consent, Barack Obama would undoubtedly be able to win a third presidential election. So far, only very few presidents have succeeded in reaching such a high level of consent at the end of their term of office. All in all, it can be assumed that the one or the other US voter will wish the current incumbent back in the not too distant future. During the election campaign, Michelle Obama has made very noteworthy points, so that it isn’t impossible that we will hear from the Obamas during the 2020 elections again (The Guardian, 26 March 2019: Michelle Obama’s memoir sells more than 10m copies). In the big picture, Barack Obama can already be pleased that history has placed him as the first black, intellectual president between the significantly less presidential and intellectual George W. Bush and Donald J. Trump, giving him extra appeal and nearly Kennedy-like sympathy status.

The result of the presidential election is that the US and the rest of the world unfortunately isn’t spared Donald Trump or as Claus Kleber from ZDF recently formulated: “In the face of global challenges, crises and wars, the office of the US president isn’t a job for career starters.” No one can seriously want a nationalistic, xenophobic, and isolationistic USA, but this is the result of the election, on the memorial day of the Reichskristallnacht and the fall of the Berlin Wall. The candidate was chosen, who obviously has the least knowledge of politics, diplomacy and economics of all candidates. His dubious and unacceptable views on world events will not only concern us extensively in the coming four years, but will also permanently endanger the world order, as we know it. Trump obviously didn’t understand the “Make America Great Again” election slogan, originally used by Ronald Reagan in his presidential campaign. His destructive behavior can hardly be interpreted differently. Adults with children will probably the “Opposite Day” of SpongeBob SquarePants come to mind. In addition, America has been, remain, and will be great without Trump, because it is the Americans who make the country great. How big the damage to the Republican Party through the election campaign will be, will be seen in the future. But there is also a weakened US democracy, the oldest democracy in the world, which need to recover from the “election campaign” in the coming years. The social divide will deepen further. With this Trump delivered his first gift to the equally dubious Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom Trump praised and celebrated, and who was one of the first to congratulate him, followed by numerous right-wing populists and right-wing extremists from all over the world, among them of course the Ku Klux Klan (The New York Times, 1 October 2018: 11 Takeaways From The Times’s Investigation Into Trump’s Wealth, The New York Times, 1 October 2018: 4 Ways Fred Trump Made Donald Trump and His Siblings Rich, The New York Times, 2 October 2018: Trump Took Part in Suspect Schemes to Avoid Tax Bills, The New York Times, 4 October 2018: City Officials Join Effort To Examine Trump Taxes, The New York Times, 15 October 2018: A Scheme Aided the Trumps. Tenants Are Paying.).

Chancellor Angela Merkel said about the election result: “Germany and America are linked by values: democracy, freedom, respect for the right and dignity of man, irrespective of origin, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation or political attitude. On the basis of these values, I offer close co-operation to the future President of the United States of America, Donald Trump.” One can almost only wish that Trump will make his promise come true, that the vice president will do all the future work and that Trump himself will only travel the golf courses of this planet, without interfering in politics. But Mike Pence isn’t a real candidate of choice either, which is another representative of post-factual politics.




Recommended posts:

Share this post: (Please note data protection regulations before using buttons)

Eberbach Abbey in the Rheingau

Eberbach Abbey in the Rheingau

[caption id="attachment_161276" align="aligncenter" width="590"] © Fritz Geller-Grimm[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Eberbach Abbey (German: Kloster Eberbach) is a former Cistercian monastery near Eltville am Rhein in the Rheingau. On account of its impressive Romanesque and early Gothic buildings it is considered one of the most significant architectural heritage sites in Hesse. In the winter of 1985/86 the interior scenes of the film The Name of the Rose were filmed here. The vineyards of Eberbach Abbey were, at 300 hectar...

[ read more ]

The city of Santander in Cantabria

The city of Santander in Cantabria

[caption id="attachment_161163" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Town Hall © Year of the Dragon[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]The port city of Santander is the capital of the autonomous community and historical region of Cantabria situated on the north coast of Spain. Located east of Gijón and west of Bilbao, the city has a population of 183,446. From 1950 to the 70's urban growth takes off with the construction of many housing blocks with solid buildings of 5 to 6 stories but few housing developments for the working popul...

[ read more ]

Theme Week China

Theme Week China

[caption id="attachment_200945" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Giant Panda © flickr.com - Chen Wu/cc-by-2.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia and the world's most populous country, with a population of around 1.404 billion. Covering approximately 9,600,000 square kilometers (3,700,000 sq mi), it is the third- or fourth-largest country by total area. According to its constitution, the People's Republic of China is "under the democratic dictatorship of th...

[ read more ]

The medieval town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber in Bavaria

The medieval town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber in Bavaria

[caption id="attachment_153813" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Plönlein, former market square, Sieberstor (left) and Koboltor (right) © Berthold Werner[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Rothenburg ob der Tauber is a town in the district of Ansbach of Mittelfranken (Middle Franconia), the Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany, well known for its well-preserved medieval old town, a destination for tourists from around the world. In the Middle Ages, it was an Imperial Free City. Traffic-reducing measures are in place in a significant po...

[ read more ]

Theme Week Abu Dhabi - Capital Gate, the Leaning Tower of Abu Dhabi

Theme Week Abu Dhabi - Capital Gate, the Leaning Tower of Abu Dhabi

[caption id="attachment_24848" align="aligncenter" width="393"] Capital Gate, July 2012 © FritzDaCat/cc-by-sa-3.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Capital Gate is a skyscraper in Abu Dhabi adjacent to the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre designed with a striking lean. At 160 m (520 ft) and 35 stories, it is one of the tallest buildings in the city and features an 18° incline to the west. The owner and developer of Capital Gate is Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company. The tower (also known as the Leaning Tower of Abu Dhabi) is t...

[ read more ]

San Bernardino in California

San Bernardino in California

[caption id="attachment_165693" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Wigwam Motel © flickr.com - Marcin Wichary/cc-by-2.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]San Bernardino is a city located in the Riverside-San Bernardino metropolitan area (called the "Inland Empire"). It serves as the county seat of San Bernardino County. As one of the Inland Empire's anchor cities, San Bernardino spans 81 square miles (210 km²) on the floor of the San Bernardino Valley, and has a population of 210,000. San Bernardino is the 17th-largest city in Californi...

[ read more ]

The Costa Luminosa

The Costa Luminosa

[caption id="attachment_168189" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Costa Luminosa in Trondheim © flickr.com - Trondheim Havn/cc-by-sa-2.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]MS Costa Luminosa is a cruise ship, owned and operated by Costa Crociere. Costa Luminosa entered service on May 5, 2009. The ship's design is a hybrid, taking the best elements of Spirit-class and Vista-class cruise ships. A sister ship, Costa Deliziosa, was launched in February 2010 and is based on the same design. Costa Luminosa departed Civitavecchia in Italy on Jun...

[ read more ]

Theme Week Sylt - Kampen

Theme Week Sylt - Kampen

[caption id="attachment_154318" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Rotes Kliff Beach © Bin im Garten/cc-by-sa-3.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Kampen is located north of the island's main town, Westerland. The municipality is part of the Amt Landschaft Sylt. The local economy is dominated by tourism. The name Kaamp means "a marked out field". The first mention of Kampen occurs in a tax registry from 1543. The village is considered to have been founded quite late, possibly as a result of people moving there from an earlier se...

[ read more ]

Roskilde, vikings and festivals

Roskilde, vikings and festivals

[caption id="attachment_151240" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Roskilde Monastery © Mogens Engelund / www.engelund.dk[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Roskilde is the main city in Roskilde Municipality, Denmark on the island of Zealand. It is an ancient city, dating from the Viking Age and is a member of the Most Ancient European Towns Network. Roskilde train station is a major stop between Copenhagen and the regions of Denmark located to its west. With a population of 47,117, the city is an economic center for the region. R...

[ read more ]

Portrait: The Reformer Martin Luther

Portrait: The Reformer Martin Luther

[caption id="attachment_169010" align="aligncenter" width="586"] Martin Luther (1529) by Lucas Cranach the Elder[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Martin Luther (10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546), O.S.A., was a German professor of theology, composer, priest, monk and a seminal figure in the Protestant Reformation. Luther came to reject several teachings and practices of the Roman Catholic Church. He strongly disputed the Catholic view on indulgences as he understood it to be, that freedom from God's punishment for sin could be purc...

[ read more ]

Return to TopReturn to Top
© Jerome Ryan - www.mountainsoftravelphotos.com/cc-by-3.0
Matanzas in Cuba

Matanzas is the capital of the Cuban province of Matanzas. Known for its poets, culture, and Afro-Cuban folklore, it is...

© flickr.com - Bart Everson/cc-by-2.0
Panama City Beach in Florida

Panama City Beach is a city in Bay County in Florida on the Gulf of Mexico coast with population of...

Spirit School at The Brandy Library © flickr.com - Jazz Guy/cc-by-2.0
Tribeca in Manhattan

Tribeca, originally written as TriBeCa, is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Its name is a portmanteau from...

Schließen