Trump May Not Be Your Cup Of Tea But Compared To Hillary...

Donald Trump and the conservative’s burden

Posted on March 30, 2016 by Ben Crystal

During a recent exchange over presidential politics, I found myself on the business end of “the question.” Given the near-certainty of Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton serving as standard-bearers for the Republican and Democrat parties this fall, would I cast a ballot for Trump despite my reservations about him — and they are legion — to prevent a pathologically dishonest and possibly unbalanced Clinton from slithering back into the White House?

It’s a tricky little problem, and it reminded me how I occasionally find myself envying the Democrat Party just a little bit. Sure, they’re embroiled in a nasty little primary fight between former President Bill Clinton’s wife and an ancient communist from Vermont; but they’ll get over it fairly soon. They’ll smooth out the wrinkles, either by finessing their wayward sheep back into the fold through careful co-opting of some Sanders plank like “free” college, or simply burying them under a mountain of the Goldman Sachs cash to which Hillary Clinton has virtually unfettered access. And then, the doddering sociopath will roll towards November with the vast majority of her ducks in a row.

Meanwhile, the Republicans are careening wildly toward the same finish line; likely with — and because — Donald Trump behind the wheel. While the left can funnel their masses toward their chosen candidate with bumper-sticker catchphrases and outright blarney — “Hope and Change” and “white privilege” come to mind — the Republicans have no such luxury with the truly conservative side of the electorate.

For all the hateful divisiveness and blatant hypocrisy which has come to define the American left, they do not struggle with an intellectually diverse membership. In 2008, then-Senator Barack Obama ran on a platform of little more than race-baiting and reheated leftist-platitudes. He faced a stiff challenge from Madame Clinton, a less-than-subtly racist campaign which featured “Hillary!” supporters questioning Obama’s competence, birthplace and eligibility to run. And yet, when it was over, not only did they flock to the polls to cast a ballot for Obama, Hillary ended up joining his administration as what can fairly be described as the worst Secretary of State in American history.

They fought like alley cats; but when the dust settled, they all bared their claws in unison for the candidate their party presented to them. And there’s no reason to think they won’t do so again this fall.

Democrats lack intellectual curiosity, a fact ably demonstrated by decades of support for every hare-brained leftist scheme from so-called “global warming” to Obama’s so-called “foreign policy.” It makes them a solid source of material for guys like me, but it also makes them a formidable electoral bloc.

Don’t be fooled by the vitriol Bernie fans hurl at Hillary. The left and “center” of the Democrat Party united behind Obama in 2008; once Hillary makes the appropriate promises of free “stuff,” they’ll unite behind Clinton in much the same manner.

And therein lies the rub for the rest of us. The independence of the conservative — born of the same healthy skepticism of government which created this great land of ours — precludes the instinctive unanimity which helps the Democrats control their gaggle. In fact, conservatism by definition precludes unanimity. People who instinctively mistrust authority instinctively avoid people who seek it.

We can’t be bought. We can’t be shined on. We can’t be swayed by promises of “free” college, “free” healthcare or even “free” iPhones. And we don’t vote based on the advice of Hollywood blowhards or the talking hairstyles on television.

In 2008, many conservatives refused to hold their noses long enough to push Senator John McCain’s wheezing “Straight Talk Express” into the White House. In 2012, many of those same conservatives balked at backing Mitt Romney’s effort to derail Obama’s runaway train. And in 2016, many of those same conservatives are again struggling with the choice of Trump or “none of the above.”

To be honest, I have yet to formulate a real answer to “the question.” While I’m mortified by the idea that the Democrats are actually pushing Hillary Clinton towards the Oval Office, I’m hardly assuaged by the idea of Donald Trump in the same space.

I understand the concept of unity, but I refuse to simply fall in line for such a concept. If the GOP really wanted me — and my fellow conservatives — to back their man, they should have offered a better man. After all, what are we, Democrats?

— Ben Crystal