In an unusual turn of events, Indiana’s primary mattered this year. Ours happens so late in the season that the candidates on either side usually have the nomination in the bag by now. This was a lot of fun for me because it meant that candidates actually made a stop in our state and in our city. I went to a Ted Cruz rally and left feeling really uncomfortable and vaguely horrified. I skipped the Sanders rally on Sunday because I just didn’t feel like going anywhere that day or dealing with people. I actually had tickets to attend the Trump rally the following day, but after Ken and I saw how many people were expected, we decided to avoid it. If Hillary had had an open event, I would have made sure to be there, though!
I’m glad I skipped the Trump rally because I can only handle so much idiocy right up in my face. I was able to live stream his speech and it helped to be somewhat removed from it. I told Ken that it was a good thing we didn’t go because there were several times when I laughed out loud at some of Trump’s statements, and I’m guessing that his supporters wouldn’t take kindly to someone laughing at their candidate. Even though he deserves every bit of derisive laughter he gets.
Anyway, Indiana had the dubious honor of going strongly for Trump and knocking Cruz and Kasich out of the fight for the nomination. As much as I loathe the oleaginous Cruz and the deceptively mild-mannered Kasich (bullshit policies delivered in a kind, reasonable voice are still bullshit policies), it is horrifying that the Vulgar Talking Yam (thank you, Charlie Pierce!) is the presumptive nominee of the Republican party.
I have voted Republican in the past. I think Richard Lugar was a fine Senator and I was happy to cast my vote for him more than once. Trump is about as far removed from someone like Richard Lugar as I am from an astronaut.
It looks more than likely that the Republican party is going to nominate a bigoted bully who seems to think that “political correctness” is an egregious concept that prevents him from saying whatever the hell he wants to without any consequences. And what he wants to say is misogynistic, racist, Islamophobic, and generally vile. I’m not sure when PC became a bad thing...I’m a big fan of treating others with respect and understanding that just because someone doesn’t share my views or beliefs or race or preference for peach pie over cherry doesn’t mean that they should be vilified.
Everything that comes out of his mouth is laughably absurd, including his economic plans for paying less on our debt, which virtually every economist is saying would be disastrous to the world economy. He changes his tune on issues in a matter of hours, not days. One of Trump's chosen delegates in California is a white supremacist.
It is beyond my comprehension that a significant portion of our populace is supporting this Cheesy Dorito (thanks, Holly!). He is not just ignorant and ill-informed on policy, he’s a fucking asshole. I am to the point where I honestly question the intelligence and competency of anyone who is supporting this nincompoop. I have friends and family who do, and while I continue to love them, I find that I simply cannot understand why they don’t see this demagogue for what he is: a power-hungry narcissist who won’t hesitate to burn the whole thing down.
