Why did he win the elections?

Could it be that people fear the centralization of power in the hands of those who like to impose their view of progress on others? Could it be that some dare to think lower taxes and deregulation generate economic growth better than ever-expanding government programs? Could it be that the more individuals and organizations are dependent on state funding, the greater the risk of economic collapse and dictatorship? Could it be that recent history shows how the marxist obsession with dividing people in oppressors and oppressed and seeing everywhere inequalities that need to be corrected using state power not only fuels social tensions and violence, but leads to disaster?

Could it be that people think uncontrolled immigration poses a risk to national security and political stability, especially when originating from areas where many inhabitants hold different social values? Could it be that some are disgusted by the stubbornness of avoiding to name the ideology of an enemy that takes great pride in beheading civilians? Could it be that there are citizens that don’t agree with a $1.7 billion ransom paid in cash to a regime that has declared its ultimate goal to be the destruction of their country? Could it be that having a future president’s organization funded by foreign powers that support terrorism and her trusted aid having immediate family connections to foreign extremist organizations was considered worrisome?

Could it be that people find it wrong to force bakers to imprint messages they don’t agree with on cakes, or else face state punishment? Could it be that some find it unacceptable to reinterpret the country’s constitution, reduce freedom of conscience, freedom of education, freedom to offer and purchase only the goods and services one desires? Could it be that suppressing free speech and putting lives at risk out of fear not to offend is condemned? Could it be that people reject the shameless collusion between media and the establishment, the bias in academia, the propaganda, the falsified polls?

Could it be that people thought that a colorful language might be less dangerous than heading further down the same path? Could it be that many didn’t find this choice easy, but faced with these options, were so scared of the alternative that they considered the populist, egomaniac candidate promising them to face the powerful forces that push their nation in a disastrous direction to be the lesser evil? Could it be that the responsibility of this choice, even if it proves to take the country further down the road to serfdom, falls on those who brought people in the position to make it?

Of course not. I know, the explanation is much simpler: Americans that vote for Republicans are stupid, bigoted and racist. Besides, Europeans have an impeccable track record of avoiding dictatorships that uniquely qualifies them to mock and lecture Americans on matters of freedom and democracy. It’s not like the two world wars started in Europe. It’s not like the communist ideology, developed and spread by atheist intellectuals from Europe, claimed 100 million victims and imprisoned large parts of the world for generations. It’s not like, each time, the backward Americans had to give their lives to extinguish the infernal fires started by the toxic love affair that many enlightened, condescending Europeans keep having with various forms of collectivism. Those are minor historical details we tend to forget when riding our high horse, armed with self-proclaimed superiority and shielded by ignorance.

I would worry more about the future of Europe than about the future of the US.