There's something going on here that we all need to understand …
Bourbon, cheeseburgers, NASCAR, The Kardashians — these things are all inherently American, and while much of the population would rather not, there’s no escaping the reality that they exist and represent the country’s culture.
And over the past few years, we’ve all had to swallow the unfortunate truth there are two presidential candidates no one is particularly fond of. These people also define us as a nation. Particularly Donald Trump, who is basically what The United States would be if some magical prowess suddenly made it a person …
He’s a White Male, so is the U.S.
As of 2014, it was estimated that there are 246 million whites (including Hispanics who identify as white) in the U.S. — or 77.4 percent of the population. It is the majority race in the country.
However, women currently hold the lead in population percentage by a narrow 0.8 percent, but it’s men who hold the most positions of power. According to CNN Money, only 14.2 percent of the top five leadership positions in the S&P 500 are held by women. Out of those 500 companies, there are only 24 female CEOs. Likewise, 71 percent of elected officials are men, 90 percent are white, and 65 percent are white men.
He’s Wealthy, so is the U.S.
Forbes estimates Donald Trump’s wealth to be valued at around $3.7 billion. While that, shockingly, puts him nowhere near being the wealthiest person in the world (Bill Gates is worth 20 times that), it still places Trump in the top 1 percent of money holders to ever exist in history.
While we still take a backseat to China as being the wealthiest country by GDP and PPP calculations, the nation is still far ahead of the next country in line, India. As it stands, the U.S. government’s net worth is $12.3 trillion, according to the latest data from the Federal Reserve.
He’s Racist / Bigoted, so is the U.S.
“Build the wall,” he says. “Show me his birth certificate,” he adds. “Ban all Muslims from traveling,” he continues. Regardless of how any of this is spun, it’s more than apparent that Donald Trump dislikes cultural differences. Outside of his own flesh and luxury, he sees nothing but people underneath him.
It shouldn’t have to be explained in excessive detail here about how tarnished our historical parameters of equality are. America didn’t invent slavery, no, but it sure as hell streamlined the process. Even after the 13th Amendment was passed abolishing involuntary servitude, the country still had to embroil itself in the Civil Rights Movement a hundred years later, and often finds itself at the butt-end of racial disparity today (more so, arguably, than in the 1950s).
He’s Sexist / Misogynist, so is the U.S.
The aptly timed Billy Bush tape is going to go down in history as the pivoting point of the election. Because through all the atrocious things Trump has said before the release, nothing seemingly irked his supporters more than bragging about his celebrity stature and how he uses it to treat the women he comes in contact with.
Currently, women face a wage gap in nearly every profession. According to recent research published by the AAUW, in 2015, women were still only making 80 percent of what men do for the exact same jobs. To boot, the U.S. is one of the lowest rank developed countries by way of maternity leave. It also continues to struggle to find appropriate healthcare options for women, and alarmingly allows for 1 in 4 of them to be sexually assaulted in their lifetimes.
“Make America Great Again” is the slogan Don touts as a manta of moving forward — literally claiming that by progressing as a country everyone needs to take three steps backwards. And by making the country great again, whom are we making it great for? The middle class? His overwhelmingly white rural supporters?
By making it great for them would be to forget what little progress we’ve managed to squeeze in for the rest of the country. Quite frankly, it's selfish.
Then again, so is America — there has never been a more fitting person than Donald Trump to compete for the privlege of running it.
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