The hope that's Left

I've been hoping that today (Friday, the passing of the healthcare bill, or rather not passing) would suck for Trump. And it did and I'm so glad. Relieved.

Obamacare is far from perfect as the first iteration of healthcare reform. It needs fixed, premiums are set up to increase and paying a fine when you choose not to have healthcare is so much bull shit. But not this way, guys! Today Trump learned that you can't shove legislature through because you're a megalomaniac billionaire. Oh damn, work on Capitol Hill has strategic processes that must be followed to obtain results. You have to compromise. You don't just write what you want into a bill and ignore half the country's population.

In that super scary time, pre-inauguration and post-election, I saw countless memes that said something like, "hoping Trump fails as president is the same as hoping our country fails." And another meme that said "God is in control, pray for our president no matter who they are." At the time I agreed with the first meme. It seemed very near sighted to hope Trump failed because the consequences of failing as president are fucking huge! We would all feel his failure. We'd go backwards in technological infrastructure, our iPhones would stop working and North Korea would figure out a way to projectile vomit in our general direction.

But now that we're here, day 63 of Trump in office, I want Trump to fail. With every fiber in my being I want his smug smile wiped off his face. I want him to experience a great deal of public humiliation and be humbled by it. The thing is, I'm afraid that he's so hard hearted, no matter how much he fails, he won't admit it. And he's so thick headed, he'll just keep trying the same thing. Trying the same thing over and over, expecting different results may be Einstein's definition of insanity, but it's my definition of stupidity.

So here's what I hope for: I hope that Trump fails enough that he's forced to adapt his approach. He isn't wise enough or humble enough to be able to learn, but he might want to succeed so badly that he evolves. I'm putting my trust in the boring, money driven, drawn out processes that is our congress.  Bore the hell out of him, you representatives, you! Stick to your guns and filibuster your life away, remember you want to get reelected and need $$$. Do the right thing. And if you can't do the right thing because it is the right thing, do it because you want to get reelected.

I deeply hope that Trump's budget fails. For those who are saying that we need to cut back and its high time we were more fiscally responsible, folks, this isn't the budget. This budget doesn't decrease government spending, it's simply moved money around to reflect the priorities of the Trump administration. I found it interesting and reassuring, when researching the federal budget, that Trump can only rearrange 27% of the federal budget. The other 73% is locked down. Last year government spending was estimated at $6.66 trillion. Trump doesn't plan to spend any less in 2018, he just wants to spend it differently and I for one, do not have the same priorities as the Trump administration.

So yeah, stupid meme that says hoping our president fails is the same as hoping our country fails, it's not. I hope our country succeeds despite our president. Watching C-span reassures me that our governmental processes were set up to carry on at a snail's pace, no matter who our president is. I used to find this unnerving. Now I find C-span almost as calming as classical music.

And the second meme, "God is in control, pray for our president no matter who they are," I never agreed with. Hang on to your hats, kids, cause we're gonna go theological on this one. God is not in control! If God is in control they sure as hell are doing a shitty job! God was in control in the Garden of Eden. Then Adam and Eve decided that they needed to know everything, the good and the bad, and the ugly, instead of trusting God to control all things. So they ate the guava (they're tastier than apples although less ubiquitous) and Bam, humans are in control! Don't believe me, read Genesis chapter 3, frequently referred to as, "the fall" in Christianese.

So if God is a good and loving God, why is Trump our president? "Don't worry, God is in control," is so much bull shit!!! This meme should have read God is omnipotent... which at a fundamental and literal level is still not that reassuring, because still God gave over control of the world to us, and we are royally fucking it up. No, what I find truly biblically reassuring is that God, who is omnipotent, is good and even more, is Love. So maybe a meme that read, "God is Love, pray for our president no matter who they are," is something I can get behind.

At 63 days into the Trump presidency, this is what I'm clinging to: the hope that Trump will fail and our country will succeed, that above all, God is Love and I'm praying for our president no matter who they are.