A Trump millennial: My joy for America

I went to bed early Wednesday morning feeling absolutely elated at the news that Donald Trump is president. I find it quite “historic” that he won, considering the fact that Hillary Clinton had the entire mainstream media on her side, the entire tech industry on her side, the entire entertainment industry on her side and many powerful influences in government and on Wall Street. Some might even call those people the 1 percent, right? It seems contradictory to the ideals many Democrats share, but Clinton was truly the elitist candidate and Trump persevered. It is important to remember that Hillary Clinton and her largest donors and most influential supporters are the epitome of privilege, to use a word so loved by the political left.

She did everything she could to win this election, and it is very clear that she had no problem sacrificing her morals (if she had any) to win. Her corruption, lies, betrayal and scandals caught up to her and I am so thankful for that.

I would also like to point out that there are a lot of people on social media saying very nasty things and quite honestly, being ridiculously dramatic. Those are the same people who loved sharing Clinton’s hashtag: #LoveTrumpsHate. How ironic. I published a post to Facebook the morning after the results sharing my beliefs and announcing my pride and excitement for President-Elect Donald Trump. Shortly thereafter, I was met with hostility from an individual who is employed by Hope College.

This individual so eloquently called me a “d**k” and told me to “take [my] win and shut up dude.” Oh how I love the liberal concepts of tolerance and acceptance! This occurred publicly on Facebook. However, I support that individual’s right to say that to me. Water off a duck’s back. I don’t believe in trigger warnings, safe zones or micro-aggressions. I believe we have the right to offend and the right to be offended.

I also believe conservatives, by nature, are quieter, less outspoken, less likely to share their personal beliefs and more likely to keep their mouths shut and their heads down. I think this election should say something to my fellow conservatives who may not have voted for Donald Trump. We must use our voices, just as the left has, and just as Trump has.

Give this guy a shot; he is deeply flawed but so are we. Have some grace and think optimistically about our future. I wouldn’t throw in the towel or lose hope; listen to his speech last night with an open mind and an open heart and spend less time reading posts from Buzzfeed and Lena Dunham (shouldn’t she be in Vancouver by now?) and spend more time listening to Donald Trump’s own words (I mean speeches, not cherry-picked soundbites).

Lastly, to everyone devastated that our first female president was not elected, it should not be a race to elect a female president. Don’t be hasty. We want to elect the one that is right for the position, not just because she is a woman. That time will come, that woman will come. Hillary was not that woman.