Quote of the Day:

Stop marching awful celebrities out for political action. Stop the War on Women ads. Stop everything you did during the campaign that only turned more voters to Trump. I’m talking to you, Evan McMullin. You’re on hour 143 of your 15 minutes of fame. Please stop.

–Mollie Hemingway in "Ten Things the Right Can Teach the Left about Accepting the Reality of Trump"

 

We conservatives have had certainly had our share of disappointments over the last eight or so years. But did our liberal friends care–or even notice our pain? Of course not, as Mollie notes:

I can vouch for how sad if not depressed many conservatives were when Mitt Romney lost his bid to unseat President Obama in 2012. If you didn’t already know that, it’s probably just because you don’t know many conservatives. The media never for a moment considered how heartbreaking that loss was for many Americans worried about the direction of the country.

Drawing on our own sad experiences, Mollie puts forth ten things that conservatives can teach distraught anti-Trumpsters about the acceptance of reality. Trump, by the way, was not Mollie's candidate of choice. Indeed, last year's campaign reminded her that "the Psalms were written for times like ours."

Still, it's past time to buck up. Mollie's ten sage tips range from "It's okay to be sad" to a belated "Don't lose your sanity."  It's a wise and hilarious column. Some nuggets:

From "Admit Your Candidate Has Flaws:"

There is no reason why anyone should deny that Hillary Clinton had tremendous problems as a candidate. She was robotic, she was focused on her opponent’s personality rather than his policy goals, she was embroiled in scandals caused by her own poor judgment, and she had instincts toward the status quo on foreign and domestic policy in a year when people wanted dramatic change. You can still like her and be happy with your vote while acknowledging that she had serious problems.

From "Don't Follow the Media or Social Media's Lead:"

There’s always a disconnect between a navel-gazing media establishment based in New York City and Washington DC and the rest of the country, but it’s gotten far worse in the last year. Disregard the false narratives being pushed by many in the media and get out and talk to a Trump-supporting neighbor. You’ll learn far more. And you’ll feel a lot better when you realize they’re not the monster they’ve been portrayed as.

From "Let Trump Remind You Why Our Constitution Is So Great:"

The American system of governance acknowledges that flawed men seek and secure power. Yes, our founders hoped we might be virtuous and have virtuous leaders, but the checks placed on executives and the branches of government are designed around the reality that men have bad instincts and that power corrupts.

In the same way that the bad choices of 2016 should have provoked us all to care more about the higher things in life — faith, family, art, nature, and more — let political opponents who concern you remind you why our system of government is designed against unbridled power. Conservatives kept telling liberals that Obama was setting a dangerous precedent by accomplishing so much of his agenda through executive order. That warning wasn’t enough, but perhaps the reality of a Trump presidency will help liberals understand why our federal government shouldn’t be able to run roughshod over the states and why presidential power should be kept in check.

Read the entire column.