ALIEN IN RESIDENCE

As an Alien and honorable guest in U.S. residence, the fireworks stunned me more than “The Speech.” Boy, “TRUMP 2020” exploded in a hail of splashing flashlights right behind the Washington Monument. The ubiquitous obelisk shone brightly in the night. What a difference with the Democrat party convention hulled in darkness and fear! One has to admit, foe, or fan, the Republican Convention was a better show.

The many real-life people of the American scene who spoke struck me as well. These everyday people made convincing speeches about how the Trump administration had altered their lives for the good and given them extraordinary support.

I am a conservative economist and have always been. I like my numbers to fit. I must feel safe outside in the evening and not be screamed at violently in public by people who disagree with me. I don’t mind other people’s opinions, but throwing fistfights, spitting on me, annoying me in restaurants, or kicking me out of rage is not my cup of tea. That seems to be the new normal of the Democrat-run states, cities and even suburbs now. And I fear it announces the new normal of the U.S. when the turning point is crossed, if it has not already. How can Washington D.C. allow Republican Senator Paul Rand and his wife to be accosted the way they were when leaving the White House on foot to their hotel after the RNC Convention closed? What type of Democrat mayor do we have here?  Could they not have foreseen this and have the necessary police forces on guard? Who pays those anarchist criminals anyway? Why can’t the Trump Administration put a definite stop to their insane behavior?

I came here as a guest because my employer, The World Bank, has its headquarters in Washington, D.C. I arrived in 1972, a few years after the burning King riots in 1968.  I considered it an aberration. Helas! It was not, as I saw on TV several times after that. It began to shape my first doubts about U.S. society.

When I stopped working seven years ago, in 2013, my wife (from the Caribbean) and I were offered U.S. residency with a green card (on the condition we transferred a handsome fee for the honor), with the option of applying for the American nationality after five years. The scene at the Republican Convention, showing five people receiving citizenship, impressed me. From Syria, Sudan, to India, Ghana, and Lebanon. The last three countries I visited several times. Lebanon remained a mystery to me, so many religious factions living together in almost continuous tension, undermined by neighboring Iran’s nefarious interference, and plagued with corruption and terrorist activity, all depressing the country’s economy. I can imagine why Lebanese or Syrians want to come to the U.S. for security and a better life.

Should I do the same? Our kids and grandkids are American. As a proud Dutchman, I felt that I could only change my citizenship if I fully shared what my new home would embrace.  Holland has changed a lot since I left for Switzerland in 1969, but as a small country, it remains tolerable (except for the weather). And we don’t walk around with guns. But the U.S. has changed substantially from the time it liberated me from the Nazis. After Kennedy, it has adopted more and more liberal ideologies that are not mine. The Reagan years were a notable exception. The Bushes were passable, and I shared the attack on Iraq, but only to the extent that it would stop Sadam from hauling his scuds into Israel. I altogether dissented from the Bush plan to establish democracy in Iraq. On what historical basis did they come to that ill-timed idea?

(See my blog https://www.johnschwartzauthor.com/?s=Iraq+From+Western+Dream)

The unnecessary invasion proved a disaster and only facilitated Iran to take hold in Iraq, precisely what the insufferable Sadam was preventing.

But I found the Clinton crowd unpalatable, and when Obama entered the scene with Saul Alinsky in his wake, I began to feel most uncomfortable. After him, another Clinton presidency would have turned me off for good. I could not abide by their unbridled socialist, statist philosophies (and racist!-remember Trayvon Martin, the Ferguson riots, the Baltimore riots, etc., pandering to Marxist Black Lives Matter), playing money games for power while getting away with murder, and subverting the election process of the opposing political party and its rightfully elected leader.

My wife woke me up with champagne in the early morning hours when Trump was elected. What a relief. From the outset, the iconoclastic Trump made us feel comfortable again. Finally, someone who called a spade a spade, understood money, and adhered to sound economics. Despite all the democrat shenanigans, he produced what he promised, and then some. He is not the regular sweet-talking sweet-smiling political type, which many – including never Trumpers – prefer, because it is so familiar and convenient and keeps the status quo. But he will be reelected, no doubt about that. The leftist democrats (oh, boy, has that party changed!) and their Media lackeys will try to undermine his election again, but the Democrat- tolerated riots and anarchy may prove the Albatros hanging around Biden’s neck.

“The Speech” contained much of what I stand for. It was a bit too long for my taste and less vivid as Trump’s off the cuff rallies, but the essence was right on the money. Given the occasion, he had to read most of the teleprompter, and that often sounds flat.

The fireworks said it all: that’s what election-day will be. Not just for the U.S. but the whole world, looking on in anxiety.

So, some readers asked, if you had a vote, who would you vote for? Our answer is obvious: The Republican ticket. To save America. We would not like to live in “Biden’s America” either.

All the best,

ENCHANTÉ