White House: Finally, Americans Decide Today

As Americans head for the polls today, omonu yax-nelson, examines issues that have thrown up what analysts describe as the most unpopular candidates in US election history.
With a double digit lead in opinion poll before third 26th October, Hillary Rodham Clinton, the Democratic Party candidate, fell from a comfortable, clear chances of planning her electoral victory party, to struggling to stay neck-in-neck with her rival Donald J. Trump.
The electoral fortune of Clinton began to nose-dive, when the FBI Director, James Comey wrote congress that, large discoveries have been made about Mrs. Clintons lingering email saga.
But political analysts say, with the Sunday’s unexpected announcement by the FBI Director, that nothing incriminating was found in Mrs. Clinton’s email has once more, breathed a life-line into Mrs Clinton’s Campaign. The ABC poll released on Sunday, gave Mrs Clinton a slim lead going into today’s election.
Her rival, the Republican candidate, Donald J. Trump, who has never had public service experience. He had struggled throughout his electioneering campaign to convince Americans that, he temperamentally fit to be President.
As Americans file out to the polls today, to elect one of the two New Yorkers as the 45th President of the God’s own country. The choice is between the rabble-rousing estate billionaire, Donald J. Trump and the former First Lady, senator and secretary of state, Hilary Rodham Clinton.
To boost her chances of clinching the presidency, Mrs. Clinton selected as her running mate, a bi lingual missionary, Harvard trained Attorney, Democrat Tim Kaine. A well rounded public servant, perhaps, one of the few, privileged to have served as Mayor, governor and US senator.
Analysts say, Mr. Kaine’s fluency in Spanish language is a huge advantage to Mrs. Clinton’s campaign. Kaine has been deployed to areas with huge Latino and Hispanic people for campaign in their mother language.
On his part, the anti-establishment Republican candidate, Trump, selected the Indiana Gov. Mike Pence. Observers say, this would make up for Mr. Trump’s slim experience in public service.
Despite the pedigree of the two running mates, the credibility of the two candidates remain an issue in US politics. These candidates analysts say are the most miserable choices in the US modern electoral history.
However, they agreed that this election, by all by ramification, will alter the historical trajectory of the 240 years Presidential democracy.
For one, this election provides the opportunity for the Americans to welcome their first female commander in chief, which political observers say, would do permanent damage to the social barriers that have worked against women, in US politics. Recall that, while America is promoting gender equality in other lands, they have never had female vice president, talk more of a President.
Again, if the political pendulum swings in the direction of Clinton, in today’s election, bookmakers observed, history will as well be made. Because, historically, never before, has a husband and wife succeeded in becoming US President.
The last of such record is, father and son becoming President at various times. John Adams was the second US President, while his son, John Quincy Adams, became the 6th US President in 1825. Also, in modern US history, George Bush Snr. became President in 1988, while his son, George Walker Bush succeeded Bill Clinton in year 2000.
Poll watchers have described the two candidates in this election as the most unpopular, in the history of polling in the US. This is because, the political baggage of the two candidate has remained the subject of discussion/debates, instead of issue that affects the ordinary American.
This year’s electioneering campaign has been acknowledged as the most hateful, divisive, abusive; full of mudslinging, backstabbing and compromises.
Analysts say, this has caused disenchantment among voters across the 50 states of the US and the District of Columbia. The web of controversies, contradictions and scandals that surrounded the two candidates has severely weaken the people’s trust in the American electoral system.
Bookmakers also opine that, the eligible American voters are facing two miserable options. Trump, the Republican candidate has been accused by about a dozen women of indecent sexual conducts. The most worrisome, according to observers is the 2005 video in which Trump was captured on camera, saying he could grab women by the pussy. A scandal he described as a locker room talk.
The billionaire businessman has never been able to strike understanding with the press, which he often describe as compromised. But analysts has say, Trump dug his own electoral grave when he decided a move on collision-cause with the press. They likened a presidential aspirant fighting the press to a Sailor hating the sea.
A New York Times report implicated Trump’s tax evasion scandal. He has not been able to present his tax clearance. This has raised on his integrity.
There is also some disquiet in Trump’s camp on how to attract women vote. The series of sex scandal that has rocked Trump’s campaign has put him on edge with women, who are more likely to vote for their fellow woman, irrespective of her many scandals.
But the key issue in this election is the battleground states of Ohio, Florida, Pennsylvania etc., where the two candidates have been crisscrossing in the closing weeks of campaign. Pollster say, for Trump to win today’s election, he will need to win in four swing states, the possibility of which they doubt.
One of the key swing state, Florida, with 29 Electoral College votes has a large population of Hispanic speaking Americans. Trump has no doubt falling out of favour with this group because of his proposed ‘Wall of Mexico.’
Trump had during the primary election campaign, promised to build a wall between US-Mexican borders, to reduce the challenge of illegal immigrant in the US, if he is elected President, and force Mexico to pay.
Analysts opine that, Trump, by all stretch of imagination, know that, he will not get much from African American. Because of his racial prejudice against them.
Sensitive issues such as religion will play key role in today’s election. According to a 2016 population estimate, there are about 3.3 million Muslims in the US, whose vote, Trump should also not expect.
Since Trump started campaigning for the Republic ticket, he has had difficulty, explaining his position on the banning of Muslims from entering the US.
However, his pro-establishment stand has endeared him to many who bought into his protectionist rhetoric. With a campaign slogan “Make American Great Again,” many Americans see in Trump, a new beginning. A new way of doing things. Many Americans see in Mrs. Clinton, an old order, which means her election will mean status quo.
Analysts has say, average American voters are tired of Mrs. Clinton’s many scandals. And that, she might spend the four years of her presidency, like her husband, facing one form of probe or the other.
But Mrs. Clinton has been commended for been able to connect fairly well with her party, who have deployed all the arsenal needed in her support. The same cannot be said of Trump. He has virtually, ran a one man show since his campaign began. Analysts say, this might affect his electoral chances today.
Five of the former Presidents elected and nominees of the Republican Party are not in support of Trump. This is unprecedented and has dimmed the chance of the billionaire, whose electoral fortune has held the whole world in apprehension.
The structure of Republican Party support for Trump political observers say, is not enough to win election. They reasoned that, turnout at rallies is not enough, but having the ground supporting staff, who engaged prospective voters in a ‘go out’ and vote calls, text messages, knock on the door.
Pollster has projected a win for Mrs. Clinton because President Obama’s approval ratings has soured and the unemployment rate is at all times low. Experts in American politics say, Obama is still a force to reckon with and he has never hidden his preference for Mrs. Clinton to succeed him, in order to preserve his legacies.
President Obama, along with his wife, Mitchel and Mrs. Clinton’s running mate, Tim Kaine have been addressing rallies across the US. Polls projection say, Trump’s defeat might come majorly from unorganized campaign.
They observe that, American election is an expensive enterprise, in this regard, Trump has been struggling to connect with donors. But his rival Mrs. Clinton has made huge gains, making her campaign sweat-less.
That is how close the world has come to having a woman preside over the 240 years old democracy. This is even, as the magnetic, African-American president of the US, Barak Obama is deploying his cutting-edge campaign strategies in support of his former rival and later secretary of state, Hilary Rohdam Clinton.
Experts in electoral issues have concluded that, with the various states and national polls, the intended political capital Mr Trump wanted out of Clinton’s ill-health, has earned him the opposite, as he has been slammed with the charge of cruelty.
With a campaign slogan “Stronger Together” that speaks volume of Clinton’s indubitable moral authority that can best heal the deeply polarized US society, occasioned by Trump’s racial and religious prejudice based campaign, which analysts say did work effectively for him during primary election but will definitely be his greatest undoing, in the count-down to presidential election.
Trump who has struggled to recant some of his primaries campaign vulgar rhetoric has increasingly shown that he cannot be trusted.
Though, various polls suggest that, both candidates are highly unpopular, but most Americans are doubtful of Trump’s temperament as the commander-in-chief of the most complicated democracy in the world.
This distrust has deeply polarized the ranks of the Republican Party, with many of its leaders, opting to vote for Clinton. Trump has till date, remained repugnant to the reproof of his party leaders and that has to a great extent, isolated him as from the overall support of his party structures.
Many Americans have so far, seen, Trump as insecurity personified to America’s interest, globally. For instance, he has been struggling with his earlier vow to ban all Muslims from entering the US, if he becomes the C-in-C.
This, analysts say, will hurt the US interests in the Gulf (Arab states). The US global dominance strives on deft diplomatic maneuver, which realistically, is under threat.
In the wake of Trump’s emergence as the Republican Party candidate, an uneasy calm has gripped the European Union, a historical natural allies of the US.
The US had relied on the support of EU to check the excesses of Kremlin, Russia, who has since the Second World War (European War) maintained anti-western posture.
One of such strategic collaboration was the Marshal Plan, which saw to the US, injecting around 12.5 billion dollars into Europe’s economy, to be able to contain the rampaging Russia’s expansionist tendencies after the WWII.
Trump has had to change his campaign manager many times. He has consistently, put his campaign team at across road over his unguarded utterances.
Since the WWII, the Kremlin has been the number one protagonist of the US foreign interests, unfortunately, in Russia, Trump has found a dependable friend.
Recently, he uncannily adjudged the Russian autocratic leader, Vladimir Putin as a better leader than the United States’ Barak Obama.
He showed himself capable of undermining the US national security, global dominance when he encouraged the Russian hackers to hack into Clinton’s records. Analysts condemn this and say, Trump, knew not, the boundary between politics and national interest.
In their view, Trump’s hobnob with the Russian authority is a mark of his obvious deficiencies in historical diplomatic affairs, which they think was a bad omen for the US national security.
In fact, in delivering a none qualification verdict on Trump, some analysts say, making money in business is a different ball game from governing a country like the US, whose president must have a global personae of influence and comportment.
Though, Clinton’s campaign has continued to contend with the ripple-effect of her unlawful use of private server, as the US secretary of state and the deadly invasion of the American Consulate in Libya in 2012, most American still see her as the preferable alternative to the highly temperamental former TV star.
With varied experience in both domestic and diplomatic issues, haven served as a governor’s wife, US first lady, Senator, Secretary of state and now, democratic nominee and front runner in the contest, foreign affairs experts have thumped-up Clinton as better placed to trounce her emotionally. The US president is often elected, based on good grasped of foreign issues than domestic issues. That, Trump has struggled to show himself competent. He has made strategic mistakes that depicts his naïve understanding of the place of US in global politics.
While the Clintons are also facing probes into the family foundation, they have been able to come up with her tax records. A feat that has remain an uphill task for Trump, who has been challenged many times to produce his tax records. Despite the declaration of same by his running mate, Mike Pence.
Analysts say, with generous personae of influence, unusual candor and mind boggling stability of emotion, women world-wide are waiting on the edge for the arrival of the first female president of the God’s own country.
The believe is that, a triumphant Clinton in the forthcoming election will demystify the male firm grip on power thereby, breaking historical dominance, shatter and pull down prejudices.
The implication of a Clinton presidency is that, it would have a trickle-down effect on women world-wide. It will extend the frontier of economic opportunities as women are adjudged to better managers of resources.
This judgment is based on the examples of Margaret Thatcher, Prof Dora Akunyili and currently Theresa May.
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