During her four years as secretary of state, Hillary Clinton visited 112 countries, meeting thousands of foreigners and many heads of state. She was CEO to 35,000 State Department employees.
Being secretary is extremely demanding. There’s grueling, sometimes dangerous world travel, often on short notice. She constantly dealt with people many time zones away.
Tedious negotiations often involved people that are disagreeable, brutal, or openly hostile. Language interpreters are often needed. The secretary needs top-notch diplomatic skills, being careful with her words and mindful of local customs, taboo phrases, etc.
The secretary is in frequent contact with the president and attends hundreds of cabinet meetings. Clinton was in the Situation Room and voted “for” the daring mission to take out Osama bin Laden. Both parties recognize the vital role of secretary of state.
Republicans urged Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice to run for president, but they declined. Current secretary John Kerry was the 2004 Democratic Presidential candidate. Clinton possesses the same qualities as these folks – high intelligence, steady under pressure, tough as nails and total dedication to our country’s welfare.
Clinton was elected twice to the U.S. Senate representing New York’s 20 million residents. She served on the important Senate Armed Services Committee. Senator Clinton voted “for” the Iraq invasion.
In hindsight, Clinton regrets this, but like her bin Laden vote, she actually made the tough call with substantial consequences.
Her opponent, Donald Trump, never held elected office. We don’t have any idea how he’d actually govern. His proposals come from some alternate universe ranging from incoherent to preposterous to truly dangerous – always short on specifics.
Other presidents that didn’t have prior governing experience were war hero commanding generals. Trump had draft deferments during the Vietnam War and never wore the uniform.
Astonishingly, he claims to know more than our current generals about ISIS, and has cruelly insulted our military and their families on numerous occasions.
There is a 100 percent certainty that on January 20, 2017, either Trump or Clinton will become our 45th president – not Gary Johnson, Bernie Sanders or Jeb Bush. Your vote counts!
Please vote responsibly.
Richard C. Pratt
Durango
