Updating John-Paul Sartre’s “No Exit”
“On eve of election, deep divide.”
–Headline, Star Tribune (11/6/2016)
Everywhere you look, assorted pundits and talking heads are lamenting how polarized the electorate has become, and how futile any attempts to unify it are.
Not me.
I know a surefire way to unite the country.
Ready?
Here goes:
Jail BOTH Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.
Hillary, for obstruction of justice (destroying evidence while subject to federal investigation); perjury (lying about it); and illegal entanglements between the Hillary-led State Department and the Clinton Foundation (not to say scores of ethical lapses dating back decades).
As for Donald . . . take your pick: sexual assault; tax evasion on a truly epic scale; misuse of charitable funds; and many, MANY instances of fraud (Trump University, Trump steaks, stiffing contractors, etc.).
There, happy (almost) everyone??
Presidential Do-Over: The Undercard
Of course, that would create political pandemonium.
Steps #2 and #3 would be to script a sane, thoughtful do-over.
So, grant President Obama an emergency, six-month extension (sort of like the kind that Rudy Giuliani sought, unsuccessfully, after 9/11).
Then, hold another general election with Tim Kaine and Mike Pence as the Democratic and Republican nominees, respectively.
Unprecedented?
Absolutely.
Unconstitutional?
Probably.
But, given a choice, I have no doubt an overwhelming % of Americans would opt for just such a scenario . . .
P.S.: John-Paul Sartre famously imagined Hell as three people locked in a room together for eternity, including a vain woman who must rely on the other two to be her mirror.
My updated version of “No Exit” would be Donald and Hillary occupying adjacent prison cells.
