The nation has just begun to emerge from an epic battle of historical proportions and meaning. Many months have passed of heated, sometimes ugly debates and no shortage of controversies. Many times, we, as a nation, were more concerned about a candidate’s personal transgressions than their policy stances.
It was a relief, however, to hear from President-elect Donald Trump that when all is said and done, the time has come for Republicans and Democrats to unite, and that being American transcends one’s party. Hillary Clinton and President Barack Obama set a great example as they congratulated him and his team for their win.
We also want to congratulate our new President-elect, this great nation’s 45th president. President-elect Trump has a great deal of work ahead of him. It is admirable that his first post-election words were about bringing a divided U.S. together. We urge all of our readers, now that this difficult campaign is over, to step forward and support our new chief executive, whether you voted for him or not.
We also want to give our congratulations to Congressman-elect Josh Gottheimer, a first-time Democratic candidate and former speechwriter to President Bill Clinton, who defeated long-time Rep. Scott Garrett in New Jersey’s 5th District on Tuesday. We were impressed with Josh since he first came to visit The Jewish Link offices this past summer and were heartened by his passionate support for Israel; his commitment to fully represent our Jewish community did not go unnoticed.
Like the presidential candidates, Gottheimer and Garrett waged a tough, sometimes ugly campaign. We want to wish Gottheimer success in Congress. And we want to thank Rep. Garrett for his years of service and his deep and unquestioned support of Israel. We cherish the steadfast attention and regard he has shown for our community. We will be forever grateful and wish him the best in his transition.
Having said that, there are still a few bruises. It might take a while for us to let go of the impact of the past months of campaigning. We hope, though, that for the sake of the nation, we can come together as one nation, indivisible, and move ahead, once more proving why the United States is the world’s best and brightest example of democracy.
