I’m a big fan of America: I love the collective sense of optimism that defines them as a nation. So it is mightily disappointing that the wealthiest, most powerful country on the planet should end up with Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton as their choice for the next president.
I stayed up late on Sunday night to watch the second ‘debate’ but ended up just sat agog that the job interview for the most powerful office on earth should be reduced to the slagging match it has become. Undoubtedly, it is Donald Trump’s combative style and colourful past that has made the 2016 race so different to previous editions but Hillary Clinton is hugely divisive too.
It is clear that whoever wins the White House in November will face an enormous – perhaps even impossible – challenge as they seek to reconcile the competing aspirations of each other’s voters whilst having to prove themselves as capable of being the President of the United States. Trump and Clinton are polarising the American electorate and there are big question marks over both of their judgement.
Who lives in the White House is more than a political soap opera for us in the UK. It will impact on global politics for the next four years, it will guide the way we tackle IS in Iraq and Syria, and it will have a profound impact on the global economy.
I understand the sentiment that Trump taps in to but I have every faith that cometh the hour, the American people will choose wisely and that no matter how imperfect she might be, Hillary Clinton will be in the Oval Office in January.