Regression

What if, one November morning, we woke up with Donald Trump in the White House and Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin? This terrifying idea, which seemed unthinkable a few months ago, is starting to work its way to reality, if the pictures and the threats are to be believed.

Let’s admit it. Up until recently, this electoral campaign was rather amusing. We had all predicted a Bush-Clinton duel, just as exciting as a rehash of the Sarkozy-Hollande battle, and here is America defying all predictions and on fire for two men who are complete opposites. On the one hand, we have a sexist, racist, populist, conspiracist, pro-firearms billionaire. On the other an assumed grandpa, who is a self-proclaimed “socialist,” which up until now has been considered a dirty word in the country of triumphant capitalism.

While in the Democrat corner, Bernie Sanders — the socialist grandpa — is not yet sure to come out as the winner of his wrestling match with Hillary Clinton, it must be said that Donald Trump is at the head of the Republican race, crushing his opponents. We have heard that Marco Rubio is winning ground, yet we are not seeing any traces of this in the results. The situation has been judged sufficiently dangerous for Pope Francis, who is rarely given to personal attacks, to lash out vigorously at Trump, stating last week that he was “not a Christian.”

The real issue is not Trump himself; it’s his success, which indicates the current social and political regression in the world. However, the good news is that one political party in the United States, along with young people, are supporting a man like Sanders. It is proof that there is still hope left. It is more hopeful still that, when faced with Trump, the Democratic candidate manages to rally moderate Republican support, as they are incapable of voting for a Dr. Strangelove.