onald Trump is going to be our president. We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead.”
Those aren't our words. They're former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's, and while they must have been extraordinarily difficult for her to say on Nov. 9, they struck the right tone for a deeply divided nation that just witnessed a campaign of near-boundless nastiness.
There was precious little room for grace in the race since the Cleveland and Philadelphia nominating conventions over the summer that put Mr. Trump and Ms. Clinton on a collision course. This was a campaign of many terrible moments and almost no instances of insight or inspiration. We're glad it's done. It did not show America at its best.
That's particularly true of the president-elect, who as a campaigner often was cruel and crude. But the election is over, Donald J. Trump will be president come Jan. 20, 2017, and the country needs more than an endless cycle of political recriminations and grievances.
In his acceptance speech, Mr. Trump said, “I pledge to every citizen of our land that I will be president for all Americans, and this is so important to me.”
That was not, to put it mildly, the message he sent during the campaign. Perhaps, though, the weight of the responsibility Mr. Trump now faces will change his outlook on the country he soon will lead. He hasn't earned the trust of all Americans, but he should be given the opportunity to do so.
U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, a Democrat who represents an area of Ohio—Youngstown—that was particularly receptive to Mr. Trump's economic message, said after the election that he stands “ready to work” with the president-elect “in any way that will benefit the constituents of my district.”
Ohio Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown was of a similar mind, saying: “I have worked with many people throughout my career. That's the job Ohioans elected me to do, and I will keep working with my colleagues on both sides to find common ground and get things done for the people of our state.”
We're not under any illusions that Messrs. Ryan, Brown or any other Democrats look forward to life under President Trump. (Frankly, lots of Republicans aren't wild about the idea, either.)
Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont spoke to the political moment, though, when he said, “To the degree that Mr. Trump is serious about pursuing policies that improve the lives of working families in this country, I and other progressives are prepared to work with him.
“To the degree that he pursues racist, sexist, xenophobic and anti-environment policies, we will vigorously oppose him.”
We encourage an open mind about President Trump, with a healthy dose of skepticism about his agenda on trade, regulations, a border wall and many other issues on which details were scant during the campaign.
Here are a few other things we'd like to see from various people and groups:
The Democratic Party: It has lost the White House, is in the minority in both houses of Congress, and is losing consistently at the state level. Ms. Clinton won the nationwide popular vote by a narrow margin, but that shouldn't stop the party from making a clear-eyed examination of why it is becoming less competitive in huge swaths of the country.
People protesting Mr. Trump's election: Keep it peaceful. And then find a productive way to stay politically engaged. Identify a charity—or better yet, charities—you believe in and help it with your time, talent and treasure.
“I hope that he will be a successful president for all Americans.”
Those aren't our words. Again, they're Hillary Clinton's. You don't have to agree with the results of the election. Millions don't. There's a lot of work to do to make our country a better place for everyone. Do your part.
This editorial appeared in Crain's Cleveland Business magazine, a sister publication of Tire Business.