IF I were a US citizen, I’d have voted for The Donald. There, I’ve said it. Friends, relatives and acquaintances have been surprised by this. Some assume it’s solidarity with another man who’s gone through life saddled with that name; but it’s not. And, despite what some might say, it doesn’t make me a Trump supporter.

I just considered him to be marginally the less dreadful of two awful candidates.

Like most sane people, I can’t ignore the sexism, the bile against gays, Muslims and, indeed, the school bully approach to anyone with whom he disagrees. Sarah Cupp, writing in the New York Daily News, was probably quite kind when she called him “a misogynist, neophyte clown”. Naïve as it might sound, I feel he’s less likely than Mrs Clinton to trigger World War III. I do like to keep my pieces here as much about Wiltshire as possible but this is an issue that affects us all. As the old adage goes: “When America sneezes Europe catches the cold.”

To be fair, most of the President elect’s comments since the election have been rather conciliatory. He’s praised Mrs Clinton in a way that makes you wonder if she’s the same person against whom he stood. She, in turn, has been magnanimous in defeat.

I know that when you’re fighting to become possibly the most powerful person on Earth, you’re going to do what’s necessary to win, but so much of that campaign was downright childish. The one who came out of it best was President Obama. He showed dignified support for Hillary and is clearly putting his country first when making the handover but he must be somewhat bemused by it all.

Maybe social media hasn’t helped. The first ladies of the 44 presidents have generally avoided personal criticism. There have been exceptions, like Eleanor Roosevelt, but she sought the limelight. Michelle Obama has been a dignified figure throughout her husband’s presidency. She certainly didn’t deserve the disgusting ‘ape in heels’ comment made by somebody that none of us had ever heard of from somewhere in the middle of nowhere. It would have just been an unreported, albeit crass, racist remark a few years ago but now it’s global news. At times ignorance is bliss and it would’ve been better if the embittered fool had just been ignored. You might say that I’m just as guilty of continuing to spread this bile but I’d argue that the genie is already out of the bottle.

Where reference was made to Mrs Obama’s apparel, the current Mrs Trump has been criticised for her past lack of the same. Thanks again to social media, many of us have seen the pictures. Big deal. That was then, this is now. And it does gloss over the fact that Melania Trump is an intelligent woman who speaks five languages.

Maybe this election is the wake-up call the world needs. What happened to the ‘good’ candidates? I don’t include Sanders in that – he’s as unelectable as most of us suspect Mr Corbyn to be. Perhaps the ‘good’ ones aren’t interested in entering politics when all they hear is people moaning about politicians. Sure, the politicos need to be called to order and their egos need to be reined in, yet it’s downright silly to say “they’re all the same” and that all are just out for themselves. Much as I don’t take Mr Corbyn’s views seriously I don’t doubt that he entered politics out of a desire to help his fellow man. Note to self: just because I don’t respect what he says, doesn’t mean I need to be rude about the man. Sorry, Jeremy.

Anyway, we are where we are and we have to make the best of it. Wanting Trump (or Brexit, for that matter) to fail is like wanting the plane to crash just because you don’t like the pilot. President Obama knows that, most sensible people do too. And now I hear that Miley Cyrus has deigned to accept him as President. Everything’s going to be alright. Call me Donald.