Avoiding Voter's Regret

After the UK voted for Brexit, citizens of the country bombarded Google with the query "What is the EU?"   A wave of "voter's regret" (#Regrexit) seems to be rolling through the island nation days after the fateful decision.

As Americans get ready to vote in November, we may face our own voter's remorse if Donald Trump happens to win.  UK citizens seemed not prepared for a Brexit victory. 

Even Boris Johnson, one of the top talking heads in support of Brexit, appeared to back-step Monday after the election results started sinking in. 

"I cannot stress too much that Britain is part of Europe," he wrote in his regular   Daily Telegraph column.

"The only change ─ and it will not come in any great rush ─ is that the UK will extricate itself from the EU's extraordinary and opaque system of legislation," he wrote.  "EU citizens living in this country will have their rights fully protected, and the same goes for British citizens living in the EU."

"British people will still be able to go and work in the EU; to live; to travel; to study; to buy homes and settle down," he said.

From these statements, it is clear that Boris should have googled "What is the EU?"  long before election day. 

In a similar sense, we have to wonder what kind of economy we could expect if Trump is elected.  The big problem is figuring out what we believe in from his many "evolving"  campaign promises.

Not only does he contradict himself often within short time periods, but he offers only very general ideas about his intentions.  What he wants his supporters to believe is that he is a successful businessman, and that he will bring similar success to the US economy.

However, building up one's own (inherited) business empire mostly involves looking out for one's self-interest.  The challenge of creating a healthy national economy is much more holistic in nature. 

American voters are filled with emotion, but do they really know what they will get with a President Trump?  Due diligence requires pinning down the candidate on what he specifically plans to do on things like job creation and security, wage growth and wealth disparity.  His supporters should also jeep him honest on presenting a consistent platform.

Otherwise, we might face the next flood of Google searches this November, but this time they may ask:  "Who is Donald Trump?"