At Victory Girls, we hold varied and nuanced opinions on many topics. Not everyone here will agree with me, so I want to be clear that this is only my opinion.

This election season has seen some of the most vitriolic rhetoric in recent history. And most of the worst of it was between Republican candidates Donald Trump and Ted Cruz. When Cruz did not include an endorsement of Trump at the Republican convention in July, he became both more hated by some factions of Republicans, and also the exalted figurehead of the #NeverTrump movement. Today he endorsed Trump for president.

So what do these factions think about Cruz today? Prior to this endorsement, but upon hearing rumor of it, some people essentially said Ted Cruz would be dead to them if he endorsed Trump. Others felt his pain in their own reservation to the inevitable, or at least the resignation to voting for the lesser evil. Glenn Beck doesn’t say he’s crying in this Facebook post, but it sounds like it.

Cruz's former comms guy, @rickwtyler, to me just now: "It's mourning in America for conservatives. We lost our leader today."

— Hallie Jackson (@HallieJackson) September 23, 2016

Cruz is not a conservative leader. He's an extremist idealogue and his career is over…

— Economic Growth DC (@GrowthDC) September 23, 2016

Ted Cruz has made the right decision. I think he looked at the political landscape and made a calculated choice (and lawd, we know how calculating he is right?). He is a man who has very high political aspirations. I think this is coupled with genuine sincerity in his principles and I can imagine that the struggle to make this decision was truly heart-wrenching for him. Trump had taken the low road by insulting the attractiveness of Cruz’ wife, and went further down that road when he implied Cruz’ father had something to do with the assassination of JFK. And we won’t forget the vile moniker of Lyin’ Ted very soon. That will follow him for life. Those actions were quite despicable and out of line. They were supposed to be on the same team, but Trump didn’t have any respect for that.

I’ve gone through much the same evolution in my voting decision this year. I can remember when there was a field of seventeen Republican candidates, and in the beginning I thought what great options we have! Then the campaigning began, and one by one, good choices fell away, and I was left with Trump. So I stopped looking at Trump and whether he was worthy of my vote. I looked instead at the alternative, Hillary Clinton. And. I. Just. Can’t.

Hillary Clinton is a horrible human being who has lied and connived her way through life (see Clinton scandals here.) She’s a cheater and has no principles. She will not stand up for our troops and she will pass the buck at every turn. She is all in, all in for herself. Way back when she excused creeper Bill of all his peccadillos (and that is being kind) which continue to this day, it became obvious to anyone who would see that she was not an honorable person. It was clear she was a manipulative, power hungry, leech of a person, willing to be supremely humiliated in order to grasp for the golden ring. She is Gollum. Disgusting bottom dweller consumed with her greed for power. And maybe that wouldn’t be so bad, except she leaves actual bodies in her wake. Benghazi is a clusterf*ck that cannot be forgotten. And how easily she can distance herself from responsibility is nothing short of shocking. She has no conscience.

Hillary will continue to push America down the road to destruction. We have been propelled down this road at an unbelievable speed by Obama. This is what can happen in eight years. This cannot be ignored. I think people are thinking they will be able to have another election in 2020 and they’ll do better then. But that is wrong. The chances of having a better chance at winning in 2020 is infinitely small. Social justice warriors, young people who have only known affluence spouting socialist and communist rhetoric, the growth of safe spaces and of ISIS, mall stabbings and pressure cooker bombs set off to the lovely sound of Allahu Akbar, the massive deterioration of race relations, the growth of federal control of local law enforcement  – none of this will reverse on its own. These things are not only supported by Clinton, they are cornerstone to her legacy.

Whether Trump will do anything to stop these things remains, in my mind, an unknown. But at least it is a known unknown. With Hillary, there are things we know which are bad enough, but you and I both know, there is so much we don’t know that we don’t know. She simply cannot be gifted with the highest honor in the world. She cannot be allowed to become the American president.

A short word on third party candidates. You know, if it makes you feel good, then do it, but don’t fool yourself that it will make anyone take notice of anything. Some people think that if the third party vote is large enough change can be effected, and maybe that would be true if that vote was actually large enough. But this year, it won’t be. In order to have third party make a difference it takes a lot more work than coming out to the polls once every four years. You’ve got to get out there and work, for years, in order to make a dent. It can’t happen in the next few weeks.

This is the bottom line, as I see it: We must stop Hillary. I see Trump as an imperfect human, one who likes to get in the gutter, and can be rude and obnoxious. In other words, he seems like a typical New Yorker (no offense intended). I think he does have a concept of winners and losers and there is no doubt that he wants the U.S. to be the winner. As a person who has dealt with what is good for his bottom line, he thinks in terms of concrete outcomes, rather than feel good outcomes. He won’t be big on emotions, but he will get the benefit of the bargain. A lot of labels have been thrown his way but for me they lose credibility because they are so over the top. There might be a kernel of truth in the criticism but it gets so blown up that it becomes meaningless, especially in the face of the alternative. On the other hand, all of the criticism of Hillary is dead-on accurate. We know what she is and what she will do. And so does Ted Cruz.

Added: Per reader request, here are Ted Cruz’ six reasons for making this decision:

1. Supreme Court: We are one justice away from losing our rights. The next president could appoint up to four new justices. Trump committed today to appoint justices in the mold of Scalia. Clinton will appoint left-wing ideologues.
2. Obamacare: Obamacare is hurting America. Trump has said he will sign legislation repealing Obamacare. Clinton will not change Obamacare.
3. Energy: Trump has promised to reduce regulation to allow our energy industry to grow. Clinton will continue to strangle the industry.
4. Immigration: Trump has promised to revoke Obama’s illegal executive orders on immigration. Clinton will continue these policies.
5. National Security: Trump has promised to stop the deluge of unveiled refugees. Clinton will turn a blind eye to radical Islamic terrorism.
6. Internet Freedom: This week Trump cam out strongly in favor of free speech online. Clinton would turn over this power to the international community including Russia, China, and Iran.

See Cruz’ Facebook post here which includes more information. This is my favorite line from the post, and a sentiment I have voiced myself: “My conscience tells me I must do whatever I can to stop that.”

This situation reminds me a little bit of the Laws of Armed Combat. In war, there are rules. For a very long time America has played by those rules, as it is right to do so. But what if the only weapons you have left are banned by the rules? What if all you have is a flamethrower and the enemy is bearing down on you? Do you obey the rules or do you fight with whatever you have at hand? This is kind of the way I see Trump. He is not my weapon of choice, but he’s all I’ve got left and I choose not to sit out of the fight.