Anne, I am speculating, so feel free to take me to task if I am way off base. Beneath the veneer of rational argument, I sense that you know you are engaged in self-deception. You obliquely acknowledge the limitations of a Hillary Presidency, and so you attribute to her, and to her likely opposition, a tendency toward pragmatism and compromise that simply can’t materialize without some huge event or series of events that forces the country to come together. An invasion or a economic depression might serve that purpose, but it will take something monumental.

I agree that Hillary could make an effort to work across the aisle, but that won’t happen until the fourth year of her term, and only if her legacy promises at that point to be a one term Presidency with no accomplishments. In that case, her ego may prompt her to do something desperate and try to take care of something besides herself.

My instinct tells me that if you really are a moderate Republican, your decision to vote for Hillary has a lot to do with gender. The GOP candidate is an embarrassment, and you can’t find a hook with a 3rd party candidate, so you are consoling yourself with the knowledge that at least we will have the first women President when all is said and done.

As noted, I could be wrong, but I think I am not.