In 2016, I was pleasantly surprised when Donald Trump won the presidential election. I feared he’d lose to pro-abortion Hillary Clinton.

Fast forward to 2020. I wasn’t optimistic that Trump would win re-election, as I indicated in my Nov. 2, 2020 column. I feared he’d lose to pro-abortion Joe Biden.

Alas, I was right this time.

I blame three main factors for Trump’s loss: the coronavirus pandemic, 2020’s urban upheaval and strife, and the relentless (and mostly unfair) criticism he received from the mainstream media these past few years. He weathered the intense storm for the first three years of his presidency, but in the fourth year things began to fall apart.

Regarding the allegations of widespread, massive voter fraud that supposedly affected the outcome of the election – I’ll likely take heat from at least some of my readers for writing this – I’m not at all convinced that such widespread, massive fraud occurred. Trump’s supporters are many, no doubt; yet the left, which despises Trump and thus supported Biden-Harris, still dominates American society and most parts of the world. We pro-life, pro-family religious and political conservatives are in the minority.

I’m grateful to Trump for strongly supporting the pro-life movement, promoting religious liberty, and building a prospering economy prior to the pandemic. He deserves credit for those accomplishments and others.

However, I agree with what Catholic author Karl Keating wrote on his Facebook page Jan. 9:

Trump needs to retire from the political fray. He no longer is in a position to do anything positive for the conservative cause or, thus, for the country. The good that he did – and he did a fair amount – and the good positions he advocated – and he advocated many – now need to go under other people's banners. He must decrease so that they may increase. He needs to get out of the way after January 20.

It will be a rough two years, until Republicans have a chance to take back the Senate and win the House…. As I've noted elsewhere, there is something of Greek (or Shakespearean) tragedy in the Trump story: a man with considerable talents who did himself in through character flaws he was unable or unwilling to control. His most ardent fans will need to come to understand this or they too, like him, will be useless in the battles ahead.

I fear for the future, but I do hope that God will spare us the worst of what may come.

And to quote my fellow RenewAmerica columnist Judie Brown, president and co-founder of American Life League (Jan. 12):

Continue teaching that every preborn child is precious in the eyes of God and that, until each child is precious in the eyes of all of our fellow Americans, no election of any kind can heal our nation.

Trust in the goodness of God. He is our Father, and in Him resides all the courage, the will, and the inspiration we need to make a difference as individuals in restoring peace, one life at a time.

America’s real crisis is a lack of trust in God. We are called to be His messengers in this time of darkness. The devil will not win!

Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us.