The full text of statements from various organizations and politicians on Donald Trump's election as U.S. president appear below:
House Speaker Paul Ryan
I want to congratulate Donald Trump on his incredible victory. It marks a repudiation of the status quo of failed liberal progressive policies. We are eager to work hand-in-hand with the new administration to advance an agenda to improve the lives of the American people. This has been a great night for our party, and now we must turn our focus to bringing the country together.
Democratic Party of Arkansas Chair Vincent Insalaco
I want to speak to Democrats across the state – particularly to those who worked so hard these many months. The election is over and we all know that elections have consequences, but this is not the day for analyzing; this is a day for reaching out to one another and caring for those have worked so hard for so long.
The DPA staff, our legislative leaders, candidates, volunteers, supporters and friends – let me express my most sincere gratitude for the endless hours you have put in to this historic election. In solidarity, we take comfort knowing more Democrats turned out to vote than Republicans.
We must remember that here in Arkansas, the fight goes on for quality education, fair pay, and equal rights for all. Today, let us pray for wisdom for our newly elected leaders and hope unity is their top priority.
Arkansas U.S. Tom Cotton
I congratulate Donald Trump on his election, and I congratulate all Republicans who won a sweeping, historic victory yesterday in the United States Senate and House of Representatives and across America, including my fellow Arkansans. But yesterday was not a Republican victory; it was an American victory. The American people sent a clear message that they want change in Washington and they want a government that serves them and puts the American nation first. Because we are one nation, bound in the words of President Lincoln by “the mystic chords of memory,” which unite us across the ages, across the land, across all lesser divides. I look forward to working together with President-elect Trump, Republicans and Democrats alike in the Congress, and all my fellow citizens to make America great again.
American Civil Liberties Union
NEW YORK — In response to Donald Trump’s election as president of the United States, Anthony D. Romero, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union, had the following statement:
“For nearly 100 years, the American Civil Liberties Union has been the nation’s premier defender of freedom and justice for all, no matter who is president. Our role is no different today.
“President-elect Trump, as you assume the nation’s highest office, we urge you to reconsider and change course on certain campaign promises you have made. These include your plan to amass a deportation force to remove 11 million undocumented immigrants; ban the entry of Muslims into our country and aggressively surveil them; punish women for accessing abortion; reauthorize waterboarding and other forms of torture; and change our nation’s libel laws and restrict freedom of expression.
“These proposals are not simply un-American and wrong-headed, they are unlawful and unconstitutional. They violate the First, Fourth, Fifth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments. If you do not reverse course and instead endeavor to make these campaign promises a reality, you will have to contend with the full firepower of the ACLU at every step. Our staff of litigators and activists in every state, thousands of volunteers, and millions of card-carrying supporters are ready to fight against any encroachment on our cherished freedoms and rights.
“One thing is certain: we will be eternally vigilant every single day of your presidency and when you leave the Oval Office, we will do the same with your successor.
American Society of News Editors
After this long, tortuous election season, Americans went to the polls Tuesday to exercise their right to vote, perhaps the ultimate expression of free speech in the United States. However, throughout this campaign, Americans have seen extraordinary assaults on their First Amendment rights to free speech, freedom of religion and freedom of the press. These assaults have come from many political spectrums and walks of life. At some universities, students expressed outrage at the practice of chalking, writing messages on campus sidewalks, when those messages were in support of a specific candidate. At a religious-based campus, a university official censored a student who wrote a column in opposition to GOP nominee Donald Trump. It has been suggested that some political candidates' rhetoric amounts to hate speech and, thus, should be censored. We have heard instances of Americans being targeted because they practice a specific religion. We have also heard proposals to weaken the nation's libel laws to make it easier for individuals to sue the press. Elected officials, as well as candidates, have tried to control their messages by refusing to talk to journalists, attacking journalists personally and sometimes harassing journalists' sources. And on it goes.
The American Society of News Editors, representing newsroom leaders across the country, believes that the First Amendment and the freedoms that it protects are fundamental underpinnings of our democracy. We know that attacking the press is a well-worn tradition in our country's politics. We also know that our Constitutional rights to a free and independent press, to speak freely and to practice the religion of one's choice have served as a beacon to the rest of the world for centuries. In many countries, one can still be jailed for political beliefs, and journalists are persecuted for reporting on sitting governments and corruption.
As America introduces the 45th president, ASNE stands ready to fight vigorously for all the rights guaranteed under the First Amendment so that democracy, however messy it may be, thrives for generations to come.