With just hours to go till the final results are in, much is at stake for the Country. Will it be business as usual, or will we have fair trade deals? Will moral people be appointed to the Supreme Court, or will we have a president who embraces an attitude of do whatever you want. The Supreme Court in this election is for all intents and purposes on the ballot. The Syrian Refugee program is for all intents and purposes on the ballot as well.

The stakes are high, for as one of the founding fathers said the constitution was made for a moral people. Clinton intends to put people on the Supreme Court who are the antithesis of moral family values. Clinton has bragged about this. Mr.Trump however, has vowed to appoint judges like Anthony Scalia, conservative moral constitutionalist judges not activist judges. Even though Trump may not have been first choice for many Republicans, Republicans now for the most part are uniting around the choice of “Never Hillary” and realize the gravity of a potential Clinton presidency.

What are Trump’s chances of winning one may ask? Just as it appeared Trump’s chances were slim, an October surprise arose and the winds of the election began shifting in a new direction. FBI director Comey had decided to reopen the investigation into Clinton in light of the discovery of new emails. Now he has announced having reviewed the emails he is sticking with his assertion from July in not indicting Sec. Clinton. Clinton is currently winning, an average of the polls 47.2 to Trump’s 44.3. Regardless, early voting has begun and the constant investigations of Clinton have chipped away at the credibility of the former secretary of state. In addition, polling experts say Black turnout is not comparable to the numbers that turned out for Obama in states like North Carolina. Clinton supporters are cautiously optimistic while those who want change to the Washington status quo see a new opportunity for Mr. Trump.

The email saga had been reopened. Clinton is once again under scrutiny. The Democrats are putting their champagne away. They thought this election was over and Clinton would be President. Now both candidates are actively campaigning for every last vote they can garner. The Democrats, who had previously directed their frustration toward Director Comey are now placed in an uncomfortable position of trying to walk back their comments but Clinton is the one who had a private email server and she is the one who was found to be careless at the very least with classified information.

In order to win tomorrow Trump must win many swing states. Winning Texas, Arizona and Utah(even with challenger McMullen) will not be enough. Ohio, Florida and North Carolina among others are very important to put Mr. Trump to the 270 line. Should Trump loose a state like Florida for example the election is likely over and Clinton wins. Clinton has an advantage in regards to the electoral college since states like New York and California are overwhelmingly Democrat and contain a large amount of electoral votes. Now Trump is looking to win New Hampshire, Nevada and maybe pick up a blue state like Michigan.

In these last 12 hours or less Mr. Trump faces a choice, he can get sidetracked and lose the electoral college despite the Clinton corruption and possible ongoing federal investigation or he can stay on message till the last ballot is cast. Mr. Trump can remind voters again and again that someone who cannot be trusted with classified information does not belong in the White House. He can focus on the fact that someone under this much scrutiny for a lack of security with emails should not have access to the nation’s most secure information.

Furthermore, he should remind Americans that this is the Washington elite thinking they can get away with criminal behavior. Mr. Trump should continue to frame himself as the outsider who will end the Washington corruption, end business as usual, and bring real change to Washington and to America. Many are thirsting for change in Washington, just uncertain whether Mr. Trump is really the agent of change he says he is. Trump must convince voters he is indeed, to win.

Mr. Trump should stay on message. He will bring jobs back from overseas, secure the border unlike Clinton who has called for open borders and renegotiate trade deals which are unfair to America. He should attempt to convince rust belt voters that he will restore jobs to the rustbelt region which has been directly impacted by trade deals. He should remind coal miners of Clinton’s dismissive attitude toward the coal mining industry whereas he can help bring that industry back. This is a winning message and with Clinton under possible Federal Investigation over The Clinton Foundation something which can lead to success in swing states.

The electoral college map is not in Trumps favor however, if Mr. Trump harnesses the latest developments to his advantage stays on his core message and continues to reach out across the array of voting blocks he has a potential path to the White House. He must focus on the swing states or battleground states as they are sometimes called and get his message and the message of the movement he has started out there. Failure to do that could mean a president sworn into office who the FBI director once labeled “extremely careless” with important information. It’s time for America to decide.

(TLS welcomes your opinions by sending them to newstips@thelakewoodscoop.com)