A foreword: I completed this column November 1, five days before the presidential votes were tallied and while the race was still a virtual tie. I did this because I do not want my writing to focus on the election’s outcome, which, for the sake of this discussion, is irrelevant.

By now, Election 2012 has come and gone. The partisan ad spam, able to grate on even the steeliest of nerves, has faded from YouTube screens. And in slightly under two months’ time, either President Obama or Governor Romney will be sworn into the highest office in the nation. Everyone should stand behind the man who ends up holding it.

It is difficult, even painful to support a candidate after bombarding them with negativity. That said, when bipartisanship is unanimously mentioned both as something the country needs and lacks, such support is of paramount importance. When Obama or Romney wins, the opponent’s party is likely to utter the phrase ‘divided country’ at least once, since neither is projected to win by a large margin. Nothing will widen this division more than labeling the winner a killer clown, dead set on either “taking away” America or “moving it backwards.”

Both candidates have spent exhaustive months campaigning for an opportunity to improve the country they love. Both candidates have policies that, while not perfect, were meticulously designed to help them meet this goal. While some degree of disagreement is valuable, to hope for their failure is unacceptable. This nation has seen many presidents face a healthy level of criticism, but flourish under the constructive cooperation of political parties. Quite frankly, the potential death of this ability is far more disturbing than that of any perception of “America.”