Well I feel called upon to address some of this even though no doubt anything you can readily dismiss anything I put forth.
I wonder if you had people working and scheming 24/7 both privately and quite publicly to bring you down you would not become a mite uncivil as well as be less forthcoming with "every aspect" of your life and personal dealings? Not sure why you think our president is a "genius" but I would say he was most forthcoming about such things until he found they would be turned against him. As has been, unfortunately, almost everything he has done! I learned growing up that we don't have to necessarily like someone to work with them and learn from them. What is "divisive" is that some people refuse to do either. They don't care for him and they refuse to work with him and they will spend the rest of their lives hating him.
The "pillars of American Democracy:" (as you express it) are personal freedom, personal initiative, hard work and success. Because without those there would be no "American Democracy". Plus a good dose of Christianity. And you need not remind me that many if not most of our "founding fathers" were not evangelical Christians. Some were but most, being good sons of the enlightenment, would have subscribed to the reasonableness of Christianity. The only notion of "equality" exists in God's love for all God's Creation.
Just as you are "no liberal" Donald Trump is no conservative. But he was willing to lend his support to some very basic conservative ideas and beliefs including those mentioned in my previous paragraph. Which was the reason, and the only reason, that many of us decided to vote for him. My husband and I rather supported Cruz/Fiorina but they didn't make it so our only real alternatives were Trump and Clinton. Now Trump was not so popular with many conservatives in our state(Massachusetts) - yes there are more than only four of five of us here! - but we thought best to support the candidate whose beliefs were closest to our own.
My assumption has been that his strategy has been to restore some sense or reality and practicality to our government. If such a thing is really do-able. Now you have accused him of dealing with "criminals and incompetents". As to the former do you even imagine that anyone playing as big a game as he through his would not have had to to accomplish what he wanted to accomplish? You want to build in certain parts of Philadelphia you deal with the "mob" and appease the unions or else it doesn't get done. That is the reality of life in many places whether you wish to acknowledge it or not. Now as far as "incompetents" he has to get the best people that will work for him. And seems to me the way he has become accustomed to doing things rather he chooses to make most if not all of the decisions. Would you work for him? I would not but then no doubt he would not even ask me to.
I don't know if you wait to see who is elected and then make them the "leader" by just following them. But many of us are not looking for a leader - we have our own lives to lead and we lead them ourselves. We elect a president to take care of the business of being president. Just as we all have our own jobs to do.
Not sure what kind of "national progress" people are looking for - we are quite happy with our own progress which is national enough for us. We can be ourselves and rise or fall by our own efforts that is enough for us.
Not sure if you mean the "tilting at windmills" to be our ideals which yes I suppose many of us have. But we know they are just ideals and not the way the world runs - they work ell enough for us but we would not expect they would necessarily work for everyone.
And I would say that in these days when hard work and success is demonized and Christianity is laughed off and many people would gladly give up their freedoms for a government check that many of us find ourselves clutching at whatever straws of "perceived possibility" (real or imagined} we can find.
Just the opinions of one who has worked hard and done well and who has some assurance for eternal salvation through Jesus Christ but otherwise makes no claims of superiority of any kind so expects to be "put in her place".