Since the day Trump won the Republican nomination for
president, there has been endless discussion about him. People have examined his polices and
dissected his words to understand exactly who and what he is, as well as what
kind of agenda he would set. There has
been virtually constant disagreement and divisiveness about his effectiveness
as a leader, the effect his policies will have, and even whether or not he is
fit to serve as president. Like many, I
discuss Trump in various contexts quite frequently, both in person and online,
and I admit that I sometimes do this too frequently; as a result, I have been
accused of “obsessing over Trump,” as have many who oppose him and most of the
major news outlets. But is this a valid
criticism? Are we obsessing, or are
those criticizing us simply missing the point?
Unfortunately, like so many things, the answer is both yes
and no. There are certainly those who do
obsess over Trump, wanting to slam him for every syllable he utters. This behavior is seen with most presidents,
but it has been greatly amplified over the past couple of decades as political
polarization has increased exponentially.
Some people say negative things purely for the pleasure of discrediting
someone they disagree with, and this is something that needs to stop. Criticism for the sake of criticism serves
only to further divide us, and considering how badly divided we are now, it is
unlikely we could take much more.
This unneeded criticism is a serious and legitimate problem,
but it has led to unwarranted criticism of anyone saying anything negative
about Trump. I myself have been attacked
repeatedly with this claim, and while I do think I might post a bit too
frequently at times, I consider this criticism to be quite unjust. Frequent, even constant discussion of his
administration is not inherently obsession; to call something an obsession
depends not just on frequency, but on the overall context and intent of
postings and discussions. Given that
Trump or someone in his administration manages to do at least a couple of
questionable things a day, it is no wonder there is so much discussion. For example, some criticize the news outlets
for essentially following his tweets in real time, but given that his tweets
regularly contain lies, misdirection, insults, inflammatory language, and
threats, all of which are frequently directed at journalists, political
opponents and foreign countries alike, how can news outlets not cover them?
There is a great deal of coverage about Trump and his
administration, and it is at times overwhelming. But this is the job of a journalist. They exist to help us hold our leaders
accountable. With the advent of social
media, we the people have an opportunity to be a part of this process by
helping to spread reports and information.
I completely understand that many people feel that news outlets and
those opposed to Trump are attacking him for the sake of attacking him, but
that simply isn’t true. Moreover, this
claim is rife with hypocrisy because those making it are the same people that
spent Obama’s entire tenure attacking every single thing he did and said. Virtually none of the attacks against Obama
were justified, and several were drummed up simply because they wanted
something to complain about (like the time he wore a tan suit) or were
conspiracy theories designed to discredit and impugn him (such as the birther
theory, which continues to live on despite the fact that it has been REPEATEDLY
shown there is no truth to it whatsoever).
His words and policies were intentionally misconstrued and taken out of
context in order to pain him as a monster and un-American. The animosity and opposition directed at
Obama are a prime example of obsession with a political figure, but they simply
cannot be compared to the opposition we see against Trump.
Now, it is certainly true that there are those who oppose
Trump purely for the sake of opposing him.
They use the same deplorable tactics of spreading lies, misinformation,
and conspiracy theories to discredit him.
As such, it must be admitted that some of the coverage of him has been
unfair. But this represents only a tiny,
tiny fraction of the total number of people that oppose him, which grows by the
day. The vast majority of coverage of
his administration is completely legitimate and truthful, and even when
mistakes are made, legitimate news outlets quickly issue corrections and
retractions. Most of the claims about
his corrupt nature and inability to tell the truth are based completely in
fact. Those of us who oppose him share
the reports that come out because we have a responsibility to make sure this
information is spread as widely as possible.
We are bound by morality and by the Declaration of
Independence to speak out when something is wrong. This is the reason so many, myself included,
speak out so frequently (there is certainly a valid argument that we may do so
too frequently at times, which tends to be counterproductive) and fervently
against Trump. He represents an
existential threat to this country and to the world. The danger he represents cannot be overstated
because it threatens our most basic values and most cherished rights, not to
mention our financial and physical safety.
His supporters often claim that we are opposed to him simply because we
don’t like his policies, and while most of us do not agree with his policies,
that is a Strawman argument (For those unfamiliar with this term, a Strawman
argument is a logical fallacy because it is an intentional misrepresentation of an argument
so that it is easier to attack. Read
more about this at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Straw_man); it ignores the
real reason we dislike him, which is the danger he represents. One doesn’t even need to look at Trump’s
policies to know whether or not he is dangerous because everything else about
him speaks volumes. An examination of
the way he has led his life and his businesses shows that the reason he is
dangerous is because of three factors: greed and corrupt behavior, a complete
lack of good leadership skills, and a severe mental problem (he may actually
have several different mental problems; more on this in a moment).
His corruptness is easily the most obvious problem because
his business history shows he is willing to do nearly anything to make a
buck. He made his fortune through
multiple bailouts from his father, four bankruptcies, and lying, cheating, and
stealing at every turn (which is why he won’t release his taxes). In many of the instances where he and/or his
children faced legal issues, he made them go away by either threatening people
or bribing officials (such as the time he got the Manhattan District Attorney
to stop investigating Ivanka and Donald Jr. by having his lawyer donate to his re-election campaign.). It is because of his corruption and greed
that he has refused to fully divest himself of his business interests; by refusing
to do so, he is profiting off of the presidency, be it through foreign
dignitaries staying at his hotel, hosting them at Mar A Lago, or charging the
Secret Service rent for their presence in Trump Tower, all in blatant defiance
of ethics laws and the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution.
His greed is a terrible stain on the presidency, but it is
sadly just the beginning. His lack of
leadership skills is equally troubling because such skills are, needless to
say, an imperative requirement to be president.
To prove this, we can once again look to his track record as a
businessman, though we need not limit ourselves to this. Throughout his career as a businessman, the
majority of his business ventures have failed, due in part to his refusal to
listen to advisors. When he is called
out for shady business practices or criminal activity, he refuses to accept any
responsibility, preferring instead to lash out with childish, boorish insults
and threats of lawsuits. People that
have worked for him, both as employees and contractors, have spoken en masse about
how terrible an employer Trump is, and he has been sued no less than 3,500
times for failure to pay workers and has had countless other lawsuits regarding
to worker compensation and violations of safety and labor laws.
His leadership as president has been equally nonexistent,
consisting of constant attacks on political opponents, the free press, and law
enforcement. He has a history of
misogyny and racism, and he has even mocked the disabled, preferring to
disparage the groups most in need of his help.
But there is perhaps no greater testament to his inability to lead than
the turnover rate of officials and employees in his administration (more than
60 as of this writing; read the full list here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Trump_administration_dismissals_and_resignations),
which is the highest of any administration to date. He values loyalty over qualifications, and
will get rid of anyone he views as disloyal, either directly or by pressuring
them to leave. This prevents him from
attracting a qualified, competent workforce, which is especially dangerous in
government; in order to keep things functioning, we must have people who are
knowledgeable about the field they work in, and we must have a certain degree
of continuity. The constant
interruptions created by departures and the scandals and controversies (many of
which have cropped up simply because people are being put into offices that
they simply have no business being in due to lack of experience or a historical
position that is antithetical to the goal(s) of their office) that swirl around
those who are still there distract us from addressing the problems facing our
country and the world, and this alone represents a great danger because it
could prevent us from seeing a problem until it’s too late.
Trump’s greed and lack of leadership are terrifying threats,
but his mental state may be the gravest threat of all. Mental health experts around the country
agree almost unanimously that there is something very wrong with his mental
health, and numerous diagnoses have been suggested. From a young age, Trump has been a bully who
insists on getting his way; people who knew him them have admitted to being
afraid of him, and his family couldn’t control him. This, combined with poor academic
performance, is why he was sent to military school. Unfortunately, military school did nothing to
change him; people who knew him there have reported much the same behavior, and
he has continued to behave this way throughout his life. People who worked with him over the years
reported petty, vindictive behavior, and this has certainly been seen during
his tenure as president as well. He
prizes loyalty to himself over any other quality, and he lashes out at anyone
he perceives as disloyal. This behavior
alone has led many mental health experts to suggest he has both textbook
Narcissism and Oppositional Defiant Disorder, which, if true, should concern
any American citizen as these conditions hinder his ability to be a good,
successful leader. But this is only part
of the equation, and the other part is even more terrifying.
Nearly all mental health experts now agree that Trump
suffers from a substantial mental deficiency.
The precise nature of this obviously cannot be determined without an
examination, but the signs of a serious problem are clear. Sources close to him have noted that he often
has difficulty understanding things, particularly when he is being told he
cannot do something. When he speaks, he
often seems to forget what he is saying, and he tends to mumble incoherently. Some of his speeches have literally been a
random assemblage of sentence fragments that cannot be logically interpreted in
any way (read a particularly notorious one at: https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/donald-trumps-rambling-90-second-speech-stuns-english-speaking-world_uk_57ab37d7e4b08ab70dc0f646). As scandals have mounted against him and
others in his administration, he has often gone off on unhinged, mostly
incoherent rants on Twitter, raging against anyone and anything. Sources inside the White House indicate he
often has fits of rage, both in and out of meetings, and that aides at times
have had difficulty controlling him.
Given the sheer number of scandals around him (which grows by the day),
a degree of frustration is certainly understandable, but Trump’s behavior
suggests a serious mental problem.
Several potential diagnoses have been suggested, but the most probable
is Alzheimer’s; his symptoms fit the disease, and as his father had it, he is
already at a heightened risk of having it himself. Whatever the cause, it is clear that his
mental deficiency has untethered him from reality, the danger of which cannot
be overstated.
(While I believe that Alzheimer’s, along with most forms of
senility and dementia, should disqualify a person from government service, this
does not give anyone license to mistreat or discriminate against people with
these conditions. Mental illness is a
serious problem, and I say this both as someone with mental illnesses and as
someone with a family member that has dementia.
We should not shame Trump or anyone else for having these conditions,
but we should recognize that capability and ability are inherently limited by
some conditions.)
Greed, corruption, and severe mental deficiency. These are the reasons we are so opposed to
Trump. Yes, we disagree with most, if
not all, of his policies, but those are nothing compared to the man that he
is. He will sell anyone or anything if
he believes it will enrich him, and many of those closest to him are as bad as
he is. He appoints people who are as
corrupt as he is, like Ben Carson and Scott Pruitt, both of whom have been
caught using tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars for themselves. His entire presidency is based entirely on
repudiating the actions of his predecessor, and he thinks nothing of insulting
world leaders. He courts disaster at
every turn, and instead of accepting responsibility for his failures, his
corruption, and his greed, he blames someone else (which is part of the reason
there have been so many departures from his administration). He believes that everyone in the government
and every agency is there to serve him and his agenda (hence the fact that he
frequently says things like “My military,” and “My Justice Department”),
including exacting vengeance on political opponents, which is the mark of a
tyrant.
I could go on and on, but my point is made. Those of us who are opposed to him may seem
obsessed, and maybe we are too vocal at times.
But we are only vocal because we fear what he will do. We fear the danger he represents. We fear the loss of freedoms. We fear the rise of fascism. We want to stop the hatred and bigotry he has
inspired. And we have grown frustrated
by the fact that his supporters refuse to listen. They dismiss every single piece of evidence
as a hoax and they plug their ears to criticism. They have become blinded by loyalty to a man
who doesn’t deserve it, the very thing they decried about supporters of Hillary
and Obama.
The ultimate irony is that they made this exact same mistake
with Nixon. During the Watergate
scandal, the Republican Party stood by Nixon and insisted he was innocent. When the incontrovertible truth came out and
his presidency ended, no one would even admit to being a Republican for over a
year. Nixon had so badly stained the GOP
that no one wanted anything to do with them.
They are now repeating their own history by supporting Trump, a man so
corrupt that he makes Nixon look like a petty thief. Dozens of Republicans are fleeing the party
because they recognize Trump for what he is and they recognize what he is doing
to their once great party, but yet none of them are standing up to him. None of them condemn him. They could break the cycle, but they choose
to ignore the lessons of their own history, and the consequences of this could
be catastrophic.
This is why I speak so fervently and so frequently against
Trump and his cohorts. Knowledge has
always been our greatest weapon, which is why dictators have always sought to
suppress it; an uneducated populace is far easier to control because they are
less likely to ask questions (and Trump is on record saying that he “loves the
uneducated,” which should disturb anyone).
He may desperately crave attention, but he doesn’t want us spreading the
truth about who and what he is (hence his constant refrain of “fake
news”). He would have us believe that
disloyalty to him is tantamount to treason (something he essentially accused
Democrats of, following his State of the Union address), but a person’s loyalty
should never be to the leader of a country.
It should be to the country itself, and to its people. As such, I feel a moral and ethical
obligation to do everything I can to spread information about threats to our
country, especially if they involve the president or other people in the
government. It doesn’t matter whether it
affects me personally; if I can speak out, I must. The words of Martin Niemoller illustrate this
more eloquently than I ever could:
First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.
I will not wait until it is too late. I apologize if it feels like I spam from time
to time, but I love this country and its people far too much to stand idly by. Morality demands that those of us with the
ability to speak out do so, and I cannot and will not ignore that obligation.
All I ask is that you listen, without judgment or
preconceptions.
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