1. FROM “TRUMPING THE DONALD”:
The Donald worked for his father’s
company and then was given control
of it in 1971. From the
perspective of the rich, he worked himself up from the top to the top.
His behavior at times might remind a
psychiatrist of a bipolar person in the midst of a manic attack but when you’re that rich no one notices anything especially out
of the ordinary--or dismisses it with the appropriate obfuscating term such as
“eccentric, flamboyant, dashing, unpredictable, rambunctious” and the like.
He has a big boisterous
personality--some might say arrogant. He
can be narcissistic to an extreme but feels he is entitled to egomania because
he is rich—with an ego as large as his fortune.
We’ve come a long way from the
courage of a Washington or the humility of a Lincoln when considering what
constitutes leadership, where the character and integrity of a man once counted
for far more than his possessions and wealth.
Donald himself--besides the
occasional collision with a bankruptcy or two--knew enough to keep the silver
spoon in his mouth right side up. He knew how to go on making a handsome
fortune even if he encountered a few questionable episodes along the way.
Currently, estimates of his total
fortune range between 4 billion (Forbes) and 10 billion (Donald). Why
anyone would be favoring a candidate for president who is involved in a
statistical dispute over a missing $6 billion a year before the election is a complete mystery to me . . . . If
that’s a token of things to come should he be elected, then the entire GDP of
the U.S. is in jeopardy and could go missing.
Which brings me to my main point:
allowing a billionaire like Trump in the White House likely will lead to one
catastrophe after another. There is only one logical conclusion that can
be reached: it’s time for the American people to start impeachment proceedings
against Trump . . . .
All those in favor of the motion to
impeach The Donald raise your hand and signify by saying “Aye”. Aye!
2. FROM “TRUMP AND JUDGE CURIEL”:
Let me say right away, I am probably
wrong. I know there are readers out there who will say this as soon as
they are done reading so it’s best to clear the air at the outset . . . .
Today’s “Wrong Way Thinking” concerns
Donald Trump and U.S. District Judge (Southern District of California) Gonzalo
Curiel. [Herewith is] a list of ten easy questions to ask Donald before we decide
whether to praise or condemn his verbal broadside against a man’s honorable
station in life:
- Have you
ever met Judge Curiel? If so, where and when?
- Why does
he hate you? Did he ever say this or are you just making it up
- Donald, are
you familiar with Judge Curiel’s education and judicial record?
- Do you know
of his personal and judicial courage in fighting drug traffickers?
- Did you
oppose Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointing Judge Curiel
to the San Diego Superior Court?
- What
specific statement or decision has he made that offends you, O Great
Donald?
- Has he ever
said or done anything to evince prejudice toward you? If so, what was it?
- Do you feel
Americans born in this country should remain “foreign nationals” if their
parents or grandparents came from another country? For example, do you
consider yourself German or American?
- Is there
any chance your unprovoked attack is an attempt to distract people from
the [Trump University] lawsuits . . . alleging fraud in that you promised
students far more than was actually delivered?
- Do you have
any evidence at all that Judge Curiel ever acted in a biased or
unprofessional manner toward you?
If so . . . oh forget it, everybody
knows you don’t have a damn thing.
We do not know what will come next from the mouth of Donald but
he sure has a way of surprising people. The question is not whether he survives
this latest episode as he has weathered others, but whether he has any inkling
of the total impropriety and gratuitous grossness of such reckless speech?
But what can he say to this last question? “Yes or no”, he
stands condemned by his own raw immaturity, unstable personality, and imbecilic
pronouncements . . . .
“Chumps for Trump” will meet next week to discuss the pending
resolution: “Should Trump apologize for
his insulting remarks aimed at Judge Gonzalo Curiel?” See you there!
3. FROM
“THE TRUMPSTER DUMPSTER”:
I
had a newspaper deadline and a story due in two hours that I hadn’t even
started! Why? All because for the last two nights I had the
exact same dream and awoke with the exact same question dogging my mind: how
will the candidates act after the
election is over?
It’s
easy enough to speculate. Winning
candidates will display a generous and forgiving mood; they can afford to be
generous amidst the high spirits of their winning campaign.
When
candidates lose, though, that’s another
story altogether; it certainly requires far more self-control to be
graceful in conceding defeat right after being handed the bad news.
Most
candidates manage it somehow or other but then I got to thinking about Donald
Trump: if he loses, how will he
handle it? I think there are three main
choices here:
1.
Donald
Trump will handle it gracefully, with tact and deference. He will congratulate the winner, Hillary
Clinton . . . .
2.
He
will be a bit on the quiet side: disappointed, pensive, perhaps biting his lip—but
still, he will go through the rudimentary motions of saying what he has to say
and keeping any other nasty thoughts or ugly utterances in abeyance . . .
.
3.
A
defeat will get under his skin like venom.
He would not be happy about being asked to accept such results. He would risk an epic narcissistic meltdown
the likes of which the world has never seen.
Rating
these options in terms of likelihood:
1)
As
regards the first choice, “graceful all the way”, nearly everyone in the
country will agree that this is the most unlikely. The idea of Trump behaving in a dignified at
the very moment of the final blow that lays him low is simply too difficult to
imagine!
2)
As
regards the second choice: perhaps he will make a mighty effort to contain his
anger and disappointment—keeping his cool in a professional manner. There’s just one problem: every week of the
campaign so far proves that such restraint is impossible for Trump. He has a hard time containing uncontrollable
impulses when he wishes to hurl accusations at anyone he thinks is criticizing
him.
3)
That
leaves choice number three: he will lash out at his opponent, the press, the
“rigged” election system and nearly everyone else he can think to attack for
his defeat: perhaps even his own party and staff.
This is the Donald we have seen over and
over again. This is his approach to
life: strike back, blame others, make wild accusations, escape from the facts
and substitute his own version of reality any which way he can. Sad to say, choice #3 is the most likely response.
Voters must make up their minds but the
notion of how one candidate might act if
he loses feels me with apprehension.
While we don’t know for sure Donald would go into a nuclear melt down,
it doesn’t take much imagination to at least see the possibility.
Would Donald in defeat remain quiet and
gracious or would he start making excuses, hurling insults, and blaming others
for his defeat?
The notion of voting for someone who
often appears temperamentally unfit to hold the office of president of the
United States is a frightening thought.
Have I embellished this scenario to such
an extent that any reader can honestly say “I see no chance of The Donald
acting arrogantly, belligerently, and impulsively should he lose”?
That
is the question. Do we expect a leopard to change its
spots? What will happen should The
Donald lose?
As a very wise man I once knew was fond
of reminding me: “The answer is in the
question.”
4. FROM
“THE WRONG MAN: THE TRUMP FILE”:
He’s
just a wee bit conceited, don’t you think? I suppose every would-be king,
tyrant, or dictator shares a marked degree of arrogance but the president of a
democracy? The American people surely have a right to expect better of a
leader elected by and presumably held responsive to the people.
Of
course, we understand that some people have more “arrogance” than others.
It is only when the trait becomes extreme that the focus shifts to studying the
why and wherefore . . . .
There
are various ways to describe arrogance but essentially it simply means a person
who is too self-centered to allow easy, free, and equal inter-play with
others. The potential harm such arrogance can cause is quite great since
it both prevents and destroys amicable working relationships in larger social
settings. It is, in sum, merely the old trait of greedy selfishness,
however else it chooses to dress itself up in order to fool others.
Some
personality traits can be kept in check or overcome in time, but the selfish
man is unable to control his arrogance. That is why people often measure
the character of their family members, friends, and colleagues with one eye on
this most damaging of all traits since it tends to ruin all other positive
qualities over time as well . . . .
Arrogance
in an employer or political leader does not lead to team unity, healing, and
the promotion of a healthy work or social environment. Indeed, such
arrogance tends to undercut or destroy efforts to build cooperation, progress,
and success by failing to treasure the contributions of all members of a team,
business, or institution equally.
Whether
this trait of egotism is found in a boss or employee, family member or friend,
acquaintance or colleague, arrogance always remains a terribly ugly distortion
of the healthy personality—distasteful to others and almost wickedly
disfiguring in its effects upon the body and mind of the person so warped . . .
.
If
parents have wealth and abundant resources, they may spoil a child by
over-indulging them and failing to set limits. This, too, can lead to a
child developing an unpleasant personality and an unmanageable ego . . . The
children of the very rich can develop an overly-acute sense of arrogant
entitlement.
True,
they may have far more money than the average guy to buy whatever they wish but
it doesn’t mean they have developed a healthy and honest personality; they have
not reached true maturity of character but instead a botched and caricatured
version of it . . . among the worst of the scions of America’s richest
families, they fail to achieve those principles of honor and virtue we
Americans hold most dear . . . .
Their
thinking typically remains warped in certain injudicious ways; they believe
they can buy anything. This is a fundamental mistake, a failure to
understand that the best qualities of human beings are not traits that can be
purchased in a store . . .
Truth
to tell, the finest virtues in life must be appreciated, nurtured, and
practiced over many years until they become second nature . . . They have no
price tag.
Honesty,
integrity, the capacity to love, loyalty, compassion, and courage are counted
as chief virtues among human beings everywhere in the world. To be
reasonable, to be willing to compromise, to be able to listen respectfully to
another speak--we all share an innate sense of why such qualities are
indispensable to a healthy and intelligent society. These are lesson that seem
to have been missed in the life of Donald Trump . . . .
Here
we speak not merely of a degree of self-confidence or self-promotion that we’ve
come to expect among certain types of ambitious men and women but of a truly
colossal ego that borders on the abnormal and absurd.
From
early in the campaign, the term “narcissistic” popped up repeatedly as pundits
searched for a way to describe the vanity of Trump; they could just as easily
have referred to his egotism or megalomania, both terms conveying an extreme
arrogance that has burst outside the normal range in the psychological profile
of a person.
In Trump’s case, his egotism totters on the threshold of
becoming egomania all too often . . . .
What
happened to historic examples of right conduct by past presidents? In
today’s world, gone are references to George Washington’s personal courage and
dedication to a cause larger than himself. Forgotten, too, is his stern
repudiation of all suggestions that his new title as president should be like
that of European kings when addressed; he kicked out plans to use “your
eminence” or “your most serene high excellency” and suggested instead “Mr.
President”.
The
Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial are not tributes to these men’s
vanity or conceit; they are the people’s memorials to men who were brave,
steadfast, honest, honorable, and principled leaders in all matters great and
small.
How
have we gone from the courage of a man like Washington--who stayed with his
cold, starving, ill-suffering troops through eight long years of the American
Revolution--to a pompous and arrogant man like The Donald?
How
have we gone from the humility of an Abraham Lincoln . . . to a presidential
candidate who is boastful, brash, arrogant, self-centered, impulsive,
condescending, insulting, and vulgar--and given to fits of childish temper
tantrums and excessive displays of narcissism?
Can anyone suggest another candidate who was ever as temperamentally
unfit to be president?
And
not only temperamentally unfit it seems; since the release of
the audio-and-video Access Hollywood tapes, Trump is perhaps morally
unfit as well.
His
depraved indifference to the equality of women is absolutely shocking. He
openly bragged about attitudes and actions that excuse sexual harassment and
assault while speaking of women in the most degrading and vulgar manner—in
language so obscene his words had to be bleeped from news
reports as too offensive!
The
tapes clearly record a man showing a pathological indifference to the basic
social values and polite forms of civil discourse that have always served as
bedrock for our greatness as a democratic nation.
Trump
attempts to repulse all criticism with his own version of reality, even though
it is clearly his own poor judgment that opens the door to all such criticism
in the first place . . .
Everyone
is wrong except him; everyone is out to get him; the system is rigged against
him; fellow Republicans are ought to destroy him as they distance themselves
from his latest public relations nightmare.
His antics bring on the criticism, rebuke, and revulsion but
it’s never his fault . . . completing the psychological profile of a troubled,
mean-spirited, ill-tempered man . . . .
Now
someone might rightly ask: in judging Donald Trump’s candidacy, should we not
also address his beliefs concerning our social, political, and economic
system? Normally the response is yes, absolutely we should.
There
is nothing more important than understanding the basic differences in beliefs
and policies of the two major parties and their nominated candidates.
It
is a sad but unavoidable truism, however, that this sensationalized state of
affairs has been brought about by Trump himself . . . . He cannot have it both
ways. He can hardly expect voters to focus on differences of doctrine
while ignoring his unbridled arrogance when he constantly insists on making
such an ostentatious display of himself . . . .
He
throws wild accusations around like confetti at a party; he strikes out
blindly, lashing out at anyone who comes within range—anyone he suspects of
criticizing him. This is paranoia alongside narcissism, along with other
notable fault lines in his personality and behavior.
The
American people must not lose their way or let the moorings of the ship of
state be tossed aside by trusting such a ruthless and arrogant candidate.
Our
democracy began with a historic revolution based on courage and commitment to constitutional principles, not loyalty
to the cult of personality.
Such
a man who always talks first and foremost about himself--who sees everything
through the one-and-only Donald prism--cannot be entrusted to keep our ship of
state on a safe and steady course. He lacks the very understanding of
America’s democratic philosophy needed to provide intelligent leadership for
the American people.
He
cannot appreciate, let alone embody, the time-honored political principles of
our nation that rise high above the petty idiosyncrasies of any one man or
woman.
The
first and greatest task of any president is to preserve and defend the
Constitution, including its fundamental rights for all Americans as embodied in
the Bill of Rights. This includes
the First Amendment’s liberty to speak our minds freely.
A
candidate who slurs and insults, mocks and denigrates any person who criticizes
him in the slightest degree, lacks the most basic understanding of what the
Constitution stands for and who we are as a nation.
Besides
his narcissism, this is his fundamental weakness: he lacks knowledge,
understanding, and compassion—the very qualities we seek in our leaders.
Or does he think it presidential to:
Act
contemptuously toward other candidates on stage with him?
Mock
a reporter for his disability?
Suggest
undocumented workers are rapists and criminals?
Engage
in ethnic slurs against a federal judge, born in America, because the judge’s
parents came from another country?
Refuse
to honor a Gold Star mother and father whose son made the supreme sacrifice?
Refuse
to release his tax information and brag about how he pays as little in taxes as
possible?
Gratuitously
insult Senator John McCain, a man who survived years of
mistreatment-in-captivity and who passed up an opportunity to be released in
order to remain with his comrades?
Engage
in a vicious twitter attack upon a former Miss Universe winner?
Speak
of women as objects-of-conquest for his sexual gratification?
The
list goes on; one can hardly keep up, each new misstatement or scandalous
episode pushing the previous one out of the headlines but they are there, all
of them, with more to come.
As
of this writing, the latest news is of ten or more women coming forward to
accuse Trump of sexual advances, inappropriately touching and groping
them. At this point, we should hardly be surprised, should we? He could be facing rape charges in New York.
That
is why this election is about something other than political affiliation, other
than policy, other than platform: we cannot let 240 years of national effort to
improve our country through reasonable elections be sunk by a colossal ego that
has no sense of perspective, proportion, or appreciation for the greatness of
ordinary Americans everywhere.
It
is they who perform the labor; who defend and protect our democratic
philosophy. It is they American people
who breathe life into words like justice, equality, and freedom. They are the ones who make the biggest
sacrifices on the battlefields and who pay their taxes because it is right to
do so; it is they who build the houses, roads, bridges, and cities.
America is great
because we the people are America!
We
should never elect a candidate with such an ego and unpredictable pattern of
behavior; there are many more good reasons to honor our history and to keep
this record of sound and sober judgment intact and inviolate.
If
we wish to put the health and welfare of our nation first, then we must
reaffirm in the strongest terms possible that the American presidency is not
for sale to the highest bidder, even a rich man.
One
must earn the presidency by earning the respect and trust of the American
people, by demonstrating a lifelong commitment to those core American
principles that animate out nation at its very heart. A candidate must be
willing to demonstrate that personal desires and interests can be held
subordinate to the needs and wishes of the nation.
Trump
lacks the temperament to be a moral and virtuous leader. To the contrary, he exhibits far too many
impulsive and reckless traits that could seriously endanger the nation.
A
man like Donald Trump appears wholly incapable of understanding these larger
issues and principles, let alone act in a way to show that he can be as brave
as a George Washington or as unselfish as an Abraham Lincoln.
We
as Americans must not endanger our country by allowing this man through the
gates to the seat of power. We have fought too many battles, struggled
for justice too long, to allow our eyesight to become myopic or blind at this
late date in our nation’s history.
As
a matter of conscience, as a matter of principle, as a matter of love for our
American democracy, I earnestly beseech each of you not to be fooled, bought,
or tricked by this man.
Do
not sell our country to the likes of him but trust that calmer heads will one
day again prevail.
He
is making a joke and a travesty of the entire political process--and to him we
cannot entrust our nation’s future.
There
is only one power that can stop him: the power of the American people!
