For a number of years I have maintained a number of different social media accounts....all the regulars Facebook, Instagram, and for the past few years I’ve been a regular participant in the Twitter community. I have always used Facebook and Instagram to share my life with family and friends and kept political opinions mostly off those platforms. Post 2016 I found myself mourning Trump’s electoral win and I turned to Twitter and the #Resistance as a place that I could voice my opinions without alienating friends and family who support the current occupant of the White House. At the same time hoping and praying he would evolve into the President we need for our time. Needless to say, this has not occurred.
Yesterday morning I read a post by someone I follow that struck a chord with me. The poster talked about how when they “find out someone they know personally supports Trump, they lose all respect for them instantly.” I think for the last three and a half years I thought this was too extreme a thought, however I find my thoughts evolving and I’m at the point where I’m ready to admit that, I too, have lost respect for Trump supporters. Even as I write this I know it sounds extreme.
I will try to summarize why I will NOT be voting for Trump this year.
After watching the RNC he would have you believe that America is falling apart, this is the man who has been president for the past 42 months and has influenced the country in a way that I think reflects Trumps America. Such scare tactics are not appropriate for a man holding the highest office in the land. He showed absolutely no desire to unite our country or to bring us together. He only wants to polarize between those that are with him (his “base”) and those that are against him (increasingly both R’s and D’s). He seems to fail to realize that while I did not vote for him I am part of citizenry of this country. I’ve been extremely disappointed with the divisive rhetoric from which there is never the least amount of reprieve. Daily we are assaulted with his Twitter attacks, his mean spirited rallies, or his rudeness to individual foes, real or imagined. Additionally he has taken every opportunity to divide the branches of government by requiring our legislators pledge allegiance to him or risk ridicule and abuse at his hands.
Additionally, I find his disregard for the rule of law frightening. We have watched him abuse the power of his office in many ways - just last week he used governmental property for the RNC and while he cannot violate the Hatch Act, I don’t for one second, believe that others in his administration did not. And even the to use the “People’s House” for a political event is just - slimy. Not to mention that he continues to enrich himself through the use of the office. There are too many shady deals happening at his properties where money paid by “us” are going into this business adventures. He views himself above the law and openly defies requests for information from Congress. He was impeached for trying to use the power of his office to wound political opponents. He should have been removed from office for criminally obstructing the very system of justice he swore to uphold. Just today we learn that Intelligence officials will no longer brief Congress in person on foreign election interference due to concerns about leaking....I maintain this threatens to undermine their responsibility to be transparent with Congress. Furthermore, I would assert that, we the people, deserve to know and understand these threats.
Trump only looks out for himself, and perhaps his family. He will lie at the drop of a hat to make himself look better - The Washington Post tracks his lies and to date they number 20,055 false or misleading claims. Some of these are so easily proven lies that it is absurd....his claims of creating Veterans Choice fall in this group. Didn’t he promise to release his taxes if elected? Why are we fighting in court for those same taxes? What is he hiding?
One of my first memories of the Trump administration was returning from international travel to Logan airport to be met by protestors of his travel ban from primarily Muslim countries. He vilifies immigrants and separates families. This is his bread and butter. He has done this repeatedly and pointed to caravans of immigrants traveling to our southwest boarder to stoke fears.
He is man who admitted on tape how he treats women. I mean who cares if the President of the United States grabs women by the pussy, right? He paid off a porn star and has a history of affairs and cheating on every one of his three wives. His history with women does not scream, I have the integrity to represent the American people.
I find it difficult to watch those that have money (either through inheritance or just sheer luck) try to relate to the average American struggling to pay their bills. Trump shows no ability to understand these challenges. It’s clear he has never had the worries many of us struggle with. He touts the stock market’s growth as a big achievement but 90% of Americans do not have any wealth in the stock market. Let’s not even talk about how the stock market may be artificially bolstered in recent months. He continues to deliver tax cuts for the wealthiest among us.
As a country we’re are at a crossroads related to Black Lives Matter. We cannot continue to allow our police to kill black men. As we watched the March on Washington this week I realize as a nation we have failed in our highest ideals, as we still are marching 57 years later and Dr King’s dream is still, a dream. As President Trump continues to stoke racial division. He does not stand up for what is right if it is not in his interest, including a black man shot by police 7 time in the back while his kids watched. I understand he is traveling to Wisconsin this week to meet with law enforcement and survey damage after protests. But will he seek to understand the underlying reasons. Will he do the research? I don’t believe Trump is capable of that type of introspection or level of complex thought.
Many voters are single issue voters but neither gun rights nor abortion issues are more important than getting this man out of office. As a nation it is hard to say with have withstood 4 years of Trump....our institutions are stressed to the breaking point. While it may sound alarmist, I believe four more years of Trump may be the end of our grand experiment. We are no longer looked to as a leader on the world stage. We have pulled out of the Paris Climate accord, which will take place next January. The World Health organization obviously made mistakes in this pandemic but should we walk away from being a world leader in this collaboration?
Let’s talk briefly about COVID-19. It’s easy to say it did not have to be this bad. As I listen to the health experts, and not the doctors (A Radiologist?) that Trump continues to default to, I do believe it did not have to be this bad. As you look around the world nearly every country has handled this pandemic more effectively than we have. We have totally failed on our testing approach. Direction coming from the CDC is confusing, which I attribute to pressure from the White House. As we send kids back to school we are seeing explosions of COVID on college campuses and as more kids go back to school we will likely see greater spread as they bring it back to their families. As we head into flu season I expect more bad news. Just this week Trump had numerous times where he could have lead by example but instead we saw him do a rally on the White House lawn with no masks or social distancing....then he hopped on a plane and flew to New Hampshire and made fun of the mandate to wear masks imposed by the Republican Governor (who did not attend the event). He has made mask wearing a political issue instead of a health issue. This is not what a leader does.
I will be the first to admit that Joe Biden was not my first choice of candidates for the Presidency. In New Hampshire we have the unique opportunity to see nearly every candidate that we want to see in our local area and stood in line to see nearly every one. I wanted to hear them first hand and not sound bites on the news. This election is the most critical of our lifetime and I find myself at this point recognizing Joe Biden is the only choice I can make. He has the ability to show kindness and empathy toward our fellow man. He listens to the scientists....frankly he is willing to listen. He doesn’t proclaim to be the smartest guy in the room (always a signal you are NOT the smartest guy in the room). I am bolstered to see him forming a coalition with his opponents and listening.
