I’ve not gone out of my way to follow any of the current presidential candidates and their various appearances around the country. Even if I wanted to, media attention seems riveted on Trump.
But every night I watch Stephen Colbert, and last night his guest was Elizabeth Warren. She was so animated it was almost exhausting, but she had a lot of interesting things to say.
One comment, however, (at 9:20) stood out above the rest and I was so taken by it that I even wrote it down at the time:
A country that elects a Donald Trump is already in serious trouble — really bad trouble.
That’s my biggest concern in a nutshell — that there are so many people in this country who support a man like Donald Trump. Apparently they share his “values” of racism, sexism, xenophobia, white supremacy, low or nonexistent ethics and morals, flouting of the law, win at any cost, thuggery, lying, etc.
They must have always been among us, or Trump would never have been elected. But since then he has emboldened and enabled them and they’ve become much more open about their feelings — unfriendly, aggressive, angry, even violent. What will happen if their leader doesn’t get reelected? Or if he gets impeached, convicted, and removed from office?
About his possible impeachment Trump tweeted:
If the Democrats are successful in removing the President from office (which they will never be), it will cause a Civil War like fracture in this Nation from which our Country will never heal.
As badly divided as the country is, I sometimes worry that the idea of civil war is not just presidential hyperbole. It’s tribalism at its worst, and its grip is slowly strangling us.
The op-ed page of our Joplin Globe this morning had this quote:
Very apropos, although I’d argue that Trump deserves an even darker place for abandoning the Kurds.
The quote was by Dante Alighieri
Great truths are timeless.
It’s quite comical how you express an illogical preconception within the context of this trivial piece. You claim that individuals whom voted for Trump must undoubtedly share his values, but this is wrong, primarily because individuals tend to vote on political and economic issues at hand, generally not a person’s character. Not to say that there “isn’t” any “racist”, “xenophobic” Trump supporters out there, because I’m sure there is, but you seem to be playing identity politics with voters. Many people will vote for president Trump’s re-election in 2020, this is because many people in America like him as our president. It’s reasonable to say that he doesn’t always act like “some” people “expect” him to, but the people chose in 2016 to elect him, and that’s what Democracy is.
I understand your “hatred” for the president. It didn’t appear from nowhere, you had to develop an opinion to derive the “hatred” you possess for him, the question remains what material you consumed to develop these opinions. I don’t support Elizabeth Warren, not because I hate her, but because she is proposing ideas and policy I widely disagree with. This is how people vote, they assess the presented candidates, then they search for a person who appears to align most with what they feel is politically and economically necessary at that point in time, and then they proceed to vote for that individual. Liz Warren confuses me, because she claims to believe that president Trump has violated the constitution (a historical document she claims to preserve), and then she turns around and advocates for her Medicare-for-all plan, which goes against everything the founding fathers strived to establish (If you have ever read a history book in your life). And this goes for all the Democratic 2020 hopefuls, they all are running on contradictory campaigns, they say that they “love America”, and then they turn around and advocate for socialism?! What are you’re thoughts on the 2020 Democratic hopefuls, and what are your political and economic beliefs? 🙂
I’ll overlook your dismissal of my post and me personally in order to respond to your question. I’m 76 years old and have been witnessing Trump’s behavior and business practices for many years. That alone was enough for me to dread his election to the presidency. I held my nose and voted for Hillary, whom I also despise, but only in an effort to keep Trump from winning.
I think Warren’s assessment of the situation, that the country is already in serious trouble, is accurate. However, that doesn’t mean I support her. I don’t. She’s very smart but too far left for me, as are most of the Dem candidates. I’m intrigued by Buttigieg’s “Medicare for all who want it because I think a public option is a logical step, but he seems awfully young. I like Biden’s experience and moderate positions, but worry a bit about his age and gaffes. I’ve not studied the candidates that much yet; I’m waiting for the field to narrow a bit. I could vote for a moderate Republican if one were nominated (I wanted to vote for Jon Huntsman in 2012 but he dropped out of the race.)
So are you more fearful of what president Trump could accomplish If he is granted a second term by US voters, or what a radical left candidate like Bernie Sanders would do? It seem the Dems are advocating this “democratic socialism” narrative, in which they claim that this new democratic socialism is completely different than the socialism that caused most of the horrors of the 20th century, but I don’t think a lot of folks are buying it. What do you about it?
Oh I’m much more fearful of Trump. I think he’s dangerously erratic and ill-informed. Sanders is a bit more sane, but only a bit. I’m a moderate centrist. I don’t like extremism in either party. There was a time when Congress would keep an extremist president (of either party) in check, but checks and balances seem to have gone out the window in recent years. We need more people in the middle, willing to reach across the aisle and negotiate for the benefit of the country (not their party or wealthy lobbyists).
Are you implying that president Trump is an “extremist?” If so, name some of the things he has proposed or passed (as president) that constitute “extremism.” I agree that checks and balances has partially gone to the wind (for instance the partisan Dems and there obsession with impeachment), and the founders warned us of this, but what makes you think president Trump is more extreme than the radical Democrats? The Dems have proposed some of the most economically insane policies regarding “healthcare” and “climate change”, all of which will supposedly be funded by “THE BILLIONAIRES”, but everyone understands that’s false. The rich will abruptly vacate America, and the tax burden previously imposed on them will fall on the middle class, and people think big government works! How can you say that president Trump is more dangerous than the Dems???
I didn’t say Trump was an extremist, although breaking up families and caging the children strikes me as extreme (although it was actually Stephen Miller’s idea). I said he is “dangerously erratic and ill-informed.” I’m not sure he’s politically savvy enough to be an extremist.
Was Obama an extremist? Did you know he caged children too?
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/washington-secrets/baracks-ice-chief-cages-were-obamas-idea
Regardless of how “erratic and ill informed” you think he is, why is Bernie Sanders more appealing to you as a president? He almost died a few months ago, and he has no “real world” experience at all! The guy’s never held a job in his life, yet he make healthcare bills that cost trillions. Surprising? Can you define what socialism means to you?
What makes you think I find Sanders appealing? He strikes me as a raving old man. Socialism to me is some version of taking from the rich and giving to the poor via the government. Most of the Dems are too far left for me. I’d call myself a capitalist, within reason.
So why not vote for Trump, I don’t understand? If you agree the Dems are way “too left”, why don’t you just vote against them, by voting for Trump?
I said “most of the Dems are too far left,” not all of them.
Trump is a malignant narcissist, a liar, a misogynist, and a xenophobe, in addition to being utterly unqualified to be president. I didn’t think much of him as a businessman either.
So, who would be a good president? In your view..
Biden. Maybe Buttigieg (I like him a lot but worry about his youth). Patrick and Bloomberg look interesting but are so new in the race I don’t know much about them yet.
My concern is the same as yours, and Warren’s. Hopefully, the concerns are wrong, but I fear they will be right.
We’ll just have to hope there are enough good men and women willing to do the right thing.
Elizabeth Warren is a liar.
You’re entitled to your opinion. And judging from the results of yesterday’s voting, a lot of voters share your dislike.
Why am I not surprised?