Monday, July 11, 2016

With Trump as a Candidate, America is Already in Trouble

Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg is only the latest prominent voice to imply - or directly state - that if Donald Trump becomes president, the country is in serious trouble. In an interview with the New York Times, Ginsberg said she "could not imagine" what the country would be like with Trump as President and she doesn't "even want to contemplate that." It was a rare example of a federal justice weighing in with strong political views, and some are criticizing her for crossing such a line. And I don't really have a problem with that - she is still a voter and a citizen.

But I am more interested in the belief that a "President Trump" would represent some catastrophic moment for the country. Critics are implying that Trump would be able to effect changes or set precedents or take actions that would seriously harm the country. And, I've argued against that basic idea simply because of the nature of the government and protections from the separation of powers. That said, I do believe the Trump candidacy is serious problem. But it's not about what he would do - it's about what he's already done and what he represents.

Donald Trump is a crass, disgusting, unsophisticated, ingnorant, hateful, ego-maniacal, bigoted, and mysoginistic tool. His "achievements" are nothing more than his inherited wealth and the subsequent "career" he has created in real estate and reality TV. If Donald Trump has actually appealed to enough people that he is an actual Presidential candidate, then I believe America is already in pretty deep trouble. It's sad and truly baffling that millions of Americans are naive and disgruntled enough to be duped by a demagogue like Trump.

Trump represents and feeds upon some pretty base instincts, and that is a far worse problem.

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