Opinion: With Donald Trump in power, America's light as a beacon for freedom will weaken
One of the most objectional and offensive things in political speeches is when an aspiring leader resorts to name-calling or uses demeaning and derogatory nicknames for his opponent. This juvenile behavior displays a mind that cannot effectively articulate and argue for their own policies and vision without resorting to petty insults. Beyond this ignorance, it shows disrespect for both the opponent and the audience. It is out of character for our democracy because it dehumanizes people, which is the first step toward political violence. The clearest example of this is Donald Trump, who recently used Hitler’s language — he claimed that immigrants are animals and are “poisoning the blood of our country.”
He called his opponents, including people in the Democratic Party, “vermin.” His former White House Chief of Staff, John Kelly, noted that Trump spoke approvingly of Hitler’s legacy when he said, “Well at least Hitler did some good things.” He called veterans and members of the armed forces “suckers and losers.” A question that Americans must ask themselves is “What kind of personal character do I want in a leader of our nation?” Do I want a leader who regards others as less than human and cannot speak intelligently about solutions to the problems facing our country? Do I want a president who does not show ordinary decency and respect to others? My answer is a resounding No!
The language used by the people of a nation is a measure of the moral level of its people. This is second only to the actual behavior of the people, particularly regarding the use of violence. We saw violence against our nation in our capital on a large scale on Jan. 6, 2021 that was encouraged by Donald Trump. Now Trump is threatening violence again. He said there would be a “bloodbath” if he was not elected president. Trump and his followers later tried to explain this away by saying he was just referring to the automobile industry. But with Trump’s habit of violent language and encouraging violent actions, his words about a “bloodbath” if he is not elected easily constitute a threat to bring back violent insurrectionists. To emphasize this fact, Trump’s political rallies feature the imprisoned insurrectionists singing the national anthem, calling them “hostages” and “great patriots,” all while giving them a military salute. The insurrectionists were incited by Trump to riot because he told them the election was stolen from him. He told his followers, “If you don’t fight like hell, you won’t have a country anymore.”
Every election is a test of our national character and that is especially true this year. Human decency and the moral character of our nation are at stake together with American democracy. So far, American democracy has survived in spite of human failings because some people have been courageous in standing for truth and calling out Trump’s lack of integrity and knowledge. We are seeing most of the members of Trump’s own former Cabinet, as well as his former Vice President, Mike Pence, and others in the Republican Party recognize his danger to the nation and turn against him. My hope and expectation are that more and more Americans will find Trump’s language and actions disqualifying and that a majority will vote against him in November.
Trump is not only embarrassing to our country, but he is a danger to our national security and frankly a danger to world peace. He has affinities for the world’s autocrats and personally admires the so-called “strong men” who take away freedoms. The autocrats hope that Trump will win because they know that he will make America weaker as a beacon for freedom and would make the autocrats feel more secure in their corrupt regimes. America has been and must continue to be a strong and reliable ally to the democracies of this world and must always stand for freedom and human rights. One of the worst characteristics of Trump’s thought and language is his isolationism from our international allies, especially those in NATO. Trump was shown to be unstable and erratic in relation to our allies during his presidency.
Stability, steadfastness, and keeping of promises are key elements in moral character. These qualities are extremely important in our president if our nation is to continue being a leader among the nations and most important, demonstrate that we truly believe in “liberty and justice for all.”
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Rev. Robert L. Montgomery, Ph.D., lives in Black Mountain.