The President of the United States is like a cock who thinks the sun has risen to hear him crow. He is immune to common decency, sense, or empathetic impulses. He has gone from failure to failure without the slightest loss of enthusiasm. He is truly evil ignorance in action. He was never trained or disciplined enough to be able to run any organization over 20 people and now that he has been given his big chance to lead, he has instead made himself look ridiculous. Our best hope is that he will soon cease to shock us and thus cease to interest us.

Abraham Lincoln said, “If you want to test a man’s character give him power.” Trump has chased power since he was a boy. Watching his father drive his brother to alcoholism and finally suicide, he was able, at a young age realize that success is not about what you truly are, but rather what you appear to be. His father taught him to love himself more than he loved truth. He also taught him to hate those he had to lie to. Little Donald grew up to exemplify that a rich man is either a scoundrel or the heir of a scoundrel.

The good news is that, besides his own self interest, President Trump doesn’t believe in anything. His fanaticism consists in redoubling his efforts even when he has forgotten his aims. We are fortunate that he is now in a position where he does all the talking, which is a form of greed, and that talkers are not good doers. So, although, like most great fools, he’s found countless greater fools to admire him, he’s not been able, so far, to lead them, with the exception of his Supreme Court appointment, to very many catastrophic occurrences.

George Washington, in his farewell address warned against unprincipled men being able to subvert the power of the people and usurp the reins of government for evil purposes. He knew that pretended patriotism was the Achilles heel of democracy.

Trump’s followers aren’t deplorable, they are simply grasping desperately for a past that never really existed. They want a world where they again can feel special and proud. Trump will never lead them to such a place because it no longer exists. The economic and demographic changes that America has experienced in the last two decades now makes it impossible for them to return to the mythical days of yesteryear.

Let’s hope that this amazing experiment we have created in America can break free of the power that this immoral, aimless liar has over so many of our fellow citizens. This upcoming election may indeed be our last chance to keep our democracy from turning into despotism. Go out and vote as if your life depended upon it!

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