Letters: The particular genius of Donald Trump – Chicago Tribune
A supporter holds his hand over his heart during the national anthem as former President Donald Trump arrives at a campaign event in Iowa on Jan. 6, 2024. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)
I’ve finally figured out the peculiar and particular genius of Donald Trump. In his rallies and ads, he somehow conflates the lighthearted cadences of a Las Vegas lounge act with, conversely, an angry message of resentment, grievance and victimhood, plus a shameless appropriation of Christian iconography. And all of it comes bursting with cruelty, coarseness and crudity, with a vocabulary as primitive and repetitive as a bad fourth grade book report. So, lucky us, we get entertainment, fury, gobbledygook and disfigured worship all in one package.
Now, I realize many people like this mode of presentation, though it is anathema to me. After all, most of us learned in kindergarten not to make fun of other people. Not this man. Most of us know that respect for, if not agreement with, other opinions is all part of the give and take of mature adulthood. Not him. Nor is his vindictiveness in sync with the traditional norms of American character, bent toward a spirit of kindness, charity and forgiveness.
Wisdom teaches us that what we believe isn’t always true, no matter with what conviction or volume we proclaim it. Just because we “feel” something is fact doesn’t make it so. Evidence does. Likewise, worshipful fanaticism, devoid of critical thinking, has no place in a sane or effective democracy.
These are times of global crises, demanding serious, thoughtful, articulate public servants. Donald Trump is none of that. (Just “play the video” of public appearances.) Instead, he bullies, threatens and insults anyone who might take issue with his speech or behavior. Unfortunately, in the purview of the presidency, a talent for character assassination is a poor substitute for statecraft.
The next nine months of politics will not be fun. But on Election Day, we all have to choose. Will it be “domestic tranquility” or chaos? Reason, or revenge? July 4 or Jan. 6? Our republic: As Ben Franklin challenged us, can we keep it?
— Jane Artabasy, Glencoe
President Joe Biden is campaigning hard on the idea that former President Donald Trump is a threat to democracy. I understand why he is doing this. Biden does not have great approval ratings, so he has to play to his strength — which is how bad his supporters think Trump is. Attacking Trump as a threat to democracy is not going to sway many Trump supporters, but it might help a little on the margin if Trump says something crazier than normal, even for him, or if he gets convicted. That might sway a few people in the middle. Also, attacking Trump as a threat to democracy might motivate Biden’s supporters to get out and vote. The two of those together might be enough for Biden to beat Trump again.
The question I have, however, is this: If Biden spends the whole campaign talking about Trump being a threat to democracy, what happens if Trump wins the election? It’s a long way to November, and polls this early don’t mean much, but they do indicate Trump and Biden are just about tied. (Trump is leading in some polls.) And Trump doesn’t need to win the popular vote; he just needs to win the Electoral College. He won the Electoral College in 2016 while he trailed Hillary Clinton by almost 3 million votes. In 2020, he lost to Biden by 7 million votes and still got very close to winning the Electoral College. He could lose the popular vote in 2024 and still win the Electoral College. And based on what the polls say, he could even win the popular vote. If he does that, the Electoral College might not even be close.
So what happens then? If Trump is a clear winner and yet Biden has spent the whole campaign saying Trump is a threat to democracy, what will Biden do? More importantly, what will Biden’s supporters do? Will they have protest marches, and more, all over the country? Will more state and local prosecutors charge Trump with new crimes? Will the media constantly tell us that Trump’s victory is illegitimate and talk about how dangerous he is to democracy, even though he won?
Ultimately, will Biden’s supporters, in a paraphrase of a famous comment from the Vietnam War, and perhaps not unlike some Trump supporters, decide that they have to destroy democracy in order to save it?
— Patrick J. Allen, River Forest
One of my grandfathers worked as a house painter with side jobs and the other as a Chicago firefighter along with being a mover on his off days. They worked 60-plus-hour weeks in physical jobs in their 50s and 60s. They instilled in their grandkids integrity, as they would be in people’s homes and never take anything, and teamwork, as most of their jobs required working with others to finish the task and make everyone safe. They rest in eternal peace, but their life philosophy lives on.
Somehow, I wish Donald Trump had an opportunity to be one of my grandfathers’ grandkids to understand that working hard (not golfing), showing integrity (by not taking any documents that are U.S. government property) and bringing people together are what make America great.
— John Kasner, LaPorte, Indiana
I am certain that had anyone else behaved in court in the same manner as the ex-president, said person would not only have been removed but also ridiculed by pretty much anyone who had witnessed it.
We raise our sons (I guess, I hope) to be mature, thinking, responsible adults, but for some reason, I can’t begin to imagine why, half the country feels that Donald Trump can do as he pleases, no holds barred. I regularly think of my parents, both of whom have passed, as these news briefs come out about Trump in court. They would have put their heads in their hands and wept.
My father, and the other brave souls of that generation, fought in World War II so this man could blithely persist in his sophomoric behavior?
Shame on you, Trump.
— Monica Wiedlin-Torres, Chicago
It appears that New Hampshire voters “just don’t get it.” If the voters return Donald Trump to the White House, then it’s obvious that I “just don’t get it.”
President George W. Bush said he could see all the way into Vladimir Putin’s soul. Putin has no soul. Donald Trump says he can work with Putin. He is wrong. You can only work for Putin.
Still no light at the end of the tunnel yet! God help us.
— Dean Armentrout, Barrington
Augustine, the fourth century bishop of Hippo in Algeria, after tumultuous youthful exuberance, while reading the “Hortensius” of Cicero, was in search of the truth. With the encouragement of his mother, Monica, he went to Rome and then to Milan, where he was baptized by Ambrose. Augustine then wrote his “Confessions,” the history of his “restless heart” in search of the truth in life.
John Newton, the 18th century British slave trader, saw the light and changed his life. From a “wretch like me,” he became an Anglican priest and wrote the glorious prayer song “Amazing Grace.”
Former President Donald Trump, hostage of his own narcissism, can liberate himself and the country and become another Augustine, another Newton. Then all of America would sing “Amazing Grace,” thus “making America great again.”
Lady Liberty would be smiling. Mount Rushmore would be smiling.
God bless America.
— Raffaele Di Zenzo, Westchester
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