President Trump is not presidential

Throughout our nation’s history, many of us have felt compelled to express that one or another person in the Oval Office is “not my president.”

We all see the bumper stickers.

It’s not new, it’s not unusual, it was frequently stated for President Obama, President George W. Bush, etc.

It’s a statement made to express the speaker’s subjective, usually strongly felt, opinion.

Today is different. This man in the Oval Office continues to show us on a daily basis something about himself in his new role.

Not what we feel about him. About who he is. I observe that he is simply not ‘a president.’

The office – the role – comes with responsibilities.

Principal among these are consulting, learning, listening, thinking, and sometimes acting.

Those experts that are consulted must be long on experience and deep in understanding on the many topics that are new to the officeholder.

This is probably necessary daily for any new president. Instead we see evidence to the contrary, daily, that this person does not consult, understand, or even think deeply before acting.

Imagine for a moment any other president or chief executive, of a company or an agency or an organization or club.

If that person’s performance mattered to you, wouldn’t you demand that he/she perform thoughtfully, with deep understanding of priorities, issues, impacts, precedents, etc.?

Now think about the actions expected of your U. S. President. And then think about this twitterer.

He is simply not a president. John Conrad West Chester