Trump could have been “Healer in Chief”

I’ve never been a Donald Trump fan. Not as author of The Art of the Deal. Or when he was “The Donald”. Or as host of The Apprentice. I did not vote for him in 2016. But when he was elected president, I suspended judgment…for a time. I supported his get tough on China policy. I benefitted by his acceleration of the economy. I backed “The Wall” and thoughtful immigration restrictions, but not separating children from their parents.

Eventually I grew impatient with Trump’s toxic rhetoric, schoolyard-style bullying and disparaging of presidential norms. Character counts! Words matter! Then came

2020 and all its baggage – COVID, a crashed economy and heightened racial tension.

Outstanding leaders are measured by how they handle crises on their watch. Trump acted irresponsibly. In fact, he failed! He dismissed the greatest public health crisis to strike these shores in a century. Today more than 220,000 Americans are gone, the highest tally on earth. His folly eventually came “home” impacting his staff’s – and others’ – personal well-being, and even his own. The President could have been a hero. It was an “I get it” moment for him, and he said so. So, what did he do? He reverted to default mode by resuming large, mostly mask-less rallies, insisted the virus would soon disappear and played the tough guy role by hinting he was now immune.

His greatest achievement, a supercharged economy, is shaken. Trump could have been “Healer in Chief” as some of our cities erupted in flames this summer. Instead he played the blame game and fermented unrest.

History shows that great leaders are uniters. Lincoln, Churchill, FDR and Reagan are prime examples. Trump’s sin, and his legacy should he be defeated, is he has been a divider. No modern American president has so purposely communicated only to his supporters, his “base,” while ignoring others.

Ronald Reagan famously asked voters in 1980, “Are you better off than you were four years ago”? Let’s re-phrase it a bit: Is America better off than it was four years ago? I claim “No.” President Trump must go!

MEL PARKER

Yuma