Donald Trump, the notorious billionaire Republican candidate, has been in the spotlight since the onset of the 2016 presidential campaign.
For those who support Trump, I question their reasoning. However, for those who oppose Trump, regardless of whether or not I support their stance, I feel a moral obligation to point out that most critics have been fixated on insignificant arguments as to why they do not support Trump. With few exceptions, most have failed to articulate the strongest and most imperative reason to oppose him.
The case against Trump does not rest solely on his experience, credentials, family life, failed marriages, casinos, strip clubs, lawsuits, or number of times he has had to file for bankruptcy. It does not rest on his charisma, or lack thereof: his overall churlish and barbaric demeanor, absence of modesty, wayward temperament, or vulgarity. Nor does it rest on his wavering policy disparities: his past support for the Democrats, gun control, abortion, Planned Parenthood, or his deplorable platform for foreign policy.
All of the above reasonings may be valid and may be enough plausible reasoning for the Republican Party to not back Trump as their GOP presidential candidate. It may even be enough reasoning for conservatives to not cast a vote for Trump on election day. Ultimately, a vote for Trump is a vote against the basic principles of which Republicanism and conservatism were built on.
In my opinion, the case against Trump should go even a step further. I believe no American, conservative or liberal, should support Trump. He does not simply violate conservative principles. He violates American principles. Donald Trump is a threat to autonomy, fundamental individual rights, the culture of democracy, and the ideals of a free and open society.
To begin with, Trump is not the business mogul people believe to be true. Sure, he is a businessman who is also a billionaire. However, let's take a look at the facts. First, he began his claim to fame by inheriting his wealth from his father who made a name for himself in the industry. Second, most of his money has been amassed through his association as a celebrity, not through his business acumen. Third, he has had to file for bankruptcy on four occasions, meaning he has made misguided decisions multiple times that has left his companies broke. Notice that I say companies, not Trump himself. Ask yourselves, would you trust your hard earned dollar in the hands of an unapologetic gambler? Do you think America can afford bankruptcy?
When it comes to policies, Trump has been wavering in his stance on numerous controversial topics to say the least. However, when it comes to immigration policy, he is nothing short of ignorant. Donald Trump has blatantly announced that if he were to be elected president, he would infringe upon the first amendment of the Constitution of United States of America - freedom of religion. He has viciously marginalized Muslims and their religion by blaming all Muslims for terrorist acts. He has gone as far as stating he would ban Muslims from entering the United States and would call for surveillance of mosques.
Not only does he seem to have a vendetta for Muslims, Trump has also publicly attacked Mexicans due to the ongoing efforts to eliminate illegal immigrants crossing the border from Mexico. Trump has proposed that the United States build a wall along the border. While this idea is nothing new, Trump intends to have Mexico pay for the wall, believing that "they're going to be happy about it." I don't know about you, but I've never known a government to be happy about spending money for something unprofitable and besides itself. America has been known to be a melting pot, a place where all minorities are acknowledged and given equality under the law. However, a society that protects the rights of all except the unpopular is not an open society at all.
Although most of us do not like taxes, we cannot turn a blind eye to the fact that our taxes help construct functioning roads, enables fire and police departments, and provides our country with sufficient military. With Trump's risky tax plan, the income tax rate would plummet. The lowest tier incomes (under $25,000/year for someone of single status and $50,000/year for someone of married status) would pay no income tax. Yes, you read that correctly. They would not have a dime deducted from their paycheck for income tax. As for the highest income tax bracket, taxation would drop from 40% of income to 25% of income. When Trump was asked how the government would make up for a loss of approximately $900 billion per year, Trump indicated that it is his belief that the economy would have "at least a 3% growth rate, [which] would allow us to continue to reduce the deficit," and in turn make up for the loss. Perhaps this is the case. However, his plan relies on the economy to skyrocket and if it doesn't, then my follow up question, as yours should be too, is what is your plan to make up for the remainder of the loss Mr. Trump?
There is no argument that Trump is under the watchful public eye. Public officials and celebrities set examples as role models and help define the culture of what is deemed to be "acceptable." A few weeks ago during a rally, a protestor interrupted Trump and as security escorted him out, Trump told his supporters, "You know what they used to do to guys like that in a place like this? He'd go out in a stretcher" Trump's language encourages violence. When Obama developed a stance on gay marriage and came out in support of it, he made it acceptable and set an example in hope for millions of Americans to follow suit. When Trump uses his influence as both a celebrity and presidential candidate to praise violence, he is eradicating progress made towards peaceful resolution and only doing America harm.
The most glaring issue of all is that Trump is uninformed on key positions. His strategy may just be to dominate the news by saying outrageous things to attract attention. He has consistently made wrong accusations and statements about Syria and about the refugees. He first began by saying we had no interest in being involved in Syria. Then he said let the Russians take out ISIS. Next he wanted ISIS to take out Assad. He continues to waffle back and forth between ideas and no one holds him accountable. He also knows next to nothing about how sanctions on nations work. Evidence is seen by him preaching for "more sanctions," without ever addressing any pros or cons that would come from having these sanctions. In fact, I think he may just like saying the word because he sure as hell does not sound like he knows what it means. It's almost as if Trump belligerently throws out ideas on various issues by preying on people's fears.
Trump has advocated changing defamation laws to enable the government to sue newspapers for "purposely negative and horrible and false articles." His goal is to police speech, which I'd like to point out again infringes on our fundamental right bestowed upon us in the Constitution. He has publicly given examples of media outlets he'd like to sue for coverage on him, including The New York Times and Washington Post. Having to constantly look over your shoulder before giving your opinion on a public official is exactly the type of culture of suspicion and fear that our Founding Fathers believed to be un-American. In fact, if Trump were to pursue such an altercation in libel, I may have to begin sleeping with one eye open for writing this article.
The case against Trump is that he is an autocrat hiding in a democrat's clothing, a school-yard bully who holds dictators in high regard, a man looking to take a free and open society only to oppress it with legal force if elected. He is someone who demonizes opponents and romanticizes violence. He is a person who dreams of a day to be a part of a government that would have its way with people without any reprimanding from the constitutional law. In other words, Donald Trump is a fascist - or at least as close to a fascist as America's political culture could produce. As Peter Wehner rightly put it, Trump is “a demagogic figure who does not view himself as part of our constitutional system but rather as an alternative to it.”
I refuse to support a tyrant in the making. I will not stand stand with Donald Trump. I cannot accept to live in a country led by America's next Hitler.
