Republicans like the Constitution, right? I mean, correct me if I’m wrong, but hasn’t one of the most prevalent Republican critiques of our current president been that he shows an all-too-frequent disregard for that document?
I’m not making this up, am I? This has been a thing, correct?
Considering my memory hasn’t completely failed me, and that the GOP has been posturing as the most constitutionally pure party for the past seven years, why on earth is candidate Trump still a thing? Because if Republicans are serious about being defenders of our most precious founding document, then Donald Trump should be chased out of the party with pitchforks and torches.
Yes, these are scary times for America. We’ve been reminded, again, that terrorism isn’t something that only takes place overseas. It’s right here in our own backyard. And yes, many of our elected officials offer little more than lip service to the wants and needs of the electorate. However, neither of those realities are grounds for backing an authoritarian, Constitution-bashing candidate.
When he formally announced his presidential candidacy, many people’s biggest beef with Trump was his amateurism, divisive nature and completely off-putting style. Out of the gates, he referred to Mexican immigrants as drug dealers and “rapists.” Not long after that, he began his “bimbo” crusade against Fox News’ Megyn Kelly.
Those episodes alone would have tripped up any other candidate, and they should have signaled to GOP voters that Trump wasn’t to be taken seriously. Somehow, though, his crassness shot him to the top of the Republican polls, where he’s remained since.
Always looking for a silver lining, I’ve often tried to reassure myself (and plenty of other people) that, sure, he may enjoy a commanding lead over his Republican competition with a routine 25-30 percent performance in the polls, but that means roughly three-quarters of Republican voters don’t embrace him. Their support is just spread too thin among the deep roster of conservative candidates.
But now is the time for Trump supporters – the ones who value our Constitution, anyway – to start evaluating which other Republican candidate they should support. Why? Because it’s hard to imagine there could ever be a modern Republican presidential candidate to show so much open contempt for American rights.
This week, Trump vowed to ban followers of Islam from coming to the United States. Their crime? Their faith. It is one thing to halt visas given to people hailing from troublesome counties. It is an entirely different thing to discriminate against people because of their religion. Trump fails to see, or appreciate, this substantial difference.
Even before he made headlines with that thunderous bit of religious intolerance, Trump advocated we shut down parts of the Internet. Not only did he make such a horrific suggestion, he mocked people who might have the gall to complain about – get this – the loss of free speech.
Is this real life?
And that’s just this week! Trump’s also explicitly shown he’s not a big fan of due process, thinks it’s fine and dandy to deport natural-born American citizens, would love to high-five Franklin Roosevelt for the internment of Americans during World War II, is a big supporter of eminent domain gone wild, wants to shut down places of worship and believes databasing citizens because of their faith is A-OK.
Have I left anything off the list? Probably.
Come on, people. Donald Trump’s candidacy is an affront to conservatism and the American way of life. He’ll never “Make America Great Again.” He’d only make it worse – much worse. For Republicans who truly value the Constitution, it’s time to kick him to the curb.
Contact David Allen Martin at davidallenmartin423@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @DMart423.