Last week, I came across a John Stossel video entitled, “Trump: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.” It got me thinking about the entire Trump phenomenon that has gripped the United States over the past four years. It is constantly before our eyes. It is plastered on social media and is 24/7 coverage on cable news. It has even taken over most late-night comedy shows and is the number one way that anyone in Hollywood can be assured of getting attention. It is everywhere. Ironically, it is a madness that we willingly engage in, promote, and feed off of.
In this post, I’m not going to try to convince anyone whom they should vote for. I’m not going to argue that Trump is the anointed messiah or that he is an existential threat to our very democracy. Rather, I’m going to make a singular plea: Step back, breathe, and try to detach yourself from the circus so that you can be in a better position to properly assess Trump, the other Democrat presidential candidates, as well as the media’s role in how everything is presented.
Over the past couple of years, I’ve been reading more and more about the monastics of early Christianity. One of the recurring themes that come up in their writings is the need to practice detachment—to make the deliberate effort to detach oneself from the insanity and corruption of the world, so that one could see things for what they truly are. The reason that is important to do is because there are so many forces in the world that are constantly seeking to manipulate you and treat you like a puppet on a string.
Needless to say, in this day and age of mass media and social networking, those forces of manipulation are everywhere. And it is simply shocking to see how many people so readily line up like the animals in Animal Farm, ready to repeat whatever line or claim their chosen media outlets and political leaders feed to them: “Four legs good, two legs bad!” And I’m sorry if this offends some people, but nowhere I have seen this mentality more than among progressives and Democrats. Oh, it is certainly there among conservatives and Republicans, but the level of paranoia and hysteria I’m seeing on the Left over the past few years is utterly shocking to me.
In 2016, I didn’t vote for Trump because I found him to be a vile, offensive bully who spewed irresponsible and hateful rhetoric. When he won, I thought, “All the Democrats have to do is act like the rational adults in the room, and I’ll probably be voting for a Democrat in 2020.” Needless to say, they haven’t done that. So, what is someone like me (and you) to do? Practice some detachment and try to assess things in a proper light.
Progressives and the Church Lady
Having grown up in the conservative Evangelicalism of the 80s-90s, I can tell you what the core problem with the “Religious Right” was: The Church Lady. Dana Carvey’s satirical character on Saturday Night Live crystalized the problem with conservative Evangelicalism and the “Religious Right”: It was pharisaical, judgmental, and holier-than-thou. In the political arena, it was singularly focused on one issue alone (i.e. abortion), it preached that personal morality was the determining factor regarding if a president as fit for office (I’m looking at you, Bill Clinton!), and it whipped up paranoia among the Evangelical flock to stereotype all liberals and all Democrats as godless and evil across the board. In short, to be a good Christian meant you had to be a Republican. And then, when Barack Obama was elected, well, he was a secret Muslim, he was a Communist, Obamacare would soon be setting up “death panels!”
It was insane. Predictably enough, scores and scores of people soon became Ex-Evangelicals. For many, it was the Evangelical support for Donald Trump and his winning the election in 2016 that was the final straw. But what has happened is that many of those Ex-Evangelicals have simply switched political parties but have maintained that same Church Lady mindset. Instead of taking marching orders from James Dobson, they are taking them from MSNBC and Vox. They just don’t disagree with Trump, they are convinced he is (you name it) a fascist, Hitler, a white supremacist, a corrupt demagogue, a monarch, a tyrant, and in some cases, the embodiment of Satan himself. He, and every Republican and conservative for that matter, now enrages them to the point they start saying that one can’t be a Christian and vote for Trump, that the GOP is the antithesis of everything Christ taught, and that Trump is actively trying to undermine our institutions. And if you even dare question them on any of this, then you are one OF THEM. In fact, as we have seen, anyone associated with Trump—everyone one he appoints or nominates for a government position—is immediately seen as complicit in some kind of “scheme” to destroy America.
Do you see the problem? That kind of thinking is paranoid and irrational, and it is buttressed by conspiracy theories that have been peddled for the past three years. Brett Kavanaugh? Well, he must have headed a gang-rape ring in high school—Trump appointed him, and we know Trump likes that stuff! Thank God for Michael Avenatti! He really can take it to Trump! Maybe he should run for president! Russia Collusion? Of course Trump colluded with Russia! Never mind what the Mueller Report concluded, never mind the FISA abuse and how the unverified Steele Dossier kicked that whole investigation off—We know Trump loves Putin, because Trump loves dictators! Attorney General Bill Barr? A Trump stooge, obviously! His summary of Mueller’s Report was only an attempt to divert from the truth! The Ukraine Call Impeachment? Guilty, worthy of impeachment! Trump mentioned Biden, so Adam Schiff’s “mafia call” summary must be true! Never mind there was absolutely no real partisan agreement—that just means the entire GOP is part of the scheme! They’re treacherous! Trump will now be a monarch who might sell Alaska to Putin in order for help in the 2020 election!
And no, I did not make that last part up. Adam Schiff actually said that. And while we’re at it, does anyone believe the Democrats and the liberal media honestly think Mitt Romney is now a paragon of godliness and virtue? These are the same people who accused him of being a sexist, racist, tax-evading money-grubber who wanted to throw old people off cliffs in 2008. For what it is worth, I think the way conservatives and conservative media have now demonized Romney is awful. The man voted his conscience and his vote should be respected. But let’s be honest, the Democrats’ lauding of him, as well as the conservative’s bashing of him, cannot be taken seriously—both are shallow and manipulative political tactics.
Detachment and Assessing Trump and the Other Candidates
At this point, especially if you are a liberal, you are probably thinking, “He is such a Trump supporter!” And that is precisely the problem. All I’ve done is point out some pretty big whoppers that the Democrats have been pushing for the past three years. That doesn’t mean I’m a Trump supporter. It means I’m not going to let myself be manipulated by emotional appeals and hysteria. That’s why I didn’t vote for Trump in 2016. Yet here we are in 2020, and the challenge for me (and you) is to be able to filter out the hysteria and to assess two things: (A) Trump’s actual record over the past three years as president, and (B) The viability of the various Democrat presidential candidates.
So, getting back to the Stossel video that inspired this post, you can watch what Stossel says here. Using that as a jumping off point, here’s my take on the good, the bad, and the ugly that Trump has done that need to be assessed as a whole.
The Good: The economy is doing well; Unemployment is at record lows across the board; Criminal Justice Reform and the First Step Act; Trump is standing up to China and its manipulative trade practices; There is the new trade deal with Mexico and Canada; Trump has taken out two major terrorist leaders. –Like him or not, we all need to be honest that these are good things that we should all be happy about.
The Bad: Trump’s decision to separate the families of immigrants who have come into the country illegally; Trump’s singling out of the Bidens on the Ukraine phone call (although I didn’t think it was impeachable) was certainly a bad thing to do; Trump’s adding trillions of dollars to the national debt is also a grave concern for me. –These things most certainly bad things that one needs to consider in the upcoming election.
The Ugly: THE OFFENSIVE TWEETING; Trump’s blatant narcissism; Irresponsible, inflammatory, and obviously unpresidential political rhetoric (but let’s be honest, as offensive and inflammatory as his rhetoric has been, the Democrats have proven themselves just as guilty).
Simply put, when assessing Trump, assess all of it—the good, the bad, the ugly. Make an informed decision. If you think that, despite the good things he has accomplished, that his toxic rhetoric and the bad things he has done simply outweigh the good, then don’t vote for him. If you think that the Ukraine call was truly worthy of impeachment, then don’t for him. That is what democracy is about. But don’t let your decision be swayed by unsubstantiated and hysterical conspiracies that have no basis in reality. Yes, Trump is offensive, crass, unpresidential in many ways, and has no problem getting into the gutter if he thinks he can win. Yes, there are certainly a number of things about his presidency that are distasteful enough to get honest people to decide not to vote for him—and that’s fine. But let’s stay in reality: he isn’t a dictator and he didn’t collude with Russia to steal the 2016 election. The world is not ending. If he does, in fact, get re-elected, that doesn’t mean that democracy is dying. It means democracy is working and that your candidate just happened to lose.
When it comes to the Democrat candidates, ask yourself if any of them are proposing policies that you agree with? Do those policies have a chance of getting passed if that candidate become president? If you like what Sanders, or Warren, or Biden, or Bloomberg, or any of them are proposing, vote for that person and let the chips fall where they may. But don’t let yourself get sucked into the name-calling and manipulation that is always a part politics but is even more so these days. I mean, I’m not a Bernie Sanders supporter, but does anyone seriously believe the accusation CNN promoted about how Sanders was sexist? Or how about MSNBC’s Chuck Todd talking about how Bernie supporters are “brown shirts”? Really?
What it all comes down to (and I’m addressing this last comment primarily to those who consider themselves Christians, either conservatives or liberals) is this: Don’t assess the culture and don’t do your politics like the Church Lady. Don’t mistake following Christ with one political party’s platform, don’t completely demonize the other party as being the followers of the anti-Christ, and don’t turn a blind eye when your preferred political party does something unseemly. Admit it and let that factor into your decision when the election comes.
We live in a fallen and corrupt world and our politics will always be messy with a fair share of political tricks and corruption. And since in this republic we get to have a say in choosing our political leaders, we need to exercise a certain amount of detachment and not let ourselves be manipulated by over-heated and paranoid rhetoric, no matter where it comes from. We need to be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. We’re not voting for a pope or a pastor. We’re voting for someone who will promote the policies we want to see done and will do it within the boundaries of the law and the Constitution.
So make an informed decision when you vote, and if you’re like me, pray that 2024 comes quickly and that both parties will have learned their lesson and will nominate candidates who are both upstanding and competent, because I really hate having to vote for someone who isn’t both.
Nice article. I would add that part of stepping back is to notice when our attention is being grabbed by entertaining misbehavior, and shifting our attention to substantive information.
Yes, it all has been political voyeurism. Actual political policies and issues are rarely discussed anymore. It is all name-calling and shocking soundbites.
Many of us, too often including me, are neglecting eternal values for the current noise around us.