Dear Mr. Trump

photo by Kim Haughton / flickr

I am trying hard not to be political in these blog pieces. In these days it is not easy for me. As Pastor I never told the congregation how to vote. I did talk about a multitude of issues that Christians should be concerned about. I tried to reach out to Democrats and Republicans and people who did not care about politics at all. Sometimes it was hard to deal with the rantings of some. Thank God most of their anger was not directed at me--but sometimes I was in the hot seat. The great George Buttrick used to stay that the Pastor is the lightning rod for the frustrations of the people. And I believe his words are true.

And yet sometimes I cannot keep silent about some things that are going on. When Mr. Trump was elected President I wrote a column that appeared in the local paper. What I said in essence: Okay, I did not vote for our new President. Some of his statements on the campaign trail frightened me. But I wrote  that I did know that once someone becomes President that the burden of these heavy responsibilities might just change Mr. Trump. I said: Let's be fair--let us give him the benefit of the doubt. After all he is the President and deserves some respect.

That was then--but this is now. And after trying very hard to stand with this President--I simply cannot do this. President Trump took an oath to be the President of all the people. The beginning word  is "we" in the Declaration of Independence. We the people. Mr. Trump pledged that cold January afternoon to be President of all the people. That is part of his job description. I think he has forgotten the pledge he made that day. Today it is not "we the people" but it is his base. His fans. Those that support him get his love and affection and support. I belong to a very large crowd that feels ignored and really despised because I do not support so many of the things the President stands for.

His harangues on Twitter and before the microphone directs his anger toward many people he feels are not his fans. The list of his tirades are seemingly endless. NFL, Hillary, Obama, Mr. Muller, Amazon, Harley-Davidson, the Mayor of Puerto Rico, the FBI, the CIA, illegal immigrants, Muslims, Mexicans, Canada, the sick and dying John McCain. We could also add to that list a multitude of leaders all over there world.

The cruelty of our President is one of the largest complaints I have. He has made fun of people with disabilities, he has called Mexicans and so many others rapists and murderers. We have 8,000 young immigrant people who have dreamed of getting an education and becoming citizens of our country. He has blocked this effort and never thinks what it means to these whose dreams are shattered by our government. Under the banner of Homeland Security he has ripped children, even babies from their parents at the border. Many of these people fled horrific conditions to find a place of safety and peace. They are all turned away as if they were all terrorists. Over 500 of their children have yet to be placed with their parents. He cannot face the fact that thousands have lost their lives in the stormy days of Puerto Rico. Not only has he demeaned his hand-picked attorney general but continues to treat this man and so many others with disrespect and cruelty. Even after he has dismissed people like Mr. Comey, the FBI Director he continues to call them names and insults and questions their patriotism.

Doris Goodwin has said that those that work for him know that "royalty loyalty is a one way street." Mr. Trump does not understand genuine commitment to his staff. He wonders why so many of the people he has surrounded himself with seem disloyal. Mr. Woodward's book, Fear tells of many that work closely with him know that his trust and loyalty only runs one way.

More than 5,000 lies the President has told have been documented by many. When truth is ignored and any disagreements called "fake news" we are in a serious time. Our children are told to tell the truth. Our very foundations rest on the pillar of truth. Mr. Trump's lawyers do not want him to testify before the Mueller hearings because they say he will not tell the truth. What kind of a President do we have that cannot be truthful?

Chaos reigns in this country. We are a divided people. Looking back at our stormy history

photo by Alisdare Hickson / flickr

we have been here before. Many times. Our whole history as a nation tells of ups and downs and injustices and days when we were not our best. Many times our citizens have taken to the streets. What every President is called to do is to help shape us into a united people.  Many of our Presidents have failed at this task. Mr. Trump has taken the divisions that he inherited from so many and made our situation worse. Every day there seems to be another ugly Tweet or angry action from the White House. This chaos spreads like a poison across the nation.

Strong leaders care for people. They admit their mistakes. They do not claim infallibility. Everything is not about them. Most of us run away from those that can only say: me...me...me. Strong leaders are not braggarts. They let their records stand for themselves.

I love this country. I would not want to live any other place. I want our President to be our President. I want to respect and be proud of the accomplishments of the common good. I want a leader who does not bang the fear drum over and over. Social media has not helped us really. Every action is instant and "breaking news" is in exclamation marks no matter how small.

A very wise Pastor was asked what quality above all the others should a congregation look for in a Pastor. The minister replied with one word: character. This is what we long for in all of our leaders. We don't need to hurl insults at our President. But on our better days all of us want the leader of the free world to have unquestioned character.

We will survive Mr. Trump. We have survived other poor leaders. But wise people learn from their history. Let us determine that whoever leads us in the future will be someone with integrity and character. As we honored John McCain we did not pay tribute to a saint. His feet were as clay--maybe more--than the rest of us. But we came to know this man even if we disagreed was someone we could listen to and trust. May their tribe increase. And may the chaos cease.

Please keep reading if you like. I am going to try to stay away from messy politics. But when I see things so blatantly wrong I don't think I can remain silent. We really have not drained the swamp.

--Roger Lovette / rogerlovette.blogspot.com