Susan Wright on the Right
I hope everyone had a wonderful, safe Thanksgiving holiday, surrounded by loved ones and content with the day.
For most Americans, the day is about family, food, celebration, fellowship, and even football.
Just an update for those who may be wondering: No, I didn’t spend the day arguing over the dinner table about politics. The topic didn’t even come up.
With that said, I also hope that we took time to remember those who may not have been able to see their families for the holiday, for whatever reason. In particular, I hope we remembered the troops who are stationed abroad, serving their nation and often, in harm’s way.
Their Commander-in-Chief certainly isn’t worried about standing with them.
I had to save this report of President Trump’s Thanksgiving Day call to the troops for today. The turkey coma, combined with the ridiculousness and cowardice of Trump was too much. I’m ready to tackle this thing now, however.
Let’s start with the fact that Donald Trump has yet to visit the troops. Unlike past presidents, there is no surprise visit to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with them. No brief meeting, to let them know he’s with them or stands for them.
It’s been two years, and all we’ve gotten from Trump is lip service to his support of the troops.
Some White House insiders have suggested in recent days that he just doesn’t want to. He’s afraid.
It should never be dismissed or forgotten that this is the wealthy elitist, born into privilege, who used his daddy’s money and status to get five deferments for a sore foot, while other young men his age were going off to Vietnam.
When asked about it, years later, he blew it off as a “minor thing” that cleared up on its own.
Why do I suspect it “cleared up” immediately after American troops were withdrawn from Vietnam?
Regardless, he is now the CiC of our nation’s military, and you would expect there to be at least a cursory show of unity with them. At some point, you would hope that he could take even a moment to make it about them, and not himself.
You would hope that, but you shouldn’t expect it.
Nope. Don’t expect it, because this is Donald Trump we’re dealing with – the most self-centered, petty vulgarian to ever sit in the Oval Office.
President Trump did the absolute, bare minimum and placed a phone call to those troops, rather than visit. That will be enough to please his devotees, no doubt fawning over the fact that he took time out of the holiday to call the troops, but to those of us with critical thinking skills, it was weak sauce.
To begin with, his interaction on those calls was insane. He turned attention away from the sacrifice of the troops to pushing his partisan politics – NOT what the day should be about.
In a call to a Coast Guard commander in the Arabian Gulf, he made it about trade, and his slow-witted assertion that the United States is being ripped off in trade deals.
Yesterday, during his televised Thanksgiving call to the troops, Trump tried to get the commander of a Coast Guard cutter in the Arabian Gulf to weigh in on the unfairness of U.S. trade with Gulf countries. pic.twitter.com/xTTZLBNPh1
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) November 23, 2018
While speaking to a commander in Afghanistan, he wanted to make it about the border and griped about the 9th Circuit Court.
To a commander in Afghanistan, Trump complained about the 9th Circuit court and said he knows the commander agrees with him about what to do on the Mexican border, doesn't even have to ask. He also likened the Afghanistan mission to the border mission. pic.twitter.com/kJcFYUBF81
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) November 23, 2018
That bit about the courts may be because he’s still smarting, after having his hand slapped by Chief Justice John Roberts, who offered a rare rebuke of the president’s attacks against the judiciary.
I have to wonder if the military members who were privy to Thursday’s calls have any real confidence in Trump to have their backs, should the need arise.
Meanwhile, he brought it all home while speaking to the press, afterwards.
When asked what he wanted to give thanks for during a press gaggle Thursday, Trump responded, “for having a great family and for having made a tremendous difference in this country. I’ve made a tremendous difference in the country. This country is so much stronger now than it was when I took office that you wouldn’t believe it.”
“And I mean, you see, but so much stronger people can’t even believe it. When I see foreign leaders they say we cannot believe the difference in strength between the United States now and the United States two years ago,” he continued. “Made a lot of progress.”
If you could even get through that Thanksgiving word salad, you’re probably feeling the same mix of disgust, embarrassment, and maybe a strong dash of outrage.
I’m at least glad to see he tossed his family in there, first. That’s the pat answer most give, and it should be included, of course.
Everything else he said was self-indulgent garbage and completely unfitting for the day, just as his disregard for the troops is unfitting.
Let’s not quibble. This was just one more weight of evidence added to the scales, proving the man’s unworthiness to serve as president. He is a walking disaster, of epic proportions.
And just for your consideration, Psychology Today lists the symptoms of Narcissistic Personality Disorder as such:
Narcissistic personality disorder includes symptoms such as poor self identity, inability to appreciate others, entitlement, lack of authenticity, need for control, intolerance of the views/opinions of others, emotional detachment, grandiosity, lack of awareness or concern regarding the impact of their behavior, minimal emotional reciprocity, and a desperate need for the approval and positive attention of others.
I’m just saying…
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