Editorial: Nasty+ignorant+deceitful+wrong doesn't = presidential

CBC Editorial: Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2019; Editorial #8474
The following is the opinion of Capitol Broadcasting Company.

“So some day, if a Democrat becomes President and the Republicans win the House, even by a tiny margin, they can impeach the President, without due process or fairness or any legal rights. All Republicans must remember what they are witnessing here - a lynching.”

Hurtful, insulting exaggeration.

“I give away my presidential salary. They say that no other president has done it. … They actually say that George Washington may — may have been the only other president to do — but see whether or not Obama gave up his salary.”

Ignorant, inaccurate boast.

“This phony emoluments clause.”

Just plain wrong.

“You know, we had 28 troops, as it turned out (in northern Syria). People said 50. It was 28. And you had an army on both sides of those troops. Those troops could have been wiped out.”

Erroneous and misleading.

“The whistleblower gave a false account. Now we have to say, well, do we have to protect somebody that gave a false account?”

Flat out lie.

Are exaggeration, false boasts and just textbook lying grounds for impeachment?

We’ll leave that to our members of Congress. It’s their job.

But they are not the kind of actions, words or behavior that Americans -- regardless of political party or ideological leaning -- should tolerate of government bureaucrats, elected officials or from the leader of the free world.

Yet, there is way too little concern over President Donald Trump’s school-yard bullying, mean-spirited insults and unrelenting abuse of the truth.

When the president averages 14 misleading or wrong statements daily, it cannot help but have a corrosive effect on our nation’s democracy – built on a foundation of trust, honesty and truth.

We become desensitized and lower our standards. It diminishes everyone and weakens the nation.

Anyone who trusts Donald Trump to tell you the sun is shining, without taking an umbrella, deserves the inevitable soaking.

Trump’s abuse of facts and denial of truth isn’t some fantasy born out of political bias. He just lies. His most ardent backers in Congress – and even some prominent Christian faith leaders -- know it and put up with it.

What does Donald Trump have on Sen. Lindsay Graham, R-S.C., that he would defend Trump’s exaggerating and lying? “This is a lynching in every sense. This is un-American. I’ve never seen a situation in my lifetime as a lawyer where somebody’s accused of a major misconduct who cannot confront the accusers.”

Say what? Graham has sunken to mimicking Trump. He knows better.

What policies or judicial appointments are so important that such intolerable behavior would be overlooked?

There are none.