Donald Trump pushes America’s military leaders to the brink

| 3:00 pm EDT September 26, 2020
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“President” Donald Trump has changed so many things in our country — for the worse. He has given white supremacists the boldness to come out of hiding and to believe they can do whatever they want. He has taught his followers that it is okay to lie and obfuscate. He has further taught his followers to believe that the media is “the enemy of the people” and to thumb their noses at norms that have existed in this country for decades. His negativity has taught good people to realize that we are living in an abnormal time, forcing us to do things we might not ordinarily do. Such is the case with retired military leaders.

Politico reported that two retired four-star officers who served under Trump have joined an ever-growing list of national security leaders who have endorsed Joe Biden for president. Retired Air Force General Paul Selva signed an open letter released by the group. Prior to his retirement, Selva served as vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the second-highest ranking officer in the military. Members of the group, National Security Leaders for Biden, are concerned that “president” Trump has compromised national security and will continue to do so if reelected. They should know; securing our nation is their lives. According to Politico, it is rare for high-ranking military officers to publicly endorse any political candidate or criticize the commander in chief, but Trump has left them no choice in their ongoing mission of protecting our nation.

The group’s open letter discusses these leaders’ “love for our country” and “fear for it” if Trump is reelected. Invoking the words of President Harry S. Truman, the letter touched on the COVID-19 pandemic as proof that “America needs principled, wise, and responsible leadership” with a willingness to say “the buck stops here.” Donald Trump takes absolutely no blame for the way in which the pandemic has ravaged our country. At the same time, these leaders call Biden “a wise and honest leader” who “always puts the nation’s needs before his own.” They further address the way in which Trump has alienated our allies while embracing enemies like North Korea and Russia. While many people fail to understand the ramifications of Trump’s lack of leadership on the world stage, most understand his failures in protecting the country from COVID-19.

In a recent Politico-Harvard University poll, Americans are clearly concerned about the pandemic and its impact on the economy, regardless of the false picture Trump continues to try to paint. Following closely behind that concern is racial discrimination, which Trump flatly refuses to acknowledge. Instead, he traveled to Atlanta, Georgia, to promote his “platinum plan” that is supposed to benefit racial minorities. Yeah, right. This man has had four years to do something for racial minorities, and the most visible thing he has done is empower racists. Now, less than two months away from the election, he suddenly wants to help. Sorry, but any Black person who buys into this obvious attempt to buy our votes is as delusional as Trump.