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COMPASSION IN GOVERNANCE?

I’ve never been one of the sharper pencils in the box, but something that has perplexed me over the last three years is the support so many friends and colleagues have extended to Donald Trump and his policies. The Trump supporters I speak of are intelligent people of good will, whom I respect.  And yet, one question continually confounds me: If you saw a man abusing women and children or an elderly person somewhere in public, would you not step in and do your utmost to stop it? I’m confident everyone I know would. And yet, for reasons apparently beyond me, people continue to support Trump despite a wealth of speech and conduct that runs counter to the values they espouse, and clear evidence that he drives policies that hurt millions of innocent people. Here are a few examples for your consideration.  

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BEWARE OF FAUSTIAN BARGAINS

One thing about Faustian bargains, where we consciously choose to turn from the moral beliefs and values that define us, in favor of something we desire in the short term, is that they always end in tragedy.  Just as Faust sold his soul for worldly pleasures, selling the moral basis of our lives to achieve short term goals, even noble ones, inevitably results in long term consequences far more dire then we ever imagined and leaves us broken and filled with regret.

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PROCESS COUNTS

Given the gravity of a Kavanaugh appointment to the Supreme Court, and the abysmal way the confirmation process for him was rammed through the Senate, I am left with no choice but to speak out against the abuse of power by Trump and Republican senators that have done his bidding.  As a conservative, a Christian, a Republican, and someone who believes that aborting a child is a great tragedy, it is particularly difficult to advocate against the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh, but I must. Given the gravity of appointing him to the highest court in our land, for decades, to both those yet born and the future of our nation, here are my reasons:

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ONE OF THE BEST INVESTMENTS EVER

One of the best investments we can ever make is not some great stock or real estate opportunity, but investing in preschool for our children and the children in our community. While investing in preschools probably sounds rather mundane, sometimes it’s the not so impressive or grand opportunities right under our noses that produce the sweetest and most lasting fruit.  Research from distinguished universities not only confirm what we’d intuitively believe about how quality preschool experiences help children during their school years, they underscore benefits far beyond what most of us might imagine.

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REPUBLICAN TAX REFORM

As a conservative and a Republican for over 40 years, I’m compelled to testify, without political motive, and with the best interest of our country and people at heart, that the current Republican tax plan is extremely disappointing. It is disappointing because while it purports to reform the tax code, stimulate economic growth, and help the American people, it does little more than provide a handout to those that are already wealthy. It is a Trump led con, supported by Republican “leaders” desperately seeking a “win”, who have forgotten their compassionate conservative roots and given in to enriching wealthy friends and maintaining a narrow base they’ve conned into believing their pitch.  This tax bill will add to the deficit, stoke inflation, raise interest rates, result in 13 million people losing their health insurance, put additional upward pressure on health insurance premiums for the rest of us, and ignore the very real constraints to the economy and the long term needs of our country.

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BEYOND THE BATTLE

When combating injustice, the tragedy of lost opportunities and the senseless loss of life, both here and abroad, for the sake of those we choose to defend as well as our own humanity, it is essential to remember to live out a “thirst for righteousness” on multiple fronts. While exposing and confronting the perpetrators of injustice with their selfishness and shortsightedness is a noble cause, it is equally if not more important to bring to light and labor together on constructive solutions to some of the seemingly intractable problems that beset us.  And beyond that, sometimes it is good and right, even for warriors, to sheath their sword, lay it down for at least a little bit, and take up the good work of lending a helping hand and a broad smile to those that are struggling and hurting.

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REPUBLICAN SUCCESS IN HEALTHCARE LEGISLATION

Kudos to President Trump and House Republicans who had the tenacity to push thru healthcare legislation to the detriment of the vast majority of the American people.  Kudos to our President and House Republicans who were able to turn a blind eye to the healthcare needs of the people, stayed focused on their political war with Democrats, and lend an extra helping handout to the very rich and the bottom line of businesses. Kudos to Trump and House Republicans who successfully exercised their loathing of Obamacare to not only undermine it, but merrily applauded their success in approving a plan that will kick tens of millions of people off their healthcare insurance and diminish the healthcare policies of the rest of us.  Kudos to “leaders” who managed to muster the callousness to vote for the House healthcare bill knowing that it will substantially raise premiums for the vast majority of older people as well as push those with serious pre-existing conditions into health insurance pools that won’t be financially viable.

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“AMERICA FIRST”

President Trump, during his inaugural speech, reiterated with great confidence the underlying themes of his campaign: “Make America Great Again” and “America First!”  While these apparently made for an appealing campaign pitch and many voters seem to believe this is how America ought to be governed, they immediately struck me as some of the most troubling and dangerous things a now sitting President could say, let alone say so stridently.  “Make America Great Again” and “America First” are troubling and dangerous foundations for policy because they are backward looking, selfish, counter-productive, and demonstrate a withdrawal from the moral, economic and military leadership role America has in the world.

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WINNING THE PEACE

As we mourn the loss of so many innocent people in Orlando, as well as those who lost their lives at a fireworks celebration in Nice, France, at an airport in Istanbul, a cafe in Bangladesh, and so many others taken by terrorist attacks over the last few years, let us continue to be mindful not only of the need for more effective gun controls and mental health care, but how perniciously the war on terror is seeping into our country. While hatred of gays and the LGTB community seemed to have played some role in the Orlando attack, and that should not be forgotten, we need to be increasingly mindful of the fact that we are also in the middle of a religious and cultural war with radical Islam, and one that we are not winning.  Daily we hear media coverage of terrorism committed by ISIS, our military strikes against them and their loss of territory, along with rhetoric from presidential candidates on who can be toughest against ISIS, but we almost never hear even so much as a vague plan on how to stem the growth of radical Islam and win the peace.

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