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Jack Nobel of Lincoln is a retired surgeon.
I watched the presidential debate last week. The rules of the debate were worked out by representatives of both political campaigns and to be enforced by the moderator.
It soon became evident that the president, who had promised to abide by those rules, had no intention of keeping his promise. He repeatedly and loudly spoke over former Vice President Joe Biden, making it difficult to hear what Biden had to say. When the moderator asked him to uphold his promise to follow the agreed upon rules, he attacked the moderator. Donald Trump acted as if an agreement to debate him meant that Biden should stand quietly while he shouted insults and spouted exaggerations for 90 minutes.
Americans understand that a debate means to engage in a formal discussion in which opposing arguments are presented and an audience can judge the quality of the ideas. A debate is not a one-sided shouting match. That is the realm of a political rally.
The world was watching as Trump responded to the moderator’s question about violent right wing groups, like those who marched with swastikas and torches in Charlottesville. About the Charlottesville event in which a young woman was run over and killed, he said that “there were very fine people” in that violent group. At the debate, he said a similar group, the Proud Boys, “should stand down and stand by.” That group said that they appreciated his recognition and pledged their allegiance to him.
In our nation, we pledge allegiance to our flag, and to our republic for which it stands. We are one nation, under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. We do not pledge allegiance to one man. We do not pledge allegiance to someone who insists that if our neighbors are not of the same political party, they are our enemy. This is not the vision of America our founders gave us as a sacred national promise to uphold.
There are thousands of small town memorials to American veterans who went to war and died to defeat German Nazis who marched, wore swastikas and chanted in torch-lit parades. Today, we have an American president who is supported by marchers who proudly display those same symbols as did the Nazis in World War II. What does that say for our promise to honor the deep sacrifice of our fathers and grandfathers who risked their lives to fight that hatred? The honorable men and women of our local police and our national armed services pledge to serve our country, our constitution, and a code of honor.
Our president is trying to replace that with the idea that those who protest against him, or his ideas, deserve retribution. Trump swore an oath on a Bible to faithfully uphold the Constitution of the United States of America and to protect the citizens thereof. His words and actions show that he is actually only interested only in those citizens who agree with him.
He relentlessly attacks people and elected officials who are not of his party, or who dare to disagree with him. This is antithetical to the foundational principles that have carried the vision of America as a great nation throughout our many trials and challenges.