The Mueller report is finally out and, despite Attorney General Barr’s assurances to the contrary, it confirms the worst about Donald Trump. At times it is difficult to describe the abhorrence I feel as Trump daily tramples on the customs and traditions which bind us together as a Country. But, having watched the cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris burn almost to the ground this week, I would compare Trump’s presidency to that event. In his series on Civilization, Kenneth Clark famously said, as the camera panned out to show the magnificence of Notre Dame, that he couldn’t describe what Civilization is but he knows it when he sees it. That symbol of Western Civilization now lies partially destroyed for all to see, saved from total destruction only by the firemen and women of Paris. It will hopefully be rebuilt by the people of France.
Much as fire consumed Notre Dame, Trump daily attacks our institutions, the rule of law, and our international network of alliances which together provide the foundation of our Country’s prosperity and strength. Trump perceives these same institutions as a threat to the culture of White Male privilege which has nurtured him and his followers. He believe they impede his desires. He wants to pull them down and pull us back to a darker time. Whether he will succeed is still an open question but the slow burn he started is threatening to become a conflagration. We are the firemen and women of our country. We are the only ones who can extinguish the fire Trump has begun and determine what kind of country we want to be. Do we want a Country hopeful, tolerant, prosperous and open to new possibilities, or a Country of Trump, selfish, intolerant, poor and afraid of what is different? The next election will tell the story. Can we count on you?