I appreciate debate. And I do understand the appeal of Trump and don’t deny that he he exhibits some attractive qualities. He promises to overhaul immigration, pull out/renegotiate trade agreements, bring back jobs to US soil, and “Make America Great Again”; all sound like potentially good things. Initially, he even espoused some pretty liberal positions on the side of human rights & welfare; some of those have changed 180 deg. (see below). In fact, Tiff and I were both thinking that Trump might be the best candidate early in the process, similar to other voters.
However, upon listening to him speak, considering his behavior and speech, proposed actions and policies, fact checking his statements, and examining his strategies; I’ve become very wary of giving this man additional power and the reigns to our country…even independent of his political platform/ideology. It is unnerving to really think about what he stands for as a leader, human being, and role model for the country; also his lack of concrete plans/platform or the ability to speak intelligibly about how local, national and international governing bodies function. His platform has focused, above all else, on bragging about his personal self-made wealth and brilliance and greatness (all of which are strongly disputed by thorough fact checking).
Below are a bunch of articles/videos that, for the most part, aim to point out facts and show raw video. I’ve included some satire; however, aside from the irreverent nature, these cleverly outline (with reliable fact-checking, raw video clips, and other supporting documentation) many of the issues we should consider.
It’s a lot of information, I’m fully open to you seeing this differently than I–both allowable and understandable. I know how overwhelming it is, so just wanted to make sure that we all have the available information as we individually consider the merits of the candidates and then challenge (in friendly debate) each other’s views.
Best,
Levi
Donald Trump (Drumpf)
A short, irreverent, but comprehensive and fact-backed critique of trump.
Wrong, lying or spreading falsehoods 80% of the time.
Only 2/10 (20%) of facts stated by Donald Trump have been found to be truthful (80% were false-mostly false). In contrast, upwards of 7/10 (70%) of facts stated by Bernie have been found truthful (30% were false to mostly false). Truthfulness is important; some leaders clearly are lacking more than others in this department. Trump received the “King of Whoppers” title by Factcheck.org.
http://www.factcheck.org/2015/12/the-king-of-whoppers-donald-trump/
http://www.politifact.com/personalities/donald-trump/
http://www.politifact.com/personalities/bernie-s/ (Bernie for comparison)
Trump leading multiple debunked “birther” movements to undermine others’ campaigns
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Blckpwk1voQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5O-87CAAImk
Trump leading the debunked “anti-vaccination” movement
http://www.publichealth.org/public-awareness/understanding-vaccines/vaccine-myths-debunked/
Trump siding with folks claiming there is no drought in CA
He is rich, but not nearly as rich, smart, or successful as he claims (his main qualification).
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/09/03/if-donald-trump-followed-this-really-basic-advice-hed-be-a-lot-richer/
Trump is not even really funding his own campaign
http://www.politico.com/story/2015/10/donald-trump-fec-fundraising-214838
Call for a COMPLETE BAN on ALL MUSLIMS entering US
http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/08/politics/donald-trump-muslim-republicans-2016/
Public treatment and views of women
http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2068227_2068229_2068248,00.html
Bragging about the size of his penis during a “presidential” debate
Imitating and mocking the handicapped during a speech
Personal insults during debates
Inconsistent beliefs
http://www.nbcnews.com/widget/video-embed/482986563581
Repeated and successful encouragement of violence from supporters
And how peaceful people are being treated at rallies:
AGAINST freedom of speech/press: will “open up libel laws” to shut down critical press with lawsuits. Already bullies lots of people with lawsuit threats.
http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/28/opinions/trump-first-amendment-protections-opinion-randazza/
Trump supports torturing our POWs: and doing “much much worse than waterboarding”
Trump’s Strategies
A complete lack of humility, and continuous self-aggrandizement
Very simple language, but effective salesman tactics.
The basis of Trumps fortune: inheritance, real estate, risk, self-branding & self-aggrandizement (also many failures)
How media greed (and our ignorance) fuel a Trump candidacy
How Trump may have coopted rage to fuel a movement.
Religious leaders opposing Trump on moral grounds
http://www.calledtoresist.org/
Additional satire using real speeches and statements to demonstrate how Trump’s rhetoric is clearly not presidential.
Summary, jokes aside.
Trump has no governing experience, no legislating experience, no diplomatic experience, no military experience. He doesn’t know how local, national, and international governing bodies function. He is anxious to attack those who challenge him, to flex our military strength, to commit war crimes, and all without acknowledging the consequences of war and poor diplomacy with respect to human well being domestic and abroad. On top of that, his facts are 80% false, if not lies; and when confronted with falsehoods, he attacks and dismisses the messenger without addressing his error, ever. He has no history of governing, legislating, or any form of government service, including military experience. We can only judge him for what he has said, done, behaved, and promised.
Based on the best information I can find, primarily his own statements & history (not the liberal media), in good faith, I cannot consider supporting this man.
Levi Steele Lewis, Ph.D. 