Trumpmania has two absurd sides. One amounts to paranoid fantasy and the other to magical thinking. It is what happens when one ignores objective facts.
The nutters end of the extremist spectrum is illustrated by the group that is pushing transsexuals to change their names and genitals before Trump is sworn in. They seem to believe that the man who said Caitlyn Jenner was welcome to choose which restroom to use in his building (Jenner actually did use the ladies' room with no opposition from Trump Tower employees) will use the unconstitutional Obama Pen to outlaw transsexualism.
On the psychic end of Trumpmania are the descendants of Nostradamus who confidently pronounce "Trump is going to ____ [fill in your own superlatives about the grandiose things you want to see]. Try to suggest to these mouth-frothers that their pet issues are decided by Congress vs. the President, or that they are economically damaging (eg., tariffs), or are 180º from what Trump said in even the recent past. They will respond with rationalizations or the much worse Nationalist-Populist declaration that (for the good of the nation, of course) Trump should roll over Congress like Obama did. That is, we must abandon the constitution to save the constitutional system! (Thank you, G. W. Bush.)
So what is the rational position for those of us who cherish liberty and the through-and-through wisdom of the Declaration of Independence and it's completing document, the U.S. Constitution? Cautious, watchful, optimistic skepticism.
Donald Trump has a mixed history. He raised his children to be seemingly good Americans who love and respect him. He opposed banning abortion at any stage. He earned billions in business. His business declared bankruptcy, defaulting on obligations several times. He's done wonderful things for people. He's vindictively gone after people. He's apparently willing to speak honestly; without a PC filter. His company dragged out payments to many subcontractors and never paid others. He's made some good nominations and appointments to his Executive Branch.
Donald Trump may be a great President. He might be an OK president. He might be disastrous. We don't know because his history is a mixed bag; he's been all over the political map. Filling that place of anxious uncertainty with cult of personality worship is, at best, naive and erodes one's credibility as an open-eyed rationalist. At worst, it is dangerous, trading skepticism for blind allegiance and the rationalizing away of evil. We must hold to our principles and judge the man by what he does, not by what you want him to be.
—Matt Horsley
The nutters end of the extremist spectrum is illustrated by the group that is pushing transsexuals to change their names and genitals before Trump is sworn in. They seem to believe that the man who said Caitlyn Jenner was welcome to choose which restroom to use in his building (Jenner actually did use the ladies' room with no opposition from Trump Tower employees) will use the unconstitutional Obama Pen to outlaw transsexualism.
On the psychic end of Trumpmania are the descendants of Nostradamus who confidently pronounce "Trump is going to ____ [fill in your own superlatives about the grandiose things you want to see]. Try to suggest to these mouth-frothers that their pet issues are decided by Congress vs. the President, or that they are economically damaging (eg., tariffs), or are 180º from what Trump said in even the recent past. They will respond with rationalizations or the much worse Nationalist-Populist declaration that (for the good of the nation, of course) Trump should roll over Congress like Obama did. That is, we must abandon the constitution to save the constitutional system! (Thank you, G. W. Bush.)
So what is the rational position for those of us who cherish liberty and the through-and-through wisdom of the Declaration of Independence and it's completing document, the U.S. Constitution? Cautious, watchful, optimistic skepticism.
Donald Trump has a mixed history. He raised his children to be seemingly good Americans who love and respect him. He opposed banning abortion at any stage. He earned billions in business. His business declared bankruptcy, defaulting on obligations several times. He's done wonderful things for people. He's vindictively gone after people. He's apparently willing to speak honestly; without a PC filter. His company dragged out payments to many subcontractors and never paid others. He's made some good nominations and appointments to his Executive Branch.
Donald Trump may be a great President. He might be an OK president. He might be disastrous. We don't know because his history is a mixed bag; he's been all over the political map. Filling that place of anxious uncertainty with cult of personality worship is, at best, naive and erodes one's credibility as an open-eyed rationalist. At worst, it is dangerous, trading skepticism for blind allegiance and the rationalizing away of evil. We must hold to our principles and judge the man by what he does, not by what you want him to be.
—Matt Horsley
