Thursday, January 19, 2017

Jonathan Turley — Why I Will Not Be Joining The Protests Against President Donald Trump

Below is today’s column in USA Today on the protests against President-Elect Donald Trump and why, despite having a house full of family members and friends who have come to protest Trump, I will not be joining them. Instead, I will be home with my kids as we have been in every inauguration – celebrating the peaceful transfer of power in our democracy and wishing the newly elected president (and our country) the best with an inaugural toast. I criticized Trump (and Hillary Clinton) during the campaign (and I will not hesitate to criticize Trump again for policies or actions that I disagree with). However, I find the claims of illegitimacy and attacks this week to be highly disturbing. I totally respect the right of people to come to protest Trump and his policies. However, there appears to be a concerted effort to delegitimize his presidency and create a type of political mythology about this election.
In this column I discuss that mythology and, more importantly, the meaning of the day of inauguration for many of us. Regardless of my criticism of both Trump and Clinton, I always knew that on January 20th I would raise a glass to the 45th President of the United States and wish him or her . . . and us . . . the best of luck in the coming years. It is a time when we reaffirm our commitment not so much to a politician but to each other. We reaffirm a common article of faith that, despite our disagreements and divisions, we remain one country joined by our belief in democratic transition and government. There is much to celebrate this week as a glance around the world at places like Gambia will readily confirm. Donald Trump will be the 45th President. Our President....
Jonathan Turley
Why I Will Not Be Joining The Protests Against President Donald Trump
Jonathan Turley | Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

”We reaffirm a common article of faith that, despite our disagreements and divisions, we remain one country joined by our belief in democratic transition and government”.

... holding hand to heart like a true believer. The reality is lies, beliefs, concepts, greed – and a large swathe of the human population on this planet thinking No. 45 presides over a lunatic asylum. Besides, democracy, communism, socialism, etc. even totalitarianism - all are human experiments and all contain a grain of truth as their seed.

Peter Pan said...

Trump MC (Master of Ceremonies)