Presidents’ Day

The long holiday weekend honoring presidents is here. Growing up we used to have two president’s birthdays in February. Lincoln on February 12th and Washington February 22nd. Washington’s was a federal holiday because he was the first guy to hold the job, and many feel he was the greatest and most important. Lincoln never got a federal holiday, but many states honored him with a holiday. But in 1971, the Uniform Monday Holiday Act combined the holiday to the third Monday in February, and we are suppose to be honoring all presidents. The weekend also marks the one month anniversary of the Trump presidency. He says it’s been great. Most people who have a grip on reality are worried about how long we can go on like this. The only president with a worst first month was William Henry Harrison who caught pneumonia on inauguration day, and died after a month in office.

The list of mistakes and lies, or inaccurate statements, depending on your definition, are well known by now. But they have been hard to keep up with because there is a new tweet or statement every day. The most troubling development was the firing of National Security Advisor Michael Flynn over his improper discussion with the Russian ambassador about sanctions imposed by the Obama administration over Russian interference with the election. Flynn then lied about it. He was fired after three weeks on the job. It may be the record. There is now an investigation to see who else from the Trump campaign was illegally speaking with the Russians. What’s also troubling was the man Trump picked to replace Flynn, retired Vice Admiral Robert Harward, turned him down. He said it was because he couldn’t pick his own staff, and who wants to advise someone on the most critical issues of national security who doesn’t necessarily listen. Again, I don’t think anyone has ever turned down this job.

The country has not been under this dark a cloud since Watergate. Nixon was smart and dangerous. Trump is delusional and that makes him even more dangerous. In his recent bizarre news conference, Trump claimed he inherited a “complete mess” from the Obama administration. There are many reasons that’s not true. Washington and Lincoln set very high standards, and it’s unfair to compare even other great presidents with them. But talk about inheriting a mess. Washington was put in charge of a new country unlike any ever created before. The pressure to make it survive and thrive is hard to imagine. Lincoln had to save the country from destroying itself. Lincoln was handed the ultimate mess by President James Buchanan who did nothing to prevent the Civil War, and is considered the worst president in history. So far.

These are troubling and dangerous times. Trump has surrounded himself with radical thinkers who are out of the mainstream of America. They are more likely to pour gasoline on his fire then stand up to him. I understand Trump supporters felt left out, and wanted to change the political system they felt was failing them. But they fell for a false god. They are not going to get what they were promised. We are only a month into this presidency and politicians from both parties, leaders of the intelligence community, the military, and the courts are expressing grave concern for what has gone shockingly wrong in the first few weeks. There is rampant mistrust and fear. The news media has been painted as the enemy by a president who has shown himself to be paranoid and insecure. Sound familiar? It was journalists who uncovered the truth in Watergate, and forced congress to take action that ultimately saved the country.

It will once again take journalists, congress, the courts, and every citizen to stand up for the truth. We should remember on this Presidents’ Day that the person we trusted with the office is accountable for how and where they lead us.