Dear Trump Supporter

Spectator

By Stephen Tuttle | Jan. 16, 2021

 

It is tempting to be sympathetic to your angst since you, like so many before you, have been scammed by Donald Trump. But unlike those taken in by Trump casinos, Trump Air, Trump University, Trump suits, and all the rest, you haven't yet become aware of your own delusions. 

Now some of you have become downright dangerous. It's past time you did a little reflection and self-evaluation. 

You believed Donald Trump was on your side, but he never has been, not even for a second. His only objective was to channel your anger and then give you somebody to blame so he could benefit at the polls. You went along with it when he started his campaign calling illegal immigrants “rapists and murderers.” You went along with it when he denigrated Muslims, generals, and Gold Star families. You went along with it when he called the white supremacists in Charlottesville “very fine people.” Apparently, you agreed with him, which is a shame. 

What he didn't do is make your life any better. Yes, there was a tax cut that gave most of you a few extra bucks but little else changed. Corporations got a huge break, the biggest in history, but not much of that trickled down to you.

You ignored more 25,000 of his lies while he stoked your fears, gave voice to your rage and most bigoted instincts, and gave you nothing in return. In the process, you allowed him to ignore and insult every level of government. 

If you were a supporter because of his policies, how'd that work out for you? You did get your promised tax cut but not much else. We still have massive trade deficits with China, they keep stealing our intellectual property, and the tariffs — paid by American importers, not Chinese exporters — have cost us nearly $50 billion. North Korea is testing missiles again and likely working on its nuclear program, and Iran is increasing its production of enriched uranium. There has been no surge of American manufacturing jobs, no wall on our southern border paid for by Mexico, and the federal government didn't shrink. As a bonus, he attacked our allies and trading partners while cozying up to oppressive dictators, including Vladimir Putin. Was that OK?

He declared the media “the enemy of the people” and steered you to outlets spewing propaganda instead of information. You abandoned your own abilities to think critically and believed whatever you were told to believe.

We know he lied to you about the COVID-19 virus because he admitted it; he knew exactly how big a threat the bug was in early February and intentionally downplayed it so as not to “panic” us. He believed wearing a face-covering was a sign of weakness, and you followed right along, ignoring the simplest and most effective way to stop the spread. You let him convince you it was all a matter of individual freedom. As we approach 400,000 dead and a year of economic disruption, it's pretty clear you were wrong.

Now we've come to an election about which Trump has been claiming fraud for years. This is an old Trump trick; claim nefarious forces are conspiring in advance so there's an excuse if things don't work out. You went right along with his greatest scam of all.

Please, sit down, take a deep breath, and try to use some logic and common sense while you think this through. 

Start by acknowledging the 2020 presidential election was the most scrutinized, recounted, and audited in our history. There is no factual basis for the claims of it being rigged or of any widespread fraud. None.

Really, you should read some of the court filings for yourself, all of which are public record. The complaints from the Trump team include hearsay, innuendo, speculation, and ignorance but no real evidence of wrongdoing anywhere. The constitutional issues raised — that state legislatures did not approve some pre-election changes made by secretaries of state — were easily dismissed because those legislatures had ample time to reverse the changes had they chosen to do so.

Finally, he demanded Georgia officials and Vice President Mike Pence violate their oaths, the Constitution, and the law to overturn the election. And, still, you said nothing.

Your “conspiracy” required the involvement of China, Iran, a dead Venezuelan dictator, a U.S. military base in Germany, two vote-tabulation companies, Republican and Democratic poll workers, Republican and Democratic county clerks, Republican and Democratic secretaries of state, Republican and Democratic governors, the Departments of Justice, including the FBI and Homeland Security, and the courts — all the way up to and including the Supreme Court, which including many Trump appointees — literally tens of thousands of co-conspirators.

And all that makes sense to you? Please step away from the darkness and back into the light; reality misses you.