Speaking from his Bedminster Golf Club after domestic terrorism at the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, the President of the United States spoke not the words the nation needed to hear. He used his bully pulpit to call for a more generic end to hate, referring to himself as a victim of it.
There are no Confederate flags or statues there. No Ku Klux Klan hoods, neo-Nazi swastikas, or old pick-up trucks with gun racks in the parking lot of the summer White House. The members of Bedminster arrive in Bentleys, Ferraris, or a poor man’s Mercedes or Audi to yell “fore!” to warn other members in danger of getting hit by an errant golf ball. They ride on manicured fairways in their golf carts. They don’t drive cars into crowds.
But as Bedminster’s celebrity addressed the nation last night, didn’t what he didn’t say leave you wondering whether he is constitutionally unable to speak aloud the name of the bully ideology that summoned the white nationalists to the event of domestic terrorism in Charlottesville?
Can you say “white supremacy”? Can you say “white nationalist domestic terrorism”? Or do you see only yourself everywhere?
Donald Trump crashing a wedding at Bedminster Golf Club
“’We’re going to fulfill the promises of Donald Trump’ to ‘take our country back,’ said Mr. Duke, a former imperial wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. Many of the white nationalist protesters carried campaign signs for Mr. Trump.” (August 12, 2017, NYT)
The President sees only himself everywhere. Unfortunately, he’s not alone!
- Gordon C. Stewart, Chaska, MN, August 13, 2017.
Views from the Edge 
I begin to fear a real Civil War, part 2. I mean literally, shooting, grenades, the works. If 45 is impeached, I think it could happen.
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Never fear, Carolyn, Trump is here, but God is near!
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You are not alone in feeling like we are throwing things out into the void….. What struck me most strongly was the picture you picked of our so called fearless leader standing tall, with a mostly empty head. Thanks, gordon… Just a note; on another subject. I will be having a scan done on my carotid arteries tomorrow. find I can still write fairly well, but finding words for what I want to say, can be frustrating… some times. Frustrating.
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Karin, So sorry to hear you’re having trouble finding the right words. You live in words, so it’s doubly frustrating, I’m sure. I hope tomorrow’s test is part of the process of finding as solution.
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Garry commented that he couldn’t have looked LESS interested in the subject. Someone else said he looked drugged. But why should be be surprised? This is the man who would not repudiate the support of the KKK during the election, so why should he repudiate a riding white nationalist terror group? This is right up his alley and probably exactly what he wanted from the beginning. A state of worshipful idolaters, putting him on a pedestal and chanting his name. I’m glad my mother is gone.
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Garry’s antenna are pretty good, and you’re on target with your comment. This is what he sowed, so why would he be disturbed by what a great crop is being reaped.
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As I said to my daughter, last night, who lives in Charlottesville, I am at a loss to articulate the depth of rage, sadness, and despair over these events. This is the town where we raised our girls. Both my husband and my daughter are UVA alums.
These events were never about free speech for these imported thugs. It was a not so thinly veiled opportunity to inflict their wrath publicly, and see how far their bully in chief would or would not go on their behalf. Sadly, he has lived up to their expectations.
I take some consolation that they are still a minority in the big scheme of things, and in the immediate resonating condemnation from just about everyone except Trump. Still, let us remain vigilant, and not forget the history lesson of the rise of the nazis.
Thanks for the article, Gordon. Your point that he sees only him in everything is spot on!
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Sadly, as you say so well, “It was a not so thinly veiled opportunity to inflict their wrath publicly, and see how far their bully in chief would or would not go on their behalf. Sadly, he has lived up to their expectations.”
The thing about a narcissist is this: he doesn’t care whether the news is bad or good, so long as he’s the center of its attention. By speaking to it as he did, he turned the attention away from Charlottesville to New Jersey.
It’s encouraging that your daughter still lives in Charlottesville and that she, you, and so vast majority of residents of that historic city are aghast. Thank you for sharing.
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Well said. It’s all too true that Mr Trump’s response has done nothing but serve as a further enabler of the alt-right and their brother-Nazi friends.
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Sometimes I think I’m throwing things to the void. Glad to hear something coming back! Thank you.
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