Trump not making US great again

The race for the presidency of the United States of America, the most powerful country on earth, is threatening to rapidly become the theatre of the absurd… so it’s not surprising that some wags warned that US faces sanctions from Zimbabwe if the elections are found to not be free and fair.

The humour, though, was quickly overtaken by the reality of a sitting president, Donald Trump, broadcasting live from the White House, making angry allegations of vote rigging – and then being taken off air by TV networks who judged their head of state to be lying.

At that same time, Trump’s petulance was contrasted across social media with previous presidential election losers and how they conceded defeat. In 1992, outgoing Republican President George Bush congratulated incoming President Bill Clinton and pledged to work together in the interests of the country.

In 2008, Republican John McCain did the same after losing to Barack Obama – going further to talk about the importance of national unity and putting differences behind them. If Trump does lose to his Democratic Party opponent Joe Biden, then we can expect the opposite – and even worse.

Trump has shown that he will kick and fight to the last court decision to show the election was “stolen” by Biden… and he and his supporters have made all manner of threats, which raise the prospect of a social, if not physical, “scorched earth” aftermath.

Trump’s attitude is doing the opposite of what his famous “Make America Great Again” slogan states – it is reducing the image of a great nation in the eyes of the world to that of a spoiled, squabbling collection of brats.

Not only that – win or lose, Trump is leaving a legacy of bitterness and hatred which will divide his country for generations to come.

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