Donald Trump and a Unified Reich
Trump's often-unhinged social media posts show a real lack of sobriety, discipline, self-control, professionalism and focus.
Donald Trump kicked up a storm of outrage last month (which is not new) by foolishly sharing a video with a frame that promised a "unified Reich" if he is elected President. Now, to be clear: I do not believe Trump is blowing the dog-whistle for Nazis. The text was not obvious and had to be highlighted in reports about the video. The share was taken down as the controversy heated up.
What this illustrates is not Nazi leanings, but a long-standing problem with Trump: A lack of discipline, professionalism and focus. Trump loves it when people praise him, and shares memes and videos praising him. This leads to problems, especially with videos that have not been carefully reviewed. The solution to this is obvious, not only for Trump, but for all candidates: Do not post videos you have not thoroughly reviewed. In fact, only post video your campaign creates. This was a needless and stupid unforced error.
Trump's lack of discipline and professionalism is a real problem, and should not be dismissed as "mean tweets." When a President mouths off about his intent to abandon our allies to a rapacious and aggressive foreign enemy, he undermines our national security and makes war more likely. It does not matter if he was "joking" or not. The leader of the free world should have enough basic professionalism not to make jokes like that, unless it actually does reflect a seismic shift in American foreign policy.
That is why Trump's often-unhinged social media posts are a legitimate criticism of him. It shows a real lack of sobriety, discipline, self-control, professionalism and focus. His public statements are a reflection on his character and fitness for office. Republicans used to think that character matters, and I could not imagine Republicans putting up with this kind of behavior in 2004. That time is gone.
There is a good chance that Trump will be President again in seven months. While there were a number of good policy accomplishments during his first term, Trump's character remains a serious problem. If Republicans want to continue to be successful after Trump is gone, they need to stop excusing his rhetoric and should certainly stop trying to emulate him by being as obnoxious as possible. Republicans need to be the adults in the room. Do they have the courage to do that, even if it invokes Trump's wrath? The record of the last seven years shows they do not, and that is bad for the party and worse for the country.