Dear (Trump-supporting) friend,

An open letter to all those friends out there who are planning to vote for Trump

I know we don’t always see eye-to-eye on politics, but your friendship is still one that I cherish. You have been a loyal friend and I hope I have been the same to you. Despite our differences, I know we still have so much in common.

Given that, I figure I should take a moment to write down why this election matters so much to me. This letter is my attempt to make a common sense case - based on values we share - for why Trump does not deserve your vote. I hope you’ll give it some thought.

My argument is basically this: Trump is a man of rotten character. Giving the US Presidency to a man of rotten character will end badly. And no reasonable accounting of other pros and cons will outweigh that fact. 

Trump’s Rotten Character

I doubt I have to do a lot to convince you that Trump is a man of rotten character, but he has done so much bad stuff it can blur together. Here are three important areas where you might agree:

1. He is not committed to the values of American democracy. Our system of government is more than just majority rule. It is checks and balances, respecting the rights of your opponents, and remaining humble before the law. Without deference to these virtues, an American president begins to look like an authoritarian. Trump is not deferential to virtue. Whenever virtues constrain his personal ambition, he undermines them. He calls his political opponents “the enemy from within” who he says are “more dangerous than China and Russia,” and he believes it may be necessary to use the military to suppress these “radical left lunatics”. In response to a question about political retribution, he said would not be a dictator “except for day one.” He also said that because of the 2020 election “fraud,” it would be justified to suspend all the rules of the Constitution. Electing someone like that to be the president of a democracy is an invitation for trouble. It would be like hiring a communist to be the CEO of America’s largest corporation. No one should expect that to end profitably. 

2. He is a narcissist. At the risk of repeating myself, the man only cares about himself. His weird obsession with his crowd sizes and ratings is not a coincidence. His ego dominates his thinking. He struggles to differentiate between his personal interests and the interests of the US Presidency. To him, they are one and the same. Early this campaign cycle, he sold $99 NFTs of himself in superhero costumes and $59 bibles that were marketed as “the only Bible endorsed by President Trump!”. The profits he made went to him personally, not his campaign. He is blending religion, hero-worship, and patriotism to promote himself. 

3. He is a bully. Some might try to frame his lack of commitment to American democracy and his narcissism as unprincipled bluster, but his track record of mean and bullying behavior makes the “he’s harmless” argument untenable. Of course, this is not new. He bragged that he could grab women by the pussy. In light of the 27 women who have accused him of sexual misconduct and a jury that found him liable in the Jean Carroll case, that’s almost certainly not “just bluster.” His bullying came out in official ways too. While President, he refused to release Congressionally-approved military aid to Ukraine in advance of Russia’s invasion while pressuring Ukrainian President Zelensky to dig up dirt on Trump’s political opponent, Joe Biden. This is mob boss stuff and there are countless other examples. As election day nears, his campaign has been getting even darker and meaner. If he wins the election, I dread the day my son looks up at me and asks, “Why is our President a bully?” and I have to answer, “because that’s what America wanted.”

His Lack of Character Causes Chaos

You may be thinking, “well, American democracy didn’t end with his first term. Why should I be concerned about a second term?” It is a fair point; I don’t think American democracy will imminently end if Trump wins. But there are two problems with that argument. 

First, his first term was, indeed, an exhausting and chaotic experience, dominated by his narcissism and pettiness. It is why voters made him a one-term president. But, more importantly, he failed the ultimate test of an American President: to accept the will of the people and let go of power peacefully. The combination of his disrespect for American democracy, his narcissism, and his bullying behavior all came together as he refused to accept the results of the 2020 election. He orchestrated a campaign to discredit the validity of American elections, to push state officials to “find 11,780 votes,” and to so thoroughly convince his supporters that the election had been stolen from them that they stormed the Capitol by force to try to fix it.

Second, the guardrails are off. Trump’s presidency contained many honorable administration officials who sought to limit the worst of his excesses. Many of those senior staff members are now warning of a second Trump term. As of last year, only four of over 40 Cabinet members were willing to publicly endorse him. Recently, his former chief of staff, John Kelly went on the record with The New York Times, warning about Trump and the dangers of having someone like him elected to high office. 

Afterwards, over a dozen former Trump officials signed a letter supporting Mr. Kelly: “Everyone should heed General Kelly’s warning. We have witnessed, up close and personal, how Donald Trump operates and what he is capable of.”

These are the people who knew Trump the best and, as his staff, were most inclined to support him. What they saw changed their mind. 

A second Trump term will almost certainly have fewer reasonable people to check Trump’s worst intentions: high tariffs, political retribution, unqualified appointees, and further delegitimization of institutions and future elections. And while I do not think that American democracy will end with a second Trump term, it can be further damaged. 

Any Upsides of Trump do Not Outweigh the Downsides

While Democrats are certainly flawed, the MAGAfied Republican Party doesn't offer a compelling enough agenda to justify the risk of Trump 2.0. 

Republicans rail against excessive government spending, but they do not offer serious solutions of their own. In fact, they appear to want to keep spending aggressively while also lowering taxes. This will increase budget deficits and the debt. Add in high tariffs on all imported goods, and you could not come up with a better plan to increase inflation. 

This is also true for healthcare. Trump wants to repeal the Affordable Care Act, but he is unprepared to replace it with anything better. He only has “concepts of plans.” 

You might agree with Trump on the things he does have a plan for: leaving Ukraine to fight alone, further restricting abortion and immigration, stopping climate change policies, or adding even more conservative justices to the Supreme court, but it is hard to see how those marginal policy wins outweigh the downsides of electing a man who has brought so much chaos to our country. 

We must also consider the alternative. Kamala Harris is not a far-left ideologue. She does not want to end American capitalism. She is a gun owner, who supports fracking, and has deliberately eschewed identity politics to build a more inclusive, economically-focused campaign. Of course, Trump will push an outlandish caricature of her, calling her “retarded” and describing her campaign as “a campaign of absolute hate,” but this is just his tired playbook. 

I’ve gone on too long. Let me end with this. I know your values; I trust your values. I’ve worked alongside you and know I can trust you. I do not think you share Trump’s values. I suspect you are considering supporting him in spite of this, but I urge you to listen to that part of you that does not trust the man. Withholding your vote for Donald Trump does not mean that you are agreeing with liberals; it just means that he has failed to live up to your standard. And by not voting for him, you keep that high standard intact.