The Unforgivable Sin of Mr. Trump

AN EDITED VERSION OF THIS POST IS SCHEDULED TO APPEAR IN LETTERS TO THE EDITOR IN THE NEW YORK TIMES


("President Trump's Perversion of Leadership")

It is in his contempt for the very office he holds, his attempt to make the presidency bend to him instead of giving it the respect it deserves and we demand, that he does the most damage.

He luxuriates in his boorishness, somehow perceiving that changing what came before means repudiating every shred of decency, renouncing every ounce of compassion, rejecting every hint of morality. What has for the history of this nation attached as unassailable mandates for the President of the United States now has been cast asunder in the wake of Mr. Trump's daily assaults.

Even as we watched others in this position falter, we never sensed that the very essence of what made us a great nation was under attack. We took comfort in the unshakable belief that our highest office was bigger than any one man, that its underlying principles were greater than the mistakes of omission or commission of any temporary holder, our structure stronger than any errors committed under one person's watch. 

But that understanding has been shaken to the core. Mr. Trump has made us question the fundamental belief of the greatness of the office of the presidency. And beyond all else, this we can never forgive.