The headlines below about Trump pretty much say it all. Follow the headline links for the full columns.
If Trump is patriotic, he now will concede (Jan. 15): This is a serious plea to President Trump, even though it’s a plea Trump almost certainly will not heed:
Mr. President, for the sake of the nation you claim to serve, please, please concede the election and publicly congratulate your successor, Joe Biden….
The threats continue. The main reason they continue is that you continue to make clear you believe, and encourage others to believe, that the transfer of power is illegitimate. When extremists believe this, the situation becomes dangerous, even if you read a teleprompter plea for calm.
One of the glories of this nation is its tradition of a peaceful and respectful transfer of power. To that end, you have a duty to call Biden and congratulate him and then announce that you have done so….
Yes, a Senate conviction is warranted (Jan. 13): Donald Trump richly deserves the ignominy of being the first president ever to be twice impeached. His behavior has been effectively seditious, and he has been derelict in his sworn duty. … The proper ground for Trump’s second impeachment is his pattern and practice of undermining the constitutional system itself, starting with his behavior immediately after the Electoral College met and voted in each individual state and continuing through his actions immediately before, during, and after the assault on the Capitol….
Note: This next one was published before Trump finally made a mostly, but not entirely, good speech on Jan 13, urging calm.
Trump was AWOL as more violence loomed (Jan. 12): President Trump is committing an unforgivable sin of omission this week.
Trump should be openly, sternly, and vociferously urging all his supporters not to protest or riot at capitol buildings across the nation in the next week, and he should be warning that even the slightest violence will be met with appropriate force, along with arrests and prosecution. Instead, he blathers that his inflammatory rally remarks last week were “totally appropriate,” and he still has said far more to praise his riotous supporters than to denounce them.
Even when on Jan. 12 he offered vague paeans to “peace and calm” and “respect for law enforcement,” Trump spent more time issuing threats of political reprisals to Democrats.
This is appalling….
