20 January 2017

An Open Letter to President Donald Trump

[WRITER'S NOTE - Yes, this is the second Trump-related post in the same month, and I'm not entirely thrilled on it, either. However, in remembering past endeavors, I missed moments to state my opinion while the subject was still topical. While I understand that the Trump presidency will remain topical for a great deal of time to come, I do not intend to turn this 'project' into a permanent beacon against a President I have little faith in. Let the historians and politicians provide deeper analysis of his coming actions. For now, these are words that I wanted to say twelve hours ago, but sleep overtook me before I could write them. - DF]

Dear President Trump,

Well, here we are. Months removed from a (still) very touchy election, the “elect” part of your title has been dropped and you are now the commander in chief of the United States of America.

The oath has been given and recited and, from here on out, every single move you make will be watched; every single word you speak will be analyzed; every action you take will be criticized. And gone is your ability to make snap Twitter responses; the President is not afforded the luxury of rash decisions that we common folk are.

Everyone will be watching you: The 62.9 million people who did vote for you, the 72.1 million who did not, the 45.6 per cent of eligible voters who didn't vote for reasons that are their own, our allies and adversaries around the world, the historians, the comedians, the conspiracy theorists... everyone. Watching you like a hawk. You are no longer private citizen Trump, you are the “leader of the free world,” and their gaze shall be long and their judgment unforgiving.

With all the doom-saying that's been happening, I would imagine that there are some today who are surprised that the sky is not descending upon us... I am not one. The sky is still above, the earth below, and we continue to spin around our burning ball of plasma. That is enough to give me some semblance of hope.

But not much.

I will be as honest with you as I can: I don't think you will make it; I strongly believe that you lack the proper temperament and the strength of character to be President, and that you will crack and warp under the constraints of your position. From my standpoint, you came off as the petulant child who wanted to play with his kid-neighbor's toy and screamed until the whole neighborhood banded together and made them let you. From my perspective, you were the scraggly dog that barked so loud that the car you were chasing stopped just so it would shut you up as you wondered what to do with it. From my eyes, you were me when I was child... and I was a detestable little shit.

If you make it through half of your first term, I will be shocked and surprised.

Yet, after being forced to witness every disgruntled and thin-skinned comment that your spring-loaded fingers and your Gatling gun mouth have thrown into the æther of our existence, I have powerful doubts.

You have the grandest of opportunities now, Mr. President, and I sincerely hope you make the most of it, but as Ian Holm said as he was playing “Ash” in Alien: “I can't lie to you about your chances, but... you have my sympathies.”

History shall judge, Mr. President. History will always judge.

Please, I implore you... prove me wrong.

Regards,
David Fisher
Chief Everything at Misanthropy And Cupcakes

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