“We will cast out the communists, Marxists, and fascists. We will throw off the sick political class that hates our country. We will rout the fake news media, and we will liberate America from these villains once and for all.”

The term “banality of evil” was coined by Hannah Arendt in describing Adolf Eichmann’s testimony regarding his role in the murderous crusade against the Jews in Europe.  In reading our Presidents tax payer financed campaign statement quoted above, the word ‘banality’ comes to mind but mental illness is more this writer’s take rather than evil. I read this short paragraph in occurred to me, the author’s fragile mental state was the only enemy of the American tradition in sight. I have never heard a President of our country speak with such crude disrespect for this nation and its values;  Not even close.

I replicated the above text only to ensure we all understand the danger of this man’s unfounded rage.  Rage, unlike situational anger, is an emotion contrary to mental health and the skillful use of the tools of leadership.  We all have votes and must use those votes to prevent our nation becoming the vengeful tool of such a person who can’t check or manage his own feelings in the face of public responsibilities.

A modest Proposal for Good  

As a nation we have civil public processes for dealing with a crisis such as what we have right now. We will need to put pressure on our elected representatives to curb future damage to a strong grounded country and economy. The language of “casting out” and “sick political class” is beyond the pale of the American tradition of politics or possibly even the range of what the Constitution calls free speech for a person in his powerful position. We can only hope we can get this ill elderly man to the help he needs before his illness brings our nation down. That might be the only good we can hope for at this point.