America’s most important three months

O P I N I O N

NOT THAT PROFOUND

By Nathan Graziano

In three months, on Nov. 5, American voters will make a decision that will have sweeping existential implications for this country, and the world as a whole, moving forward.

On Tuesday morning, Vice President Kamala Harris chose Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota as her running mate against former president Donald Trump and Ohio senator JD Vance, but make no mistake; this election has little to do with Harris or Walz, or even Vance.

This election is a referendum on Donald Trump and the very dangerous prospect of handing a convicted felon, a career grifter, a venomous rabble-rouser and an incorrigible misogynist the most powerful position in the world for a second time.

Recently, I was talking with a friend of mine who framed this election in a way that made complete sense to me: This is not about politics, it’s about morality. What kind of people do we want to be? What message do we want to send to our youth and the rest of the world about America’s moral fiber?

You need not look any further than Trump’s recent appearance at the National Association of Black Journalists convention in Chicago on Aug. 1 where Trump repeated more false claims about Kamala Harris’ race, and rudely and disdainfully insulted and demeaned ABC journalist Rachel Scott.

Is this a man that you want representing you? I’m not trying to be snarky or glib. I’m serious. Watch this video and please explain how anyone can reconcile within themselves voting for a person who treats other people this way, someone who is so small and mean-spirited that they constantly need to put down others in order to prop themselves up.

There’s a term for that type of person. They’re called “bullies.”

And we’re talking about a man who has made his utter lack of decency, decorum, civility, integrity, humility, empathy and respect for other human beings its own brand.

Trump also seems to embrace his ignorance when it comes to policy, or the Constitution, or basic civics. We’re talking about a malicious man who tried to overthrow a fair election on January 6, 2021, largely because he doesn’t understand how elections work, but he also because doesn’t care about the country or the American people.

He only cares about himself.

Trump’s supporters can’t possibly like him based on his policies or his politics. He doesn’t really have any real ideologies, other than that he believes that he is the center of the universe and the single most important person on Planet Earth. And he craves the spotlight, adulation and attention.

I believe that is pretty close to a textbook definition of a Narcissistic Personality Disorder.

Like a true con-artist, Trump will tell you whatever you want to hear—regardless of its veracity—in exchange for your adulation and your vote.

Like a true populist, Trump will play on your basest emotion, your fears and your anger and your bigotry and your hatred, and rile you up to the point where you’ll tape gauze over your ear in solidarity with a man who was recorded in 2005 saying that he likes to “grab [women] by the p***y.”

If you’re a woman, or a man who has a wife, or a daughter, or a mother, how do you morally reconcile voting for a person who treats women like that?

My questions here are not rhetorical. I genuinely want to understand how decent people can reconcile this in their own hearts and minds. I’m trying not to pass judgment. I just want to understand you.

And you’re not going to convince me that Kamala Harris—who I’m admittedly lukewarm about as a candidate—is nearly as dangerous to our democracy as a man who is already posturing about becoming an autocrat.

I also don’t mean to diminish Harris’ historic plight to become the first woman—and a black woman, nonetheless—to win the Oval Office. But, to me, this is not about voting for Harris. This is about assuring that Trump will never again be in the proximity of the nuclear button.

My friend was exactly right. This isn’t about politics. The decision on which candidate you will vote for is a moral one, and it is decisively unambiguous. In many ways, it will speak volumes about your own sense of decency.

We have three months to look inside of ourselves and get this right. It needs to start now.

You can reach Nathan Graziano at ngrazio5@yahoo.com