The Irrationality of Political Hate

Okay, you dislike President Donald Trump. I get that. But when “dislike” turns to hate and hate turns to irrationality, I really don’t get that. Sure there are a number of things about Mr. Trump upon which you can hang “dislike” but “hate?” That’s a bit too much. But even at that when hate turns to irrationality one must step over a line that usually results in injury to themselves and/or others. Destroying toys when you were a child in a fit of pique usually means that you have lost your toys and gained nothing. Likewise, smashing dishes or smashing a wall usually means that you have a significant bill for repairs and replacements and gained nothing. And now road rage usually results in injury to your automobile and/or injury to someone else (sometimes even death) or another vehicle and you gain nothing except repairs, fines and/or imprisonment. They all stem from irrational behavior but with markedly different results.

The same is true when you cast your ballot out of hate and irrationality. This is what you get:

1. Mr. Trump cut taxes, reduced regulation and supported the energy industry to reach energy independence. President Joe Biden shut down pipelines, withdrew federal lands from energy exploration, and reimposed most of the regulations from former President Barack Obama’s administration, resulting in the highest energy prices in forty years (yes, all the way back to former President Jimmy Carter) a shortage of domestic production followed by an outreach to some of the most repressive regimes in the world (Russia, Iran and Venezuela) for increased production. That is irrational.

2. Mr. Trump planned and implemented Operation Warp Speed to create and distribute a vaccine against the coronavirus (COVID-19) which proved decisive in reducing (but not eliminating) the spread of the virus. Mr. Biden bungled the distribution of the vaccine (including vaccinating political allies before those most as risk – seniors over sixty-five), allowed Anthony Fauci to run wild with unscientific mandates (masks, school closures, business closures, etc.) and provided mixed messages as to the transmissibility and virulence of the virus and its mutations. The economic impact on people and businesses and the societal impact on children is yet to be measured but all agree that it is substantial. That is irrational.

3. While Mr. Trump was planning and implementing Operation Warp Speed, the Democrats and their publicity arm in the mainstream media, were boosting former Governor Andrew Cuomo as the rational voice of the nation in dealing with the pandemic. In order to do that they had to ignore the fact that over 15,000 senior citizens died of Covid-19 as a direct result of Mr. Cuomo’s mandate to return those who tested positive for the virus to their nursing homes and graduated care facilities. That Mr. Cuomo kept demanding more and further aid (improvised hospitals, hospital ships, supplies, etc.) that he never used but which cost taxpayers millions of dollars. And to further ignore a growing list of corrupt and discriminatory actions taken by Mr. Cuomo. When the truth finally overcame the partisan media blitz, Mr. Cuomo proved to be more of a lying sleazeball than a hero. That is irrational.

4. By virtue of the tax cuts and reduction of regulations Mr. Trump enjoyed a period of prosperity at all levels of the population. Employment increased among African Americans, Hispanics, Asians and whites. Earned income increased among the same segments of the population. In essence, Mr. Trump took the government’s foot off of the air hose of American business that had restrained growth under Mr. Obama for eight years (including producing the longest recovery in history of an economic downturn – the Bush/Obama recession of 2008-10). Mr. Biden reimposed most of those impediments not because Mr. Trump’s actions weren’t producing positive results but simply because they were Mr. Trump’s actions. That is irrational.

5. Mr. Trump implemented a series of actions to reduce illegal immigration including beginning the construction of a wall along portions of the Mexican border, negotiating an agreement with Mexico to require asylum seekers to apply in Mexico rather than crossing illegally, and encouraged the Mexican government to stop the caravans of illegals at its southern border with Guatemala. Illegal immigration dropped dramatically. Mr. Biden stopped building the wall on the day he took office. Now hundreds of millions of dollars of construction supplies lie rusting in the Arizona and Texas sun and we continue to make payments to the contractors despite the fact that they are no longer constructing the wall. Mr. Biden reversed the policy relating to asylum seekers and threw open the doors to illegal immigration. The result has been over two million illegals last year alone with a projection of a greater number this year and in the years to come. Along with the increased illegal immigration has come an increase in illegal drugs (including fentanyl), human trafficking and of people identified as terrorists from all over the world. Not only has Mr. Biden taken no steps to reduce the illegal immigration but he is now going to remove the final tool by refusing to renew the Title 42 order that permitted removal of those who entered from a country where there is an active spread of any disease, including Covid-19. That is irrational.

6, Mr. Trump set a time schedule for withdrawal from Afghanistan including check points requiring a demonstration that the existing Afghan government and its military were prepared to defend the country against al Qaeda and the Taliban. Mr. Biden ignored the plan and ignored the advice and counsel of his military leaders and his intelligence services. He closed Bagram Air Force base, the most secure facility in Afghanistan, and removed a substantial body of our troops that could have provided protection. He then announced the withdrawal on a date certain and moved operations to the air base at Kandahar. Mr. Biden failed to inform our allies of the abrupt withdrawal and did not make provisions for the thousands of American citizens and Afghan citizens who assisted the United States. The result was chaos – all played out on national and international television. Sixteen United States service men and women were killed in an ambush because Mr. Biden turned over security to the rogue terrorists comprising the Taliban, There are still Americans in Afghanistan seeking an exit as well as literally thousands of Afghanis seeking asylum from the Taliban. The media attention to those we abandoned has waned and they are basically on their own with some assistance by volunteer organizations operating despite resistance from Mr. Biden’s state department. That is irrational.

7. President Joe Biden has been a politician in Washington, DC for fifty years. First as the United State Senator from Delaware, then Vice President under Mr. Obama. He has run for President at least three times suffering humiliating defeats in the primaries before being elected in 2020. Mr. Biden has no discernible accomplishments during that time except being re-elected and rising to be Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee- a feat that does not require skill, knowledge or anything other than longevity. A long the way he gained a reputation as a plagiarist and purveyor of falsehoods about his life and his accomplishments. The classic example is taken from an article in the Washington Post:

“Joe Biden painted a vivid scene for the 400 people packed into a college meeting hall. A four-star general had asked the then-vice president to travel to Konar province in Afghanistan, a dangerous foray into ‘godforsaken country’ to recognize the remarkable heroism of a Navy captain.

“Some told him it was too risky, but Biden said he brushed off their concerns.

“’We can lose a vice president,’ he said. ‘We can’t lose many more of these kids. Not a joke.’

“The Navy captain, Biden recalled Friday night, had rappelled down a 60-foot ravine under fire and retrieved the body of an American comrade, carrying him on his back. Now the general wanted Biden to pin a Silver Star on the American hero who, despite his bravery, felt like a failure.

“He said, ‘Sir, I don’t want the damn thing!’ Biden said, his jaw clenched and his voice rising to a shout.  ‘Do not pin it on me, Sir! Please, Sir. Do not do that! He died. He died!’”

The problem here, as it is in virtually all of his stories, is it never happened. He never went to Konar province as vice-president. The hero was not a Navy captain. Mr. Biden never attempted to award the medal. And the hero never refused the medal. It was just another instance in which Mr. Biden attempted to insert himself in the heroics of others to make himself appear to be something he is not – brave, noble, self-effacing, tenacious AND youthful. But Mr. Biden is as phony as his hair plugs, his capped teeth, his cosmetic surgery and his Potomac tan.

As for his real accomplishments in life we have former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates who famously said that Mr. Biden has been wrong on every major foreign policy issue for his entire life – including today.

All of this has been known for the entirety of Mr. Biden’s career and yet the mainstream media, the corporate social media, and the Democrat Party worked hard to suppress any discussion of this, preferring instead to lead with false stories created by Mr. Trump’s 2016 opponent Hillary Clinton with the active aid and assistance of Mr. Obama’s Justice Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, State Department and intelligence services.

But the ultimate irrationality was that you fell for it. Your hatred of Mr. Trump as a person so blinded you to reality that you elected Mr. Biden and now all of us are paying for it. There is no comfort in that all we have said about Mr. Biden’s lack of capability is coming true in waves and/or that his approval ratings have dropped to some of the lowest in history. Mr. Biden will be remembered as the worst president to ever occupy the office. The downside of this is that it is entirely possible that out of disgust we will make yet another decision on the next president – preferring him or her over Mr. Biden (or Kalamata Harris) without regard to his or her abilities.

America is not lost yet – not by a long shot. But if blind hate becomes the driver for electing public officials we will be gone overnight.