Donald Trump has predicted a “bloodbath” for the country if he is not elected later this year. His supporters tried to soften his message by saying he only meant the country would be in trouble without him in charge, and we should not take “bloodbath” literally. But they also claimed his January 6 directive to “fight like hell” was not to be taken literally, and look how that turned out.

It’s no secret that Trump admires the world’s authoritarian leaders, such as Russia’s Putin, Hungary’s Orbán, North Korea’s Kim Jong-Un, Turkey’s Erdogan, and China’s Xi Jinping, and has spoken longingly of their ability to easily silence their political opponents. While he praises and envies them, he refers to his own political opponents as “vermin.”

He has never publicly expressed admiration for Adolph Hitler (as far as we know), although General John Kelly has reported that he once said to him, “Hitler did a lot of good things.” He does, however, publicly make use of Hitler’s language, disparaging immigrants by calling them “animals.” His infamous line that “They’re poisoning the blood of our country” is right out of Mein Kampf.

Although he has promised to act like a dictator “only on day one,” his pro-dictator behavior suggests he is unlikely to keep that promise. If we want to retain our democracy and our decency, we need to stand up and say, “Enough is enough!”

ROSS ADAMS

Boalsburg

Submitted by Virtual Newsroom