We shouldn’t have ever gone into Iraq and we shouldn’t there now. It’s just a mess. We’ve spent hundreds of millions that could have been used on infrastructure and schools. Donald Trump on the Iraq war

I have written alot on defending people who are Trump supporters and, by inference, defending Trump. I don’t have too much of a problem with most of what Trump says he will do when if he is elected President, but I do have a big problem with his character and his judgement. Most of the positions he is criticized for are really no worse than, say, Jeb! and he is way better than Cruz – who now seems to be the Republican Establishment candidate of choice – on almost everything (I know, I know, those are pretty low bars). Yes, he is way, way, overboard on immigration but immigration is a real problem that nobody on the Republican side seems to be willing to address in any meaningful and feasible way and the alleged moderate, John Kasich, is just about as bad telling the Feds he doesn’t want any Syrians in his state.

The problem with Trump isn’t his positions or lack of detailed plans, it is his tolerance, even promotion, of violence as a legitimate response to something he doesn’t like. It is his intolerance of dissent. Years ago, I took a backpacking medicine course, and the most important thing I remember was “When something happens, spread calm.” Trump is the opposite, he promotes upset. He promotes thuggery and discord. At his rallies, when trouble arises, he escalates the situation. When a fifteen year girl gets pepper sprayed, or a guy being escorted out of a rally gets coldcocked, he celebrates it. When he doesn’t like what a person does, he belittles them. It is effective as a campaign tactic but I suspect it would be much less effective when trying to build alliances.

Trump is a businessman, how good, I don’t really know although I am pretty sure he is better than average. However, being successful at business does not translate into being successful at governing. Warren Harding and Herbert Hoover were both very successful in business but were unsuccessful as Presidents. Harry Truman, who is on everybody’s short list of successful Presidents, went into politics because he went bankrupt in business. As a businessman, when a deal goes sour or becomes too difficult, Trump could walk away or declare bankruptcy, that is not an option when running the country and certainly promoting violence isn’t.