It's very easy for me to loath Trump. From the day he announced, and then denounced Mexicans, I thought I recognized a demagogue. Almost nothing he has said or done has eased my concerns. But my father taught me early on to always remember, when judging others, that "there but for the grace of God goes I". So, loathing his character issues, and the quote I left earlier regarding the fact that he never appeals to the better angels in his fellow citizens, but only the baser instincts, summarizes those issues succinctly, is not enough to translate loathing what he represents into outright hatred of the man as a human being.
Further, am I to assume, that if I find Woodward and his book's interpretation to be an accurate portrait of concern among his subordinates, that I am therefore "deranged", or afflicted with "insanity"? Why is a deep concern for the democratic institutions of my country a form of hatred and insanity? Why is it not instead the concern of someone who is familiar with his nation's' history, on the one hand, and worry and concern of what happens when a demagogue assumes power in a nation on the other hand?
And what exactly is a middle ground where Trump is concerned?
If we look back at our history, we can find some corrupt administrations. History judges them to be so. Yet, at the time, there were no doubt members of the party in question who supported a corrupt administration simply because it was controlled by their party. And there would have been citizens who supported that administration, for any number of reasons. It represented their party, they did not believe the corruption allegations, they supported its policies otherwise, etc. Others would have seen right through the charade and opposed said president, or even opposed them simply for tribal reasons.
So now, at this time in America's history, I don't know how I approach Trump other then loathing the character defects that has led to no effort on his part to inspire our higher angels, as well as opposition to his treatment of minorities, his treatment of "others", of scapegoats that every demagogue uses to channel fear and anger. I don't know how I find a middle ground that does not involve hoping for this man's removal from office. And I don't find it insane to see Woodward's book as a baseline to understanding the interior workings of his administration. I believe Woodward, I do not believe Trump. That does not make me insane.
Rather then hate the man outright, or froth with insanity, I can very easily see him as a tragic figure. He seems extraordinarily insecure. He seems narcissistic to a dangerous degree. But he is a human being. I can see all this as the story of a tragic figure. It goes right back to that core lesson my father taught me when judging others. That does not mean I can just look the other way. But it does mean that seeing him as a tragic human makes it difficult to hate him, much easier to pity him. And it does not mean then I am insane for being concerned with the fate of our democratic institutions. His inclination is to make the Dept of Justice beholden to him, not the protection of our constitution. That makes him dangerous in my estimation.
But, that's how I approach this moment in our history. I can't speak for anyone other then myself. I do know that the concerns I have felt from the start, seemingly confirmed by Trump's words, actions, and the portrait emerging from Woodward's book were not predicated by first deciding I hated Trump, and then I went out to find reasons to justify my hatred. We've had bad administrations in our history. This is another such administration, from what I can see. Labeling people opposed to Trump as "deranged" seems like an impossible path to a hypothetical middle ground.
