Success, failure and Donald J. Trump

I want to offer a short rebuttal to an argument that’s been making the rounds. Here’s an example, from President Barack Obama:

“We now are going to want to do everything we can to help you succeed because if you succeed, then the country succeeds,” Obama told Trump.

John Oliver deconstructed the argument on Sunday, saying it normalized Donald Trump.

Oliver is right, but doesn’t go far enough. When dealing with presidencies, it is important to recognize that success is relative and dependent upon how we define the term. There are a number of ways the nation can move forward, even grow economically or win on a battlefield, but not all of them should be deemed successful.

In the case of Trump, it is important to remember what he proposed on the campaign trail — deportations, bans on Muslims, attacks on the press, etc. If he follows through and makes even a portion of those things happen, he might be viewed as successful. We, as a nation, however, would have failed.

So, if success is deportation of 3 million, a border wall, overturning Roe v. Wade, expanded libel laws, a return of stop and frisk, preventing entrance of Muslim immigrants and refugees, then we cannot allow Trump to succeed. That is what people are protesting about. That is why we can’t sit back and see what he does. There is far too much at stake.

Author: hankkalet

Hank Kalet is a poet and freelance journalist. He is the economic needs reporter for NJ Spotlight, teaches journalism at Rutgers University and writing at Middlesex County College and Brookdale Community College. He writes a semi-monthly column for the Progressive Populist. He is a lifelong fan of the New York Mets and New York Knicks, drinks too much coffee and attends as many Bruce Springsteen concerts as his meager finances will allow. He lives in South Brunswick with his wife Annie. View all posts by hankkalet