What Real Strength Looks Like

 

This moment from @BarackObama 🔥 pic.twitter.com/UbKo7g0sif

— Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) October 11, 2024

Former President Barack Obama gave a hell of a speech campaigning in Pennsylvania for Harris/Walz and Senator Bob Casey today. and there were some things that really struck me. For one thing, he did address that Trump's pretend wonderful economy was the one that Obama and Biden rescued from the collapse in 2008. 

 How would we say it? Oh, right. Trump didn't build that. He didn't build the wall, he didn't end "American Carnage" and his fumbling foreign policy he gave to "read 25 whole books" son-in-law Jared Kushner obviously didn't hold. And he certainly can't be considered some economic stable genius when he gave us double digit unemployment and deliberately made the stock market about himself. 

This man Tweeted to manipulate the market. I swear I am not making this up. That's crazypants, but it's some shit he did. He has also used his "bully pulpit" to try and antagonize corporations--especially media corporations, that have disagreed with him. 

You know, like his beef with CBS over his weird paranoic ideas about the 60 Minutes interview with VP Harris.. 

But more than Trump's basic and obvious incompetence, which his followers refuse to see, is his entire lack of character, which should be obvious to them, and they dismiss. In my mind, part of the dismissal of Trump's badness comes from the phrase "Orange Man Bad." It's dismissive of everything. You hate Trump because he wears bronzer and is a jerk, therefore, I don't care whether um--

He really is actually bad?  Because that is just stupid. It should matter to you whether the guy is basically competent (increasingly questionable every day) or has ever given a good goddamn for anyone but himself. Where, literally, WHERE! do you see him doing this? Where is his much-vaunted competence? Where is his supposed heaven-sent genius rescuing anyone's ass? 

One of my major questions for Trump supporters is how the hell did this whining silver spoon failson become your masculine support animal?

We're airing Daisy in Pennsylvania starting today, an ad every father should see.pic.twitter.com/iJIPc4YQWH

— The Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln) October 10, 2024

Trump, the sexual assault perpetrator, the serial adulterer, the man who established the court that took away women's freedoms--is supposed to be anyone's idea of masculinity? This guy?

Better men than him exist all over. I don't hate Trump because he's male, I hate him because he 's the worst kind. 

And yes, this is the Trump dancing gif again--this is the damn fool Trump fans think anyone in any country anywhere is supposed to respect when he is a performing fucking clown. Who poses with thumbs up at a memorial service and asks if someone wants him to sign a prayer book. Who sells bibles at a heavy mark-up that were printed in China. Who maybe took $10 million from Egypt and paid more in taxes to China lately than to the US. Who is somehow indebted to Russia. Don't ask me how, just follow whose ass he's always sniffing. 

Real strength is when you care enough to get down and work for people instead of standing back and lying your ass off. Real strength is being there to face criticism but nonetheless, do your whole job with your whole heart because you know how it counts. 

It means not lying to people in their time of need, whether it's a hurricane or Covid, just to make yourself look good. It's owning up to the bad and the good of your job, because leadership is ownership. And Trump can't own his failures. And wants to stick his flag in every success. 

Real strength is the strength not to lie because it's easy, not to blame others because you can't handle the truth. Not to scapegoat immigrants or minorities because riling up hate is easier than inspiring people to listen to their better angels. Real strength means appreciating the strength in others, forming good alliances not based on mere transactionalism, understanding what has been and what better things could be, without having to make yourself the main character everyday all the time. 

I loved hearing from Obama because this man has the concept of thoughtfulness and humility in regard to his leadership. He wasn't perfect and no human man can be, but in the midst of a wildly positive narrative, he understood it wasn't always all about himself. He shared his successes with those around him and I am sure feels the failures. This is what you want. 

I think Kamala Harris, like Obama, like Biden, feels that weight of the responsibility of leadership and has the strength to bear it. 

When I look at Trump I don't see any strength at all. Just a failing mind supported by yes men and parasites, full of sound and fury and wind.