How Can Anyone Support This President After He Sprays His Own Citizens With Tear Gas...For A Photo Op?

Republicans must reconcile with the fact that they are supporting a dangerous man to lead our nation — or better yet, end their support for him altogether.

Dear Republicans, conservative friends, and relatives, thinking about voting for Donald Trump this year:

I do not understand.

When the president of the United States has citizens tear-gassed or hit with rubber bullets,

When the president takes religious leaders, who are engaged in non-violent protest on the property of their own church, and physically removed from that location,

When he does these things just so he can hold up a Bible for a photo op,

How do you support that? How do you support any of that?

This is not family values. This is not strong leadership. This is not a man adhering to the tenets of our nation's founders.

This is not anything you allegedly stand for.

So why do you? Stand up against these actions. Decry them. DEFY him. Do not continue to support a man who is threatening to use the United States military to "dominate" United States citizens.

I'm not asking you to like protests or demonstrations right now, though I wish you'd at least try to understand them. From your conservative perspective, I'm sure you're upset or confused over why they're happening.

But what should have you equally outraged are the actions of this man, our current commander-in-chief, using his presidential powers to use tear gas on his own constituents, so that he can walk a mere 500 feet, unimpeded from non-violent protesters, to hold up a Bible and to take a picture of himself doing so.

What should have you equally angered are the many ways in which Black Americans and other people of color are discriminated against every day, how centuries of oppression and systemic racism have caused harm and in some cases unjust deaths, before and during these protests.

America is supposed to be better than this. I do not doubt your love for your country.

But supporting a man like Donald Trump for another term in office is not a show of love — it's an endorsement of his selfishness, his narcissism, his violent rhetoric, and his hatred toward millions of your fellow citizens.

I do not believe you support those ideals. So do not support him any longer. Give him up like a bad habit — because Donald Trump is bad for your health, and bad for the health of this nation.

Featured image credit: The White House/Flickr

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