The bully pulpit of Donald Trump

I’m more confused than ever. The recent Indiana Republican presidential primary gives me great hope, but it is coupled with overwhelming gloom at the same time. Nikki Haley who dropped out of the presidential race in March and did not campaign in the state, drew 21% of the vote. About 130,000 Republicans chose her, no longer a candidate, and not Donald Trump. If those votes reflect “never Trump” votes, he will have a tough time beating Joe Biden in some other states in the general.

But, even if I were confident that my Democratic candidate would win, I worry about my country where a majority of the Republican Party still supports Trump. A candidate, even short of election, defines the political dialogue as Trump has through his recent years out of office.

Donald Trump has a pulpit of sorts. Not all pulpits are created equal. Anybody can talk (or write a column) in a democracy. There are no royal edicts, and no one must listen, but Theodore Roosevelt, to cite a good Republican president, knew the Oval Office was special; that a president has a “bully pulpit” that provides an opportunity to speak out and be heard, a terrific platform from which to advocate an agenda. Words can inspire and it doesn’t take a king or queen to make it so.

Franklin Roosevelt said, “We have nothing to fear, but fear itself.” John Kennedy spoke of The New Frontier. Lyndon Johnson, The Great Society. And even Richard Nixon invoked “Law and Order” as an attractive description of his work and goals.

Donald Trump has grasped the pulpit in his distinctive way. At a gathering of big donors, he described Special Counsel Jack Smith as “a “f**king deranged a**hole.” That the money bags cheered is not surprising. Buying influence with Trump takes more than money; genuflection and cheers are part of an unsavory package.

I’m told, but cannot verify, that Trump’s words are not often used in the less bully pulpits of evangelical preachers who support him. I think parishioners using the term in church are asked to leave the service if not the congregation.

I have tried to understand Donald Trump’s appeal to otherwise reasonable people. He sells Bibles and blasphemes. Show him a commandment and he breaks it. Ask him his favorite verse from his favorite book, he demurs.

Donald Trump is a creature out of control and yet most Republican voters support him. How can that be? Sen. Chuck Grassley is conservative, but he is not immoral, loony, or deluded. At least I don’t think so.

He should have the courage and integrity to speak out, joining with those 130,00 Republicans who in Indiana said no to Trump. Staying silent for fear of offending voters is selling your soul, as it says in Trump’s favorite book, for a mess of pottage.

Sen. Grassley is better than that. I didn’t vote for him when I could have. I have rarely agreed with his approach to government, but he is a decent person and serious about his duties as Senator. While it is not true that he was there when the Declaration of Independence was signed, his patriotism is not to be questioned. His political courage can be.

Norman Sherman of Coralville has worked extensively in politics, including as Vice President Hubert Humphrey’s press secretary.