Opinion: The colossus of America

Around the year 280 BC. C., an immense statue, the Colossus of Rhodes, was erected next to the entrance to the port of the Greek island of Rhodes. The ancients called it one of the Seven Wonders of the World. The statue itself is believed to have been about two-thirds the size of the Statue of Liberty.

Considering the times and technology, the Colossus was an impressive achievement, as it served the same function as the Statue of Liberty for New York Harbor. In medieval times, many thought it was so impressive that it actually stood astride the entrance to the harbour. Although that would have been beyond the capabilities of the ancients, that sentiment captured the incredible impressiveness of the monument.

As we approach Election Day in the United States, we face an American colossus who, in his own way, is as impressive as that ancient statue: Donald J. Trump. Love him or hate him, Trump has invaded the American political harbor since he came down the escalator in 2015. No politician has dominated the stage like Trump has since Franklin D. Roosevelt. Like FDR, Trump arrived at a time when there is great turmoil, unrest and division in the nation, although for very different reasons than in the 1930s. If I may expand the metaphor, hard times provide the pedestal on which to erect great statues.

Compared to Trump’s political stature, the numerous candidates who have run against him are dwarfed. Vice President Kamala Harris is clearly no exception. So far, every endorsement he has received has consisted not of praise for his abilities and achievements, but of the darkest and most fearsome condemnations of his opponent. The same could be said of the endorsements of Bill Clinton and Joe Biden. Every insult known to the political man, and perhaps some invented for the occasion, has been hurled at DJT. Liar! Fascist! Racist! Sexist! Morally corrupt! Would-be dictator! And most revealing of all: dangerous!

At least his critics got the last bit right: Trump is really dangerous. But dangerous for whom? To people who want peace in the world and prosperity at home? Obviously not. The people who would prefer to be left alone to live their lives and keep more of what they earn? No. To people who want to live amicably with their neighbors without being divided by race and class? Again, obviously not. To the people who celebrate the spirit and achievements of America, despite its inevitable flaws? Hardly!

Who rightly fears a President Trump? Everyone knows the obvious answer: those who support, benefit from, and direct the administrative state to promote its vision of a more perfect society: the “elites” who populate government bureaucracies at all levels, who run ninety percent of education from kindergarten to kindergarten. graduate school, who have mastered entertainment and communication, and who are making great inroads into the executive suites and boardrooms of corporate America. Overwhelmingly, these people are high-income people, have graduate degrees, and morally believe they know what’s best for you and me: the bitter, gun-and-Bible-clutching, basket-of-deplorables, those poor ignorant souls. that they have to be told what to do for their own good, the JD Vances of the world who never escaped the peasant world.

These people live within a few zip codes. They live inside self-reinforcing, self-congratulatory bubbles, and a President Trump represents an extremely sharp needle. That is why they have used every means at their disposal, breaking every historical norm of political speech and behavior, right or wrong, to bring down this colossus. (Polls indicate that two-thirds of politically active elites believe that electoral fraud is perfectly acceptable to defeat an odious opponent.)

As a thought experiment, this year’s election should have been conducted in a completely different (and certainly impossible) way. Last summer we should have had a preliminary election, with only Trump on the ballot. Yes or no. If yes, then DJT is our 47th president. If not, then Democrats, Republicans and anyone else could have nominated all those supposedly superior candidates by November 5th.

Come to think of it, that’s what this November 5th represents. Trump’s name is the only one that matters.

— Charles Milliken is professor emeritus after 22 years of teaching economics and related subjects at Siena Heights University. He can be contacted at [email protected].

This article originally appeared in The Monroe News: Opinion: The colossus of America