In ‘Is Trump Really That Bad? The Grim Reality of Harris-Walz in Office’, TNH August 17, 2024, Constantinos E. Scaros futilely and unconvincingly argues:

“Are you going to let your hatred of Mr. X deter you from doing the logical thing and supporting his taking over the ship’s wheel? Are you really going to let some amateur steer the ship instead, putting all your lives at risk, just to keep Mr. X from basking in the spotlight and getting the credit?” “Donald Trump is Mr. X, and the amateur in question is Kamala Harris.”

In the outset, we must expose the fallacy here: if that’s the argument, then Trump, with no political experience whatsoever (not even as a local councilperson), was unqualified and too risky to have been voted president in the first instance, according to Dr. Scaros’ exemplum.

Kamala Harris, a former prosecutor and District Attorney, was a U.S. Senator, who served on prestigious committees, and is the Vice President, being the most active President of the Senate in tie-breaking votes. She is well qualified and experienced – no amateur to the contraire.

Without an appealing or persuasive Trump record upon which to braggingly argue, Dr. Scaros deflects and engages in partisan wishful (and fear-mongering) speculation (a la Trump) with a “[s]ampling of what a Harris-Walz administration will look like:” on borders, crime, wokeness, foreign policy, and the economy. That’s no reality.

Let’s look at reality: the facts, irrespective of political opinion or ideology.

Trump talks a good game but didn’t do a good job as president. Here are a few representative substandard facts of the Trump presidency, from FactCheck.org, a nonpartisan, nonprofit, consumer advocate organization:

• The economy lost 2.7 million jobs. The unemployment rate increased by 1.7 percentage points to 6.4%.
• The international trade deficit Trump promised to reduce went up. The U.S. trade deficit in goods and services in 2020 was the highest since 2008 and increased 36.3% from 2016.
• The number of people lacking health insurance rose by 3 million.
• The federal debt held by the public went up, from $14.4 trillion to $21.6 trillion.
• Illegal immigration increased.
• Handgun production rose 12.5% last year compared with 2016, setting a new record.
• The murder rate rose to the highest level since 1997.

Dr. Scaros may be unperturbed by the unglamorous Trump record and Trumpers may suffer from opacity of mental clarity in reality reasoning, but, as the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan indelibly said: “You are entitled to your opinion. But you are not entitled to your own facts.”

It’s a flawed premise from which to argue that having been president in and of itself makes Trump soundly experienced, knowledgeable, and of good judgment. Here, it reassures the same old thing – or even worse, as a vengeful and egocentric Trump will wreak havoc upon our democratic institutions and retaliate against his political nemeses. Trump steered the national welfare down inimical avenues and shipwrecked our nation on January 6th.

Trump, erratic and impulsive, was an oblivious and unschooled president on the intricacies and ramifications of policy and prudent decision-making. But he did spend a lot of time playing golf (and he cheats at that too).

Now, let’s look at Trump’s ranting and acerbic promises. Trump hoodwinked his voters; he broke most of his promises.

Trump in 2016 made a couple of hundred campaign promises, and in his announcement speech for his 2024 presidential bid Trump (a convicted felon with a multitude of state and federal indictments pending) made at least 20 false and misleading claims, according to CNN.

The overwhelming majority of Trump’s promises were broken, and a second term will not fare better. If one fails to heed its lessons, history tends to repeat itself.

The broken promises range from the Mexican-U.S. wall to COVID vaccines, to the debt, to the trade deficit, to GDP growth, to manufacturing, to jobs, to medical pre-existing conditions, to coal fuel and mining, to guns, to draining the swamp, to lobbying, etc.

There are sufficient and varied reliable sources (from liberal to conservative) one may reference for specific meritless claims or promises made and broken by Trump.

A narrative top 40 list of broken Trump promises is presented by the renowned Robert Reich, a distinguished university professor, author, former member of the President’s National Economic Council and U.S. Labor Secretary, in ‘The American Prospect’ in 2020.

Funnily, Trump criticized President Obama for flying to Hawaii to play golf, when Trump broke the record for golf visits during his presidency. This hypocrisy is also comically cynical because Trump promised that he would not have time to play golf if elected president.

A stupefying broken promise, that’s forgotten from many accounts, is that Trump promised to self-fund his campaign. Not only did the exaggerated billionaire take so much of other people’s money but he also duped folks to pay for his super-expensive teams of lawyers. Trump does not put his money where his mouth is.

Trump breached his covenants (Trump proclaimed a Contract with the American Voter) with the American people who voted for him and Trump failed to deliver especially when graded against his (inchoate) solutions and (appeasing) promises. Instead, his vitriolic politics have been roiling the nation.

The plea to fellow Americans is let us heed what independent (and real billionaire) Michael Bloomberg said in his memorable 2016 DNC convention speech that’s so apt in 2024: “let’s elect a sane, competent person.”

The risk is if Mr. X should win.

Michael Manoussos is the founding and managing member of Michael Manoussos & Co PLLC, a New York law firm.