I've been watching pundits losing their minds trying to parse Trump's second amendment comment today. It's deeply disturbing but It just doesn't matter. He's so far off the reservation as far as respectful political debate goes that this really shouldn't be a surprise. That he would pander to far right gun activists that are too lazy to check their facts on what HC has actually said about her second amendment policy shouldn't be a surprise either.
What still troubles me is the rigged election story he tells. If the US electoral system is broken (and I don't disagree) then it's been broken for many decades. That Trump would try to link these issues to Democratic corruption because things aren't going his way now, when this same system has elected Reagan, GHWB and GWB is hypocritical; flat out ridiculous actually. That rank and file Republicans are buying into this story is a great example of epic cognitive dissonance and groupthink.
Trump's rhetoric is the embodiment of white male entitlement. "If the system doesn't do what I want then it's broken" or "if the system elects a woman it's broken" or "the system that elected a black man must be broken". This is how 4 year olds view the world: "The game is only fun if I win". Instead of promoting the acceptance of living in a political system where you don't always get what you want he's fanning the flames of entitlement. He's crashing and burning but, in a fit of narcissistic selfishness, he wants to make sure he burns the whole house down as he goes. This is classic Trump, always doubling down only this time everyone loses.
Trump's entire campaign is a rejection of the constitutional republic the founding fathers were trying to build. It rejects diversity which is at the very heart of the US constitution. One doesn't need to explicitly protect freedom of speech unless one envisions debate and disagreement. That unpopular speech is protected tells US citizens that all viewpoints and perspectives are meant have the same standing in their society. It's the same for freedom of religion. One does not explicitly protect religion unless they expect differing and conflicting religions to coexist. It's the same message: all religions have the same standing under US law. We welcome all - learn to get along.
Trump's campaign and his followers seem to want something else. Something more free for them and less free for those they don't like. It's the most un-American thing I've ever seen and to watch such an extreme rejection of the constitution play out in mainstream politics is stunning.
He is damaging the US political process in possibly unrepairable ways. Win or lose, the political landscape will never be the same when this is over. He's right that changes are needed but burning it to the ground just because you're not getting what you want isn't a solution. It's a destructive tantrum with a heavy, heavy cost for everyone.
