Why we can't afford another Trump administration | opinion

Yes, this is my lawn sign.  With all the Trump 2024 flags and signs dotting my neighborhood in York Township, I thought I needed to do something.  

Since this guy entered my orbit on June 16, 2015, coming down the golden escalator and announcing his candidacy for president, my world has been turned upside down.  I'll bet I'm not the only one who feels this way.  

I've never watched reality television shows.  I have never watched one minute of "The Apprentice," starring Donald J. Trump because I could never relate to Donald J. Trump in any way other than being born and raised in the same city.  He and I are from two different worlds.  I'll bet that's true for many of you also.  

When Trump is gone from the political scene, it will be one of the happiest days of my life, rivaling the days my children were born.  Why will I be so ecstatic?  Because right now, while Trump the demagogue leads a cult of millions whose minds have been hacked and hijacked, I'm fearful of what my country may soon become. 

Trump is a psychologist's dream/nightmare depending upon their perspective.  He has so many psychological disorders, I don't have enough space to list them all, but here is the most alarming:  'Narcissistic personality disorder:  Symptoms include an excessive need for admiration, disregard for others' feelings, an inability to handle any criticism, and a sense of entitlement.'  This disorder also includes the guy's pathological lying, which I believe, he often derives pleasure from and therefore, why it happens so often.

Do you really believe the country can handle a second term of Trump?  We barely survived the first when we had guardrails in the form of generals, chiefs of staff (for the most part), and White House counsels, who could thwart Trump's inane/insane desires.  This will not be true in a second term.  He will surround himself with loyalists and sycophants who will do what he says, when he says, on behalf of whatever orders he issues.  The recent Supreme Court decision regarding presidential immunity has all but given him carte blanche to do whatever he wants without consequence.  

Trump is a clear and present danger to the country and if independent voters are unable to see it, vote for him and he wins, the United States will discontinue being a democracy and will devolve into a dictatorship.  He's said as much and has the infrastructure needed ready to go.  (See Project 2025, the presidential transition project from hell.) 

I thought 2020 was the most important presidential election since 1860.  The upcoming election is the most consequential in American history!  I wish the Democrats had a younger candidate who didn't need to take a nap in the afternoon, but I would vote for Joe Biden if he was in a coma before I would vote for Trump.

Trump's base of support, and their fascist tendencies, want to control us by banning books, threatening the rights of the LGBTQ+ community, and waging a continuous war on woke.  Together with billionaires like Elon Musk, they combine for a formidable force, and I'm fearful. 

I don't want Russia to take over Ukraine.  I don't want the U.S. to withdraw from NATO.  I don't want a deregulated financial system which will lead to a short-term economic boon and then a financial crisis like in 2008.

I believe we need the Environmental Protection Agency.  I believe we need the Department of Education.  

I want a strict separation between church and state.  I want members of the LGBTQ+ to enjoy the same rights I have.  

I'm a pro-life Democrat which means I don't believe abortions should be performed unless there are extenuating circumstances;  however, I don't want the government to tell a woman what she can and can't do with her body.  

It is solely a Democratic administration that will ensure our freedoms remain intact and not a Republican one.  I'm sure I'm not telling you anything you don't already know.  

Independent voters need to wake up and see the damage another Trump administration will do to our nation.  Since the majority of the Supreme Court seems to have been compromised, the Constitution will not save us as it has previously, so it's up to them to elect someone who will ensure our freedoms remain intact.  Whether that Democrat is "'"Sleepy" Joe or not.

Lawrence Goldman lives in York Township.