I get it. You’re frustrated with all that has happened in the last several years. The culture wars haven’t been this tense in a long time, and you feel like you are on the losing side. I know you feel powerless and before you is one who doesn’t seem to care what anyone thinks about him or his words. He says what he wants. And he says what you wish you could say.
He's like a bully, but a bully for your side, and as he stands tall and says what he wants, you and all his other scrawny minions from coast to coast collectively shout, “Yeah, you tell them Trump!” He is your champion, your mouthpiece, the vent for your pent up frustration. But he is not your president, and you know that.
Presidents are more than a man with a megaphone saying whatever he wants because he has nothing to lose. They are ones that exhibit as much restraint as opportunism. What we have forgotten is that Trump can say what he wants because his words cost him nothing. Not only does Trump have nothing to lose for his loose tongue, he is in fact gaining like never before.
Trump is a master of marketing. He knows how to use the media. In the media, the more outlandish you are the more coverage you get because you are more entertaining. The campaign is a bit like a social media experience for him: say what you want and get as many likes as you can because there aren’t going to be any real consequences. Insult who you like for there is no fear of the fist to stop you, so to speak.
Presidents, though, have much to lose, and we along with them. So if you think he will continue or should continue to behave the way he is if elected, you’re a fool living in a fantasy. And you will awake to either suffer the consequences of a loud mouthed foolish man or know what it is like to be exploited by one that says whatever you want to hear so that you give him what he wants: power.
Our country does not need to be entertained; it needs to be restored. Do you think Trump is the one to do that? Do you think he will build bridges or burn them and those trying to cross. And maybe that is what you want. Maybe you are so angry that you want the other side to suffer. You are tired of being mocked, and you are ready for your turn.
But please. Will you not show more restraint and grace that the one who is leading in the polls? Will you not look to a candidate that has experience in seeking the common good, not just his own? You’ve had your fun. You’ve gotten to feel vindicated a bit. And that can remain if Trump's beliefs don’t fade along with his chance at the White House. He can remain your mouthpiece. But we both know he cannot be our President.
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Michael C. Sherrard is a pastor, the director of Ratio Christi College Prep, and the author of Relational Apologetics. Booking info and such can be found at michaelcsherrard.com.