Published by the New York Times Editorial Board, much condensed by me for brevity. I most sincerely implore, especially, my Republican friends to ponder this with the seriousness our future demands:
It is hard to imagine a candidate more unworthy than Trump. He has proved himself morally unfit for an office that asks its occupant to put the good of the nation above self-interest. That requires the very qualities — wisdom, honesty, empathy, courage, restraint, humility, discipline — that he most lacks. Compounded by everything else that limits his ability to fulfill the duties of the president: his
many criminal charges, his advancing age, his fundamental lack of interest in policy and his increasingly bizarre cast of associates.
So regardless of any political disagreements voters might have with her, Kamala Harris is the only patriotic choice. Against a man who has revealed, unmistakably, that he will degrade the values, defy the norms and dismantle the institutions that have made our country strong.
As a dedicated public servant who has demonstrated care, competence and an unwavering commitment to the Constitution, Ms. Harris stands alone in this race. She may not be the perfect candidate for every voter, especially those frustrated and angry about our government’s failures to fix what’s broken — from our immigration system to public schools to housing costs to gun violence. Yet contrast Ms. Harris’s record with her opponent’s.
It is hard to imagine a candidate more unworthy than Trump. He has proved himself morally unfit for an office that asks its occupant to put the good of the nation above self-interest. That requires the very qualities — wisdom, honesty, empathy, courage, restraint, humility, discipline — that he most lacks. Compounded by everything else that limits his ability to fulfill the duties of the president: his many criminal charges, his advancing age, his fundamental lack of interest in policy and his increasingly bizarre cast of associates.
There is also an optimistic case for elevating her, rooted in her policies and borne out by her experience as vice president, a senator and a state attorney general. Ms. Harris has offered a shared future for all citizens, beyond hate and division. With thoughtful plans to help American families better afford the things they need, make it easier to own a home, support small businesses and help workers.
Globally, Ms. Harris would work to maintain and strengthen the alliances that have long advanced American interests abroad and maintained the nation’s security. Trump — who has long praised autocrats like Vladimir Putin, Viktor Orban and Kim Jong-un — has threatened to blow those democratic alliances apart.
Ms. Harris recognizes the need for global solutions to the global problem of climate change. Trump rejects the accepted science.
He continues to demonize and dehumanize immigrants, while Ms. Harris at least offers hope for a compromise, long denied by Congress, to secure the borders and return the nation to a sane immigration system.
He has promised to be unrestrained by checks on power built into the American political system. His pledge to be “a dictator” on “Day 1” might have indeed been a joke — but his undisguised fondness for dictatorships is anything but.
Most notably, he systematically undermined public confidence in the result of the 2020 election and then attempted to overturn it — that culminated in an insurrection to obstruct the peaceful transfer of power and resulted in him and some of his most prominent supporters charged with crimes. He has not committed to honoring the result of this election and continues to insist that he won in 2020. He has apparently made a willingness to support his lies a litmus test for those in his orbit.
His disdain for the rule of law goes beyond his efforts to obtain power; it is also central to how he plans to use it. He vows, for instance, to turn the federal bureaucracy and even the Justice Department into weapons of his will to hurt his political enemies. In at least 10 instances during his presidency, he did exactly that.
Some of the people Trump appointed in his last term saved America from his most dangerous impulses. They refused to break laws on his behalf. As a result, he intends, if re-elected, to surround himself with people who are unwilling to defy his demands. Trump will do profound and lasting harm to our democracy.
That is a judgment of his presidency from the very people he appointed to serve in the most important positions, who worked for him and saw him at close range. Mike Pence, Trump’s vice president, has repudiated him. “I believe that anyone who puts themselves over the Constitution should never be president of the United States,” Mr. Pence has said. Trump’s attorney general has raised similar concerns. And his chief of staff. And his defense secretary. And his national security advisers. And his education secretary. And on and on — a record of denunciation without precedent in history.
Even when Trump’s overall aim may have had merit, his operational incompetence, mercurial temperament and outright recklessness often led to bad outcomes. Trump’s tariffs cost Americans billions of dollars. His handling of the Covid crisis contributed to historic declines in confidence in public health, and loss of many lives. His immigration policies, such as family separation, were inhumane and often ineffective. His tax plan added $2 trillion to the national debt. His withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal destabilized the Middle East. His support for antidemocratic strongmen like Mr. Putin emboldened human rights abusers all over the world. He instigated the longest government shutdown ever. He expanded the influence of domestic right-wing extremist groups.
Trump was convicted on felony charges of falsifying business records, was found liable in court for sexual abuse, and faces other criminal cases. He has continued to stoke chaos and encourage violence and lawlessness, most recently promoting vicious lies against Haitian immigrants. He recognizes that ordinary people — voters, jurors, journalists, election officials, law enforcement officers and many others who are willing to do their duty as citizens and public servants — have the power to hold him to account, so he tries to undermine them and sow distrust in anyone or any institution that might stand in his way.
The Republicans who support Ms. Harris recognize that this election is about something more fundamental than narrow partisan interest. It is about principles that go beyond party.
Kamala Harris is the only choice.
