Susan Rice on Donald Trump

Susan Rice was Ambassador to the United Nations and later National Security Adviser to President Barack Obama.   In a recent op-ed article in the New York Times, entitled "When the president is a bigot, the poison spreads . . . around the world and embolden our adversaries," Dr. Rice was very critical of President Trump in the wake of the white supremacy controversy.   Here are some excerpts of what she wrote:

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"It’s hard to calculate the damage that President Trump’s overt racism and almost daily attacks on black and brown people are having on the fabric of our nation. With white supremacy bolstered from the Oval Office, hate crimes and domestic terrorism incidents are increasing, including, it appears, Saturday’s mass shooting in El Paso.

"At the same time, immigrants and native-born Americans live in constant fear of law enforcement officials emboldened to think they can act with impunity. Still, Mr. Trump revels in ripping off the fragile scab over the lingering sore that is our country’s historical racial divide, as if to ensure it never heals.

"The president’s appalling goal, quite simply, is to pit Americans against one another for crass political purposes as well as, it seems, to vent his unabashed personal prejudice. . . .

"Is there no floor to how low this president and complicit Republicans are prepared to go to divide America?

"Yet, the consequences of Mr. Trump’s raw racism are not contained within America’s shores. They ricochet around the world as far away as New Zealand, poison the international climate and undermine America’s ability to secure our global interests. . . .

"That allied leaders, whose countries’ partnership we prize because they share both our interests and our values, felt compelled to condemn the president’s racist comments marks a fresh nadir in global regard for America’s leadership. . . .

"In case anyone needs reminding: A majority of the world is populated by what we Americans call “people of color.” To fight terrorism or prevent the spread of pandemic disease, to stem weapons proliferation or organized criminal organizations, to address climate change or punish outlaw states, we need the willing cooperation of nations around the world. None of these transnational security challenges can be combated effectively by the United States alone.

"With the president increasingly alienating our allies and insulting potential partners as “shithole” countries, America is hardly well positioned to call upon the good will and cooperation of other states when next we need it most. . . .

"Most dangerously, President Trump is serving up to our adversaries an ever more divided and weakened America, one that is animated by suspicion, rived by hatred of the “other” and increasingly incapable of uniting in the face of external threats. Russia, above all, continues to exploit and exacerbate these divisions.

"During the 2016 presidential campaign, Russian trolls stoked American white nationalism while amplifying black anger about police brutality in an effort to suppress the African-American vote. . . .

"Our domestic fault lines remain our greatest national security vulnerability, and race is our oldest and deepest rift. When the president deliberately and repeatedly rubs salt in those wounds, while coddling the authoritarian opponents who exploit them, we must reluctantly ask ourselves: Is he playing on America’s team?"

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We are entering a new era where people like Susan Rice are joining former CIA Director John Brennan in being openly and brutally honest in criticizing the inadequacies of President Trump.

Oh, course, in my view, she is absolutely right in what she says.

Add to such criticism from some high-level, former government officials this bit of news:   A group, Republicans for the Rule of Law with Bill Kristol as one of its directors, is sponsoring a TV ad that will run during Morning Joe on MSNBC, as well as Fox's Fox and Friends.   The ad urges voters to call Mitch McConnell's office and demand that he hold a vote on the House-passed election security bills he has been blocking in the Senate.   The ad also includes a clip of Trump dismissing Russia as a threat to our voting system and saying that, if they offered dirt on his opponent in the future, yes, he would take it.

Ralph