If there is an overarching theme to the Democratic convention it might be that America is alive and well and moving forward, contrary to the Republican's dystopian vision for the country. In a word, optimism.And if there is a word to distinguish the Democrats' candidate from her opponent after this convention, it might simply be: sane. DNC speakers have called Trump clueless and reckless, and some have implied that he is actually insane, including Michael Bloomberg who called Clinton "sane and competent" in contrast. Bloomberg also derided Trump for being a "con man" and a "dangerous demagogue" Wednesday night.Demagogue is a word that has often been used to describe Trump, and it's apt. I question what else is going on here. At the very least, we have always known that Trump suffers from a deep-seated inferiority complex. We know that he is a narcissist extraordinaire. We know that he can be hateful.But we have moved beyond the realms of misogyny, racism, and conceit - although these traits are still alive and kicking in the Republican presidential candidate - to something decidedly more menacing. Trump himself has presented us with a different level of evidence that his state of mind is a threat to our national security, to our democracy."Russia, if you're listening, I hope you're able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing. I think you will probably be rewarded mightily by our press," Trump said during a Florida news conference in reference to Hillary Clinton's emails.The Republican candidate for president called on Russia to commit espionage against the Democratic candidate for president. That is a first for our country, and a new low for Trump. (Never mind his remarks about NATO.) And it should be a clear signal to every American that this man is not fit to be president.As former CIA Director Leon Panetta said Wednesday, "This is beyond the pale."Do his statements about Russia and Putin, and Saddam Hussein, add up to mental illness' No. They do, however, implicate him as a man who would abuse his power and try to rewrite the rules of our democracy. And they tell us, once again, that he has no knowledge of foreign affairs.Taken in tandem with all the other comments and tweets and behaviors exhibited during this election cycle and throughout his years in business, they do add up to something quite disturbing. I'll leave the diagnosis to the psychologists.But no matter how high the evidence pile, there's still the problem of the nearly fifty percent of voters who, in recent polls, support him. All those people who think he's the greatest thing since the iphone. Or the Bernie-or-busters who are willing to let the country go down the toilet before they'll vote for Hillary. That, in a word, is spite.We've heard all kinds of analysis. But none of it really explains how so many people could support Trump after all the prejudiced, ill-informed and even treasonous sentences that have come out of his mouth. It almost makes me wonder if Putin has orchestrated some kind of secret mass lobotomy in this country.But seriously, there doesn't seem to be anything - not the countless outrageous Trump actions or words, nor the negative investigative pieces about Trump's businesses, nor testimony of people who were screwed over by him - that will change people's minds. I don't think President Obama's gorgeous speech will do it. Joe Biden's impassioned address won't do it. I have to hope that Bloomberg's words would make a few independents think twice, but I don't know.And now his Republican cronies have given up. They barely bother to rebuke him anymore. Paul Ryan used to seem rational in comparison to Trump. But he's been much too quiet of late. They all have. And their complacency and complicity is the first step to what Obama warned us about Wednesday night, the kind of president Trump aspires to be."[Americans] don't look to be ruled," the President said. I've got to think Republicans would agree with Obama on that one. But if we work off the evidence available to us, we can't say with confidence that's true.I think Trump is correct that he wouldn't lose his support if he stood in the middle of New York's Fifth Avenue and shot someone. I don't think he would lose support if he banned all media outlets from his events, except Fox of course. Just listening to the TV pundits like Jeffrey Lord defending Trump Wednesday after the latest news conference fiasco was astonishing.The Republicans and the Bernie-or-busters hate Hillary so much that they are willing to throw our country on the sword rather than see her elected. Do they really hate what she stands for' Or do they hate her because she is a woman' Seeing the Bernie supporters leave in protest I couldn't help but notice that the majority were men - white men.After listening to all the eloquent and moving speeches over the last three days, and all the testimony about Clinton's good work for 40 years, and the stories of Republicans who liked working with her as senator, and her lifelong commitment to children and families, all I can surmise is that the Republicans and the Bernie-or-busters have a lot in common: they are toddlers having tantrums. And when children are in the middle of a fit, they can't see straight. They can't think straight. They aren't rational. Because if they were rational, Republicans would follow John Kasich's example and reject their irrational candidate. And the Bernie-or-busters would wake up to the nightmare that will befall us if they stay home or vote Jill Stein or Gary Johnson. They would vote for sanity.Hillary summed up the danger of a Trump presidency best Thursday night in a line that will have legs in this campaign. "A man you can bait with a tweet is not a man you can trust with nuclear weapons."In his speech, Bloomberg said that Trump wants to run the country as he runs his businesses. "God help us," he said.I'm not religious, but God help us indeed, if this man wins the White House. -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
Click here to read full news..
