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Mr. President, Democrats aren’t Violent or Evil

By Denny Freidenrich

Back in August, President Trump called Democrats violent people. Last week he characterized them as evil. Hasn’t he ever heard of the loyal opposition?

I am a 70-something father of three. I am also a lifelong Democrat. I’ve been called a lot of things over the years, but evil isn’t one of them. (Interestingly, a conservative fraternity brother of mine recently said several of my commentaries and letters were “violent.”)

To tell you the truth, I was stunned. After thinking about a response, I offered to sit with him and review all 1,200 pieces I’ve had published since 1972; unfortunately, he never took me up on my offer. So, like Trump, it’s easy to smear someone you disagree with but much harder to prove it when asked.

Not so when it comes to Trump supporters like entertainer Ted Nugent or conservative commentator Jamie Allman. These two are on record as publicly advocating shooting Democrats like rabid coyotes or sexually assaulting a Parkland shooting survivor with a “hot poker.”

The underlying subtext of their remarks is Democrats and student protesters are, like the media, enemies of the people. None of them deserves their Constitutional rights. As far as I am concerned, the people making these kinds of assertions are un-American, pure and simple. Having lived through the turmoil of the Vietnam War when I was an undergrad at USC, as well as helped manage numerous campaigns in Orange County, I know politics can be both contentious and combative; still, neither needs to lead to violence. Unless, of course, the President of the United States is a proponent of the kinds of heinous acts his supporters suggest.

Mr. Trump is good at calling the loyal opposition violent or evil, but he’s terrible at not calling out the likes of a Ted Nugent or Jamie Allman. Shame on the president.

Denny Freidenrich lives in Laguna Beach. He served as a congressional staff assistant on Capitol Hill in 1972. 

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