To the editor,

Former President Donald Trump holds up the Holy Bible as though he is synonymous with it, then sells copies of it, but keeps acting like he’s never read it. How does the beatitude “Blessed are the pure in heart,” square with all his name calling? How does the eighth commandment, “You shall not bear false witness,” square with so many lies about 2020 election fraud (last week he admitted on three different occasions that he lost the last election “by a whisker”) that have only served to undermine public confidence in our elections while destroying reputations of poll workers and election officials in his own party? 

How does the parable of the good Samaritan square with coddling white supremacists and saying that immigrants are “poisoning the blood of our country?”

How does the seventh commandment, “You shall not steal,” square with a man who has a history of hundreds of accusations of not paying contractors and laborers for their work; an out of court settlement with African-Americans whom he and his father discriminated against withholding apartment rentals; a $750,000 fine for not reporting to the Federal Trade Commission large stock purchases in an attempt to take over two rival casinos; making misleading and fraudulent asset valuations to obtain favorable terms on loans, insurance coverage and tax deductions; paying $25 million in restitution for being convicted of defrauding over 5,000 students who attended the now defunct Trump University; and a court order to shut down the Trump Foundation after being found guilty of misappropriation of funds? 

How does the beatitude “Blessed are the peacemakers” square with not only encouraging rioters to march on the Capitol in Washington D.C. on January 6, 2021 (knowing many of them were armed because he was briefed on Secret Service intelligence) but also waiting more than two hours to call in the National Guard, nearly three hours before telling rioters to go home, and then nearly four years later calling the convicted rioters “hostages and patriots” even though four rioters and one officer died, four other officers committed suicide in the days following and another 140 officers were injured trying to defend the Capitol.  Jesus said, “…each tree is known by its own fruit.” (Luke 6:44)

So why should former President Trump be believed about anything? He now backs away from and tries to avoid talking about his former position on abortion; he blames Biden/Harris for inflation conveniently forgetting about supply chain problems during the pandemic, Russian and Arab nations’ cuts in oil production that drastically raised the price of oil at the beginning of the Russian war against Ukraine, the bird flu that forced many chicken farmers to slaughter their chickens (drastically raising the price of eggs),  and the recent price gouging practiced by fast food restaurants – while conveniently forgetting that U.S oil production is the highest it’s ever been and big oil has thousands upon thousands of unused oil drilling leases; there is absolutely no proof that immigrants coming across the Mexican border are receiving welfare benefits, Social Security or Medicare; former President Trump arm twisted Senate Republicans to oppose the immigration reform bill (largely written by Oklahoma Republican Sen. James Lankford) so that a legislative victory wouldn’t be given to President Biden and so former President Trump could keep campaigning on the issue; the amount of murders committed by immigrants is a drop in the bucket compared to the number of mass shootings and murders that occur because it is so easy for deranged kids and adults to get, use and enhance weapons of war, assemble guns without traceable serial numbers, and purchase armor piercing bullets; although they often point to solving the mental health problem in order to reduce mass shootings and murders, Republicans have done next to nothing to address the chronic shortage of beds in mental health facilities; and former President Trump actually signed the deal with the Taliban in Afghanistan roughly a year prior to the actual withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan that went so poorly.

Steven L. Carlson

Plum City