It's About Freedom of Speech! (Well, and racism...)

Amazingly, Donald Trump (I now refuse to call him the President) has called out players in the NFL for "not respecting" America enough to stand for the Star-Spangled Banner.

But, yet, Trump misses (or ignores) the larger point that HE is showing disrespect to our Constitution (which Trump claims to have read and vowed to uphold) and the tenet of Freedom of Speech.

And, in doing so, Trump's racism rings o'er the land of the free.

Colin Kaepernick (7) and teammates

Trump's already danced around eliminating Freedom of Religion with his "Muslim bans." (Oh, that's right, they're not bans...). Now he's blatantly attacking those demonstrating their Freedom of Speech rights in peaceful protests that aim to call attention to the oppression of people of color in our country.

It's not about Kaepernick or the football players making millions who are kneeling that Trump has decried. As some of the players have said, it's about them speaking for those Americans who don't have a voice.

And by Trump vehemently expressing his disdain for these protestors, he is vehemently expressing his disdain for their cause. Just as with Charlottesville, instead of even acknowledging racism and its horrible effects, Trump is actually siding against people who are protesting racism.

Unbelievable.

Seriously unbelievable.

Regarding the presidency, and I can quote Trump here, "Get that son of a b---- off the field right now."

What a Real President Would do

Russiagate is obviously a real problem for the Trump team. Trump campaign/administration associates that have denied or forgotten meetings with Russian officials, the very credible intelligence pointing to Russia's involvement in our election, the possibility of Trump having undisclosed business dealings with Russia are all real problems and are all terribly frightening for our democracy, as well.

If Trump were an effective leader, with nothing to hide, and with the good of the country and the American people really in his sights, here's what a real president would do:

1) Release a list of all associate contacts with Russian officials or those within the Russian sphere of influence (i.e., Ukraine). Detail who met, where, and when they met, and what was discussed. If there is nothing to hide, that shouldn't be a tough thing to do. Remove the specter of doubt and nefarious activity.

2) Since he has (kind of) acknowledged Russia's role in the hacking/leaking of emails during Hillary Clinton's campaign, say to the American people that" because of the intelligence pointing to Russia's involvement, that for the good of our democracy, a full-scale investigation will be launched to determine the extent of the interference and the players involved." Again, if there's nothing to hide, this should be a no-brainer for the good of our country and for the credibility of future elections.

3) His statements that he has no business dealings with Russia could be at least somewhat addressed with the follow-through of an earlier (and now reneged) promise, to release his tax returns. Yet once more, someone with nothing to hide in those regards should do what earlier he said he would do.

But he won't do any of these things. And with these actions (or inactions), he has astoundingly proven that he does not work toward the good of the country or its people.

See? He's not a real president.