President Trump:

I believe America is already great. But man, it was hard to listen to your inaugural speech—to your bleak, desolate view of where we are at this moment in our history—and not to wonder what kind of lenses my world-vision glasses must be missing. 

I believe America has always been great, even in its darkest moments. 

I believe America’s greatness lies in the slow but sure admission of its inherent weaknesses and injustices, and in its determination to fix them, even in the face of crippling internal opposition. 

I believe America’s greatness lies in embracing its diversity—in welcoming the best aspects of every culture in our celebrated Melting Pot, not just those that trace back to the comfortable but outdated pages of the history books we studied in the '50s and ‘60s.

I believe America’s greatness lies in its ability to distinguish between the loving, inclusive, peaceful beliefs of any religion, and the fearful, violent delusions of psychopaths who hijack those religions to justify the wanton slaughter of fellow human beings.

I believe America’s greatness lies in a willingness to help its fellow citizens in need, even if it means sacrificing a small portion of our own personal wealth to the greater good. 

On January 20, 2009, having just marched in President Obama’s first inaugural parade (and being someone who HATES marching in parades, even seismically historic ones), I wrote this: 

“By 8 o’clock I was on my way home, pondering: Was it worth that inconvenience and aggravation? Being one tiny widget in the huge machine, the pageantry and splendor of the peaceful transfer of power; the grand outpouring of a country’s hope and optimism invested in a person of manifest intelligence and charisma; the squeaking hope that we’re all not merely falling once again for the illusion of political civility and the delusion of national possibility? Even knowing that within days we’ll be back to Business as Usual, with the majority party at the microphone, the minority shouting from the back of the room, and the muffled voices of the third parties yelling from outside? 

“If this is what it takes every four years to keep us on our slow and steady course, then yes. I don’t mind being part of it. And if, now and then, one of these occasions stands out for its firstness, for its differentness, for its distinctive aura of an impending sea change, so much the better. Count me in.”

Rereading those thoughts now, if I'm going to be scrupulously fair, then I have to believe that some of my friends who didn’t agree with me in 2009 might be feeling a similar optimism in 2017. For the life of me, I can't understand why ... but okay. 

I am deeply suspicious of your brash and blustery confidence, Mister President. Of your crass and blinding ego, your dizzying inconsistency, your rigid certainty, your blunt insensitivity, your inarticulate pandering. 

Not to mention the potentially obscene gains in money and influence that you and your billionaire-filled cabinet stand to rake in for the next four years, while the domains they manage are gutted, pillaged and stripped of power and purpose. 

Mostly, I am deeply worried for members of my family and for friends who stand to suffer greatly from the “plans” that you and your party have thus far failed to explain with any clarity, beyond a childish and vindictive desire to erase every social and political milestone of the past 8 years. 

I believe America is already great, Mister President. I sincerely hope you will make it even greater. 

I have my doubts … but okay. I’ll give you the benefit of those doubts. For now. I mean really, what are my options at this point? 

So go for it, sir. Make America greater than ever. 

We’ll be waiting to evaluate that greatness—America's and yours alike—in four years.

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