I respect the office, but not Trump

Laura Slate (letter Jan. 23) is “tired of whining and crying” by Democrats over the presidential election, telling us to “get over it” and “respect the position.”

Rehashing Republican whining and crying after the last election, or reminding Ms. Slate about the effigies of our first black president hanging from nooses, and a torched black church and burning crosses, or discussing the birther movement would do no good.

Ms. Slate has it wrong though. We absolutely respect the position. It is the reason we whine and cry and cannot get over it. For the position deserves better. A man who values women only for how they look and where he can grab, and not because of what they can do, who equates sacrifices in his business career to the sacrifice of a Gold Star family, who does not acknowledge a woman’s right to her own reproductive health decisions, whose first response to a Ku Klux Klan endorsement is ambivalence, and a man who constantly shames, bullies and berates anyone who does not agree with him is not worthy of the office.

Yes, we respect the position. We absolutely do not respect the man who occupies it. To claim otherwise would be an alternative fact.

This story was originally published January 25, 2017 at 5:24 PM with the headline "I respect the office, but not Trump."