If You Can’t Stand The Heat…

“If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen”. It’s an old proverb largely attributed to President Harry Truman but it’s origins date back before then. It means that if a task is too great or too taxing, one should give up or move on to something else.
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Donald Trump said this past weekend that Khizr Khan, the father of slain American soldier Humayun S. M. Khan, viciously attacked him at the Democratic Convention and that he had “no right” to do so. Unless Mr. Trump has suspended the first amendment to the Constitution, Mr. Khan indeed has every right to criticize Mr. Trump in any way he chooses. That is what is great about this country. I remember a story from many years ago G.B. Trudeau, the creator of the comic strip ‘Doonesbury’ was at a function at George H.W. Bush’s White House. When asked by a foreign dignitary what he did, Mr. Trudeau explained and the dignitary stated that in his country, he would probably be discredited or killed, not wined and dined by the butt of his jokes.

Presidents realize this dichotomy in American politics. It is what keeps our political process in check and makes it the envy of the world. People do have the right to criticize and comment on the workings of our leaders without fear of retribution. So I ask you, how in the world would Donald Trump react if, by some miracle he were to be elected, when his administration comes under fire by the press? Angry tweets at 5 in the morning are one thing but a man like this with real power and the resources of the federal government at his fingertips is a frightening prospect. Trump will make Nixon look like a boy scout.