TRUMP: Tale of two opposites

When I was nine years old, I learned to appreciate Franklin Delano Roosevelt. I remember my dad glued to the radio his “Fireside Chats.” FDR, as he was termed, discussed the state of the nation, his feelings and understandings, his hopes for the country. At that time, most people appreciated the good things, like Grand Coulee Dam, Social Security, Civilian Conservation Corps, WPA and PWA work projects. Forest Service Blister Rust Eradication, many things for the good of the country’s economy in an unprecedented depression. Roosevelt and his wife Eleanor were blatantly in love with this country and its citizens. They made it obvious.

Compare that with today. Donald Trump is blatantly in love with himself. His followers want to build monuments and tributes to him. He’s added his name to the Kennedy Center. His followers want to build an arch, to add him to the Black Hills of South Dakota. They have ideas to put him alongside the greats like Lincoln, Washington, two Roosevelts. To me, it’s sacrilege. I remember as a boy a president interested in the People. Now I see a president interested in himself.

RON BOOTHE

Kingston