Politics is no longer the art of compromise, but the art of war.

In his biography, “Trump Revealed,” Donald Trump’s view of human beings is summed up in his own quoted words: “Man is the most vicious of all animals, and life is a series of battles ending in victory or defeat.” His politics flow from this philosophy.

Although this quote is true for only a tiny minority of humans who choose to be terrorists, President Trump wants to change our great country into a fortress like the Soviet Union was with its ruling elite and Iron Curtain for so many years before Republican President Ronald Reagan’s clarion call to tear down the Berlin Wall. Unlike Reagan, Trump wants to build a wall to separate us from Mexico. This is not the same Republican Party!

It appears that Trump wants to turn our government into a gated community of minority elites in power who make policy decisions for the majority of citizens who did not vote for him. Immigration and refugee policies based on “alternative facts” and unfounded fears will make us neither safe nor secure because nearly all humans choose not to act as the most vicious of animals. Given true facts, most choose to mitigate viciousness with life-giving truths.

What will we win by ignoring Republican President Theodore Roosevelt’s advice to “Speak softly and carry a big stick”? President Trump seemingly prefers Putin’s model for being Presidential: Lie loudly and bash dissenters with clubhouse tweets and outrageous rants against the mainstream media.

Tom Driscoll

Poulsbo