“Call the Tune” by Mike Anthony
Executive Editor
news1@callnewspapers.com

President Donald Trump has termed his use of social media “modern day presidential,” but we believe it’s unbecoming of the decorum of an esteemed office.

Whether he’s mocking a foreign leader or calling for the firing of a Washington Post reporter who made a mistake and later apologized for it, Trump is a mean-spirited bully.

Don’t believe us? Just take a look at his Twitter account. He continually brags of his successes — there’s probably an unflattering psychological term for that — and brutally castigates those with whom he disagrees. No slight is too small for The Donald, who leads a new Republican Party for which ideology trumps ethics.

Just consider his support of U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore of Alabama, who has been accused of sexual misconduct by several women. While prominent Republicans including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan and Sen. John McCain have called for Moore to drop out of the race, Trump now fully endorses Moore’s candidacy.

At a rally last Friday in Pensacola, Fla., Trump stumped for Moore, contending that Democrats in Congress “want open borders, higher taxes and government-run health care that doesn’t work. Costs a fortune, doesn’t work. They are soft on crime … That’s why we need a Republican in the House. We need a Republican in the Senate. We need more of them.”

Of the accusations against Moore, Trump said, “He denies it. Look, he denies it.”

That’s not unlike Trump’s defense against the dozen or so women who have accused him of sexual misconduct.

Then we have Trump’s tweets taunting North Korea’s Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un that are edging this country to the brink of a nuclear war.

Just last week, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman visited North Korea and reported that the situation on the Korean Peninsula is the world’s most dangerous security issue. Yeah, Trump’s tweets referring to North Korea’s leader as “Little Rocket Man” and promising to rain “fire and fury” on North Korea certainly will help diffuse those tensions.

Earlier this year, we wondered if Trump could act with the dignity the office of president demands. Sadly, the answer is no, as his use of social media is contributing to making the United States the laughingstock of the world.