Should we respect Donald Trump?

Since Election Day, I’ve had a difficult time reconciling my personal feelings about Donald Trump with what I have always believed: we should all respect the President, no matter who he is.

The idea that any man is entitled to respect simply by holding office is one that I never had to take for granted. Though presidents throughout history have done and said profoundly bigoted things, I always figured that it was the will of a political system desperately in need of change that pressured them to spew those things, and I forgave a lot of it. I figured that at the very least, presidents seemed to speak publicly as the voice of the American people, no matter the current social climate.

The outcome of this election changed all of that for me, and I was faced with a tough question: Should I respect Donald Trump?

This is not one of those red meat pieces pushed around on left-leaning websites meant to egg on anti-Trump voters and shame down his supporters. This is me saying that I cannot respect Donald Trump.

Respect is defined by Merriam-Webster in part as “a feeling of admiring someone or something that is good.”

If respect is about admiring someone that is good, how can I respect Donald Trump? Really, how can any of us? In a larger sense, we should question a political system that demands its citizens blind obedience and thoughtlessly given respect and honor. No president should get our respect solely because he is the president.

Every president is deserving of a civil attitude, a cooperative nature, and a chance, but they are not automatically deserving of our respect.

I am not alone in believing that Donald Trump does not deserve respect by virtue of assuming a political office.

Theodore Roosevelt; Army veteran, Nobel Peace Prize awardee, and 26th President of the United States; remarked, “To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.” If the Rough Rider himself warned against unearned respect for the President more than 100 years ago, why should we give our respect to a man who attained that office with neither the support of voters nor any consistent regard for decency?

If I saw someone mocking a differently abled person, I would not respect him because that’s what bullies do.

If a colleague gained power by targeting opponents in his field, I would not respect him because that’s what narcissists do.

If a person in my life demonized an entire religion or was cavalier in his use of racist language, I would not respect him because that’s what bigots do.

If a businessman in my community accumulated his wealth by not paying small businesses he contracted with or by taking advantage of unethical financial loopholes, I would not respect him because that’s what thieves do.

Donald Trump has done all of those things over the course of his professional life, so what in the world would possibly compel me to respect him?

If you’re someone who skims through articles, that’s fine, but please read this paragraph.

You do not need to respect the President without question. It is well and proper for you to withhold your respect for Donald Trump until he apologizes for his violently hateful rhetoric, and it is within your rights — and arguably your duty — to criticize the President when he takes actions that hurt our communities.

When judging Donald Trump, remember that our respect is something he must earn, not something we just give.