Trump’s enemies accuse him of being an evil man – a racist! 

Who knows what evil lurks within the heart of a man?  God knows.  Perhaps the Shadow knows.  I don’t. 

It is obvious that many people disliked and distrusted Trump even before he came into office.  He did not attempt to endear himself to them, and they set out to destroy him.  But was their hatred justified?  Was Trump a heartless, narcissistic bigot as portrayed by his enemies? Certainly, his manners were nothing to brag about, but were they a true measure of the man’s soul.

To be fair to Trump, let us examine some of the evidence.

On August 11-12, 2017, during Trump’s first year in office, a white supremacist rally took place in Charlottesville, Virginia.  Protesters included members of the KKK and neo-fascist organizations. Some of the marching citizens did not identify with these groups but opposed the proposed removal of a statue of General Robert E. Lee from a Charlottesville Park.  Counter-protesters arrived on the scene, and violence occurred.  One person was killed and others injured.

In commenting on Charlottesville, President Trump “condemned hatred, bigotry, and violence”.   He also said there “very fine people on both sides”.  Trump’s many critics saw this as him implying moral equivalence between the white supremacist marchers and those who protested against them, even though the President explicitly denounced the white supremacists   It was obvious that Trump’s “fine people” remark was meant for those law-abiding citizens who were for and against the removal of Lee’s statue – not the racial extremists.  Nevertheless, mainstream media pundits hammered him mercilessly for his remarks, and it continued for months.

More charges of racism were made as Trump tried to temporarily block the immigration of persons from certain countries. He described some of these nations with certain crude, offensive adjectives and said the reason for his actions was the extreme instability of these countries and the virtual impossibility of properly vetting people coming from these lawless and highly volatile places.  Of course, Trump’s enemies said it was because these nations were predominantly non-white and Muslim, and Trump’s proposed ban was further proof of his racial and religious bigotry.

During the 2020 riots Trump spoke out against Antifa and the Black Lives Matter movement.  He championed law and order and supported the police.  Was this racist?  Most Americans were probably with Trump in his stand.  They wanted racial justice, but they opposed anarchy.

Over the years Trump has worked closely with blacks. Many of them think very highly of him and support him.  There appears to be mutual respect. At times, however, Trump has been very critical of certain black leaders, and he does not hesitate to express his dislike for them in vituperative language.  But black leaders are not alone in receiving this sort of attention.  Trump is an equal-opportunity insulter.

As for his actions as chief executive, Trump probably did more to boost blacks economically than any President in American history.

Trump’s enemies hate him with a passion, and they do anything to tear him down. The verbal abuse he receives almost defies belief, and they charge him with every despicable sin they can think of – including unproven accusations of racism. 

The man surely has his faults, but I do not believe Trump is a racist, nor do I consider him an evil man.