Former President Donald Trump announced this past Tuesday, Nov. 15, his candidacy for reelection for the president of the United States. This will be his third time running for the position, having lost the 2020 presidential election to current President Joe Biden. However, this is not your typical redemption story.

If I were to explain every reason why supporting Donald Trump during his 2024 campaign for president is a mistake, this would simply not be an editorial column. A lengthy book trilogy would even only scratch the surface of the risks he poses to the American public and our democracy.

The Jan. 6 attack on the United States Capitol perfectly encapsulates Trump’s former term as president. Back in July, members of the House of Representatives’ Jan. 6 Committee publicly announced their conclusion that Trump intentionally violated his oath of office and deliberately did not do everything in his power to put an end to the riots.

His lack of action during an attack on one of our nation’s most crucial democratic processes proves he does not have the moral backbone required for an individual to hold office. Trump cannot be expected to make educated political decisions, given that his attitude toward how our democracy is meant to function is based on his own personal agenda, rather than the greater population he had sworn to serve.

Trump’s blatant disregard for accepting processes that protect our democracy continued when he refused to testify during a scheduled deposition following a subpoena, which required him to turn in documentation that worked to invalidate the 2020 election. Instead, he filed a 41-page lawsuit claiming the subpoena is invalid because it was “unnecessary and overly broad”.

His refusal to contribute to an investigation aiming to protect our democratic processes not only shows that Trump does not care for the system our country was founded on, but also that he lacks responsibility for his own actions. Once again, his failure to comply with a legal duty, even while out of office, reveals the true nature of his character. We absolutely cannot have an individual in office who refuses to look beyond himself for the better of the American public.

Therefore, any form of support for Donald Trump’s campaign is an act against our democracy as we know it. This is not about whether you lean right or left, but rather about needing to be aware of the dangers a certain individual brings to the political stage.

I do not mean to contribute to the already concerning political divide that has encapsulated our country. I also do not aim to encourage you to support one side over another, as both are flawed in their own right. Parties aside, Donald Trump is a hazard to our democracy. I truly believe any effort to restore a sense of unity in the United States needs to start by removing him, and those like him, from politics altogether.

The American people must create a strong opposition to his 2024 campaign. We need to continue to educate ourselves and others on the reality of his previous term in office. We need to understand that Donald Trump is an individual who does not have the best interest of the American people in mind and that understanding such should not be regarded as a political stance. It is an act of aligning yourself on the side of morality.

As college students, 2024 will be the first opportunity for many of us to vote in a presidential election. It is imperative that we keep an eye on candidates as they are announced and educate ourselves on their beliefs and political backgrounds. Young people need to continue taking politics seriously if we want to ensure our futures are not dismantled by power hungry politicians who do not have the best interests of our generation at heart.

Grace “Gray” Reed is a Sophomore magazine, news and digital journalism major. Their column appears bi-weekly. They can be reached at greed04@syr.edu.

Published on November 16, 2022 at 10:08 pm