Empty Vessel

Yesterday, I saw a headline about Trump's response to the school shooting in Georgia, and it had the words "sick and deranged monster."  I saw in all honesty that I didn't know if it was referring to his reaction to the shooting, or if they were describing Trump himself making a heartless response.  Not only did either seem possible to me, but the latter seemed more likely.

It turned that it was the former, though Trump's response -- while not heartless -- was pretty empty and meaningless.  He wrote: 

For starters, I'm not convinced that Trump wrote that.  In part because he's never shown much interest in others, if they can't help him, and never showed much interest in helping "cherished children," including those he caged and separated from their immigrant parents.  And in part because it just doesn't sound like him, especially recently when he's gone off on deranged rants about bacon, wind, sharks, electricity and how he thinks VP Kamala Harris is "dumb" and "stupid."

His response was empty and meaningless for several reasons, starting with the very first bill he ever signed into law was one that gave the right to people with mental illness to own guns.  Further, school shootings and mass shootings occurred relentlessly during his time in office when he had the authority to push the MAGOP to take action on gun safety and help limit such "tragic events" from taking "cherished children" from us "far too soon."  In fact, pretty much the only good thing about his thin words is that he didn't offer "thoughts and prayers."

But also, right now, Trump is running for president.  It's one thing to actually be president -- that, of course, is the biggest "bully pulpit."  But when you're running for the office, the whole point of a campaign, it's very reason of existence, is go out and make speeches, hold rallies and convince people to support you.  The public not only expects you to make statements on news events, but in many ways people almost want to hear what you have to say in order to compare you to your opponent, to see how he or she handled the moment.

And while VP Harris was out on the road, and so went off-script to give impassioned, at times angry thoughts at a rally supporting her long-held position on gun safety ("It doesn't have to be this way") and doing what we can to limit or even stop these tragedies -- Trump has been staying at home, and only put out a social media posting of 35 empty words.  That someone else might have written.  This is the time candidates want to show who the are.  And Trump put out a nothing tweet.  Which is pretty much showing who he is.  By the way, even though he wasn't on the road, and seemingly has been in hibernation, whether from lack of interest, age or dementia, he still could have called the press in (who are there, covering him) and made a statement on camera.  About the how something must be done to protect all children in the future.  And how as the school year just began, what we want children to focus on is learning, not practicing how to hide and play possum.  Or maybe how Georgia has among the weakest gun laws in the country.  Or that we have to find ways to help children who feel driven to violence.  Or something, showing himself, showing that he cares -- since, after all, he is campaigning to lead the country, to convince us why we should vote for him.

​But no, he stuck with posting a nothing tweet.  And so, all we were left with was the sick and deranged monster.

Which one?  We report, you decide.