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Khans Call Republicans to Conscience

Ghazala and Khizr Khan, creating the iconic moment of the Democratic National Convention, Philadelphia, PA, 2016.07.28.
Ghazala and Khizr Khan, creating the iconic moment of the Democratic National Convention, Philadelphia, PA, 2016.07.28.

Khizr Khan, the immigrant father of a Muslim-American U.S. Army captain who died for our country in Iraq, the man who brandished his copy of the United States Constitution at the Democratic National Convention and suggested Donald Trump read it, is making more effectively right now the point I have made to Senator John Thune, Senator Marion Michael Rounds, and Representative Kristi Noem: Republicans have a moral obligation to reject their unfit Presidential nominee:

“Two things are absolutely necessary in any leader or any person who aspires, wishes, to be a leader. That is moral compass and second is empathy,” Khan said.

Khan called on House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to withdraw their support for Trump.

“It is a moral obligation — history will not forgive them,” he said. “This election will pass, but history will be written. The lack of moral courage with remain a burden on their souls.”

He said those GOP leaders have a “moral, ethical obligation to not worry about the votes but repudiate him; withdraw the support. If they do not, I will continue to speak” [Eric Bradner, “Khizr Khan: Trump Has a ‘Black Soul’,” CNN.com, 2016.07.31].

The Republican nominee has responded with his usual distractions and insults, saying that he made sacrifices, too, in building his skyscrapers and suggesting that Mr. Khan didn’t let his wife speak at the convention. The idea that Trump has made sacrifices merits no response, but Mrs. Khan explains her convention-stage silence with a heart-rending column in today’s Washington Post:

I cannot walk into a room with pictures of Humayun. For all these years, I haven’t been able to clean the closet where his things are — I had to ask my daughter-in-law to do it. Walking onto the convention stage, with a huge picture of my son behind me, I could hardly control myself. What mother could? Donald Trump has children whom he loves. Does he really need to wonder why I did not speak?

Donald Trump said that maybe I wasn’t allowed to say anything. That is not true. My husband asked me if I wanted to speak, but I told him I could not. My religion teaches me that all human beings are equal in God’s eyes. Husband and wife are part of each other; you should love and respect each other so you can take care of the family [Ghazala Khan, “Trump Criticized My Silence. He Knows Nothing About True Sacrifice,” Washington Post, 2016.07.31].

Public Policy Polling finds Hillary Clinton gaining six points in favorability post-Phialdelphia while Trump gained just one point from the Cleveland stage. The latest Morning Consult poll, taken Friday and Saturday and released this morning, shows Clinton reversing Trump’s convention bump and retaking a three-point lead. If Ryan, McConnell, Thune, Rounds, and Noem would publicly acknowledge the failure of their nominee to understand sacrifice, empathy, and love of country, that lead would be far greater, and Republicans could redirect their energy from excusifying for Trump to fighting for downticket races where they don’t have complete jerks on the ballot.

Ryan, McConnell, Thune, Rounds, and Noem should take some advice from the Khans’ fallen son:

University officials let Mr. Khan read an application essay his son wrote for a residential college. In the essay, Captain Khan wrote of how “liberty requires vigilance and sacrifice” and that those who are “beneficiaries of liberty must always bear this in mind, and keep it safe from attacks” [Richard A. Oppel, Jr., “In Tribute to Son, Khizr Khan Offered Citizenship Lesson at Convention,” New York Times, 2016.07.29].

Those who are vigilant, those who have made real sacrifice for the cause of liberty, will not let spoiled insult-king Donald Trump become President.

17 Comments

  1. mike from iowa 2016-07-31 10:59

    Peter Wehner, a former aide to President George W. Bush, said on Twitter: “Memo to Trump supporters: He’s a man of sadistic cruelty. With him there’s no bottom. Now go ahead & defend him.”

  2. Darin Larson 2016-07-31 12:02

    Cory says: “The idea that Trump has made sacrifices merits no response . . . .”

    I assume you are making this statement because it is self evident that Trump has made no true sacrifices in his life. I agree.

    In any event, I think it does merit a response. Once again the narcissism of The Mouth has put itself on full display. It appears to be pathological. It obviously is not a quality that we as a country should want or tolerate in any president.

    Instead of acknowledging the sacrifice of the Khan family and moving on, The Mouth picks a fight that he cannot possibly win. He makes an absurd argument that he has sacrificed just like the Khans–as if him working very hard for his own self interest is in the same league as losing a son or daughter in military service for the country’s collective freedom–as if the heroism of Captain Khan sacrificing his own life to save 10 or 11 fellow soldiers is simply like providing jobs for people.

    It does go without saying to most clinically sane people that working hard for one’s own self interest to make money and to employ people to aid in one’s own quest for profit are not true sacrifices compared to voluntary military service, the death of a son or daughter pursuant to that military service or the heroism of giving one’s life so that others may live. But I’m not just going to give The Mouth a pass because he says crazy stuff all the time.

    I thought that The Mouth was just a poser that said things to appear tough or to garner attention in the media. I didn’t think he actually believed some of the things that he was saying. But it has become apparent to me that I was wrong.

    He is not just saying that he has sacrificed like the Khans have sacrificed to garner attention. He is saying this stuff because he can’t accept the criticism. His narcissism leads him to believe that he actually sacrificed at the same level as the Khan family. That is truly a mental illness and a trait that would be very dangerous in the White House.

    As Hillary pointed out, a man that you can bait with a text is not someone we want with their finger on the nuclear button. Further, if he cannot accept criticism from the Khans, what will be his response when China snubs him, or North Korea inevitably turns on him, or a dinky country in Africa lambasts him? A shooting war in the South China Sea? Nuclear first strike on the Korean peninsula? A US invasion in central Africa?

    On the home front, he has said that he will shut down the freedom of the press that have criticized him if he is president. Will he purge the federal bureaucracy of political opponents? Will he start a war to distract the country from his horrible domestic policies and unkept promises? Think of a president who will respond to any perceived slight with the full power and might of the presidency behind him. And when the judiciary moves to restrict his power plays, will he ignore judicial rulings and create a constitutional crisis? The mind shutters to think of the very real possibilities!

  3. bearcreekbat 2016-07-31 12:15

    Darin, Trump sounds a bit like Andrew Jackson, but without the intellect.

  4. Moses11 2016-07-31 13:45

    Have this guy move to South Dakotsa and run for office he would be far better than the two stooges we have representing us now.

  5. Moses11 2016-07-31 13:45

    Three I guess if you count Noem.

  6. mike from iowa 2016-07-31 13:48

    Drumpf also tried to take credit for helping build the “WALL”
    for VietNam Vets Memorial. According to spources who attended all 20 something meetings, Donnie showed up for two and for one he had a reporter along doing a profile on Drumpf.
    It’s gotta be ME cuz it’s gotta be ME!

  7. W R Old Guy 2016-07-31 14:21

    The comments in the Colorado Springs media seem to overwhelmingly support the fire marshal. It may be that the Trump campaign handed out more tickets than to venue could accommodate to insure that Trump was speaking in front of a “packed house”. The Fire Marshal had also permitted an additional 100 people in each of the rooms. This sure sounds like a planned outrage event by Trump.

    According to an article in today’s RCJ, Trump and staff had to be rescued by the Colorado Springs FD from an elevator at the Wyndham Resort about 1/2 hour before his appearance at the rally.

    The FD removed a hatch at the top of the elevator and used a ladder to allow everyone to climb out of the elevator to the second floor.

    The cause of the elevator malfunction was Trump’s staff. The security team insisted on total manual control of the elevator. Someone turned the key when the car was in motion causing it to stall. The elevator was reset and placed back in service.

  8. Roger Elgersma 2016-07-31 16:02

    The good in Mr. Khan’s speech was not only to point out the bad in Trump, but he is an example of a very consistently good person who happens to be Muslim.

  9. Roger Cornelius 2016-07-31 17:10

    Trump needs to continue and open his vile mouth and hurl insults at individuals, ethnicities, groups, and everyone, by election day he should have insulted enough that they will not vote for him.
    How Christians, evangelicals, and others people of faith even consider supporting this character
    For those that defend him and support, they are as evil as he is and they must be defeated.
    The Hillary campaign already has so much anti-Trump material coming from his own mouth they are struggling how to use all of his gems.

  10. Darin Larson 2016-07-31 19:11

    I think this is shaping up to be the pivotal moment of this campaign. People may look back and point to this incident as the coup de grace for the Trump campaign.

    Trump had a chance to let this criticism of him by the Khan family go and instead he doubled down and went on the offensive and said that he had made sacrifices too.

    He caught heck and issued a statement saying Capt. Khan was a hero and then went on to criticize the Gold Star parents, asking why the mother remained silent as if she was prohibited from speaking and not a mother whose grief was unbearable.

    When people kept asking about the situation, Trump tripled down on his bad bet and continued with a tweet that he was viciously attacked by Khan.

    John Kasich, Jeb Bush, Lindsey Graham and others have condemned Trump’s statements. Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell also weighed in on the Khan’s side without directly naming Trump. The Koch Brothers and their huge donor network are staying out of the presidential race. Trump has one tenth the party staff for a ground game in swing states as Hillary.

    The rats are leaving the ship and The Mouth stands alone.

  11. Darin Larson 2016-07-31 19:18

    PS, with notable exceptions, Fox news appears to have more coverage of the Trump craziness, lies, and missteps than attacks on Hillary right now.

  12. jerry 2016-07-31 19:22

    I get emails all the time from Rounds and NOem about veterans and hope much they love me. I call that what it is, bullpuckey. Rounds lays claim that he is our savior in Washington and goes into detail of why he is that man. NOem only wants to save Hot Springs as that is where the votes are for her in west river it seems. Anyway you cut it, Trump has made the position of the republican party pretty clear, hate veterans, hate our issues, do what you can to screw us over while waving that flag. His words to the Khans tell it just like I did. I wonder when the three dunces will denounce him for what he has said, probably never. So Un-American of them all.

  13. Darin Larson 2016-08-02 08:14

    MFI, thanks for the laugh of the day.

Comments are closed.