My Gold Star

In March of this year, for the first, but not the last time, Donald Trump was indicted. This particular evil involved hush money payments to Stormy Daniels, funds clearly intended to assist Mr. Trump in his efforts to become the 45th President.

I wrote a post at the time of the indictment, giving my take on the importance of that moment and the uncertain possibilities in the future. Time has certainly, at least in the present, turned these first of 91 charges against Mr. Trump into almost an afterthought.

The Boston Globe published an edited version of my submission in early April. I have now received a notice from that paper, that this letter was considered by them as one of the year’s best. An excerpted portion will appear in the Globe, this Sunday, December 23, along with the other letters deemed worthy of special praise.

Below is my original unedited submission,

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Donald Trump has spent a lifetime committing offenses and four years in the eye of the storm disregarding the Constitution, Congress and any constraints that morality or even the faintest shred of human decency would dictate. He had dalliances with dictators and wannabe dictators, treated the nation as his personal chew toy and anyone who dared cross his imaginary line with a level of disrespect and distrust that was truly psychotic. He has been out of control and seemingly untouchable from the first drop to last.

There was a rush of adrenaline when the word indicted attached to him yesterday. Forget, for the moment, that this particular sin is, in the hierarchy of Mr. Trump's evils, akin to jaywalking. Or that the prosecution of this matter will be a very heavy lift. It just felt surprisingly good knowing that something, anything, has finally stuck on Teflon Don.

Larger questions about the state of our democracy swirl around the conversation. But for a man willing to sacrifice everything this nation has tried to achieve in almost 250 years merely to satiate his unfathomable ego, this indictment was a declaration that our democracy is still alive and kicking. Damaged but not destroyed by the rule of terror. A declaration of independence from evil.

What tomorrow brings for Donald Trump and for our country is far from certain. This was but one small step against this man. 

But one large step for mankind.