America's Shame

A Convicted Felon is Now our President

I was surprised this morning when I saw that President Biden had given his son a full pardon, but I was not angry or insulted.

I was glad. Yes, Biden reneged on his promise not to pardon his son, but in this time of legal and political upheaval, when a convicted felon has been elected president, I can understand why the president may have decided to do what he did.

One side respecting the law while another completely disrespects it does not seem right or fair. The incoming president gets to walk away, unaccountable for all that he has been convicted of. That reality does not sit well with many. Releasing his son feels like justice to Biden, who acted as a father, first, and as a politician. I completely understand. (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/01/us/politics/biden-pardon-son-hunter.html)

Though some are writing about Biden’s unpardonable hypocrisy,” I wish more would write about America’s unforgivable reality of having a government that allows a man convicted of 14 felonies to even run in an election, much less become president (https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2024/12/hunter-biden-pardon/680843/)

I wish I were seeing more writing about this felon naming people to his cabinet who have serious moral and legal shortcomings, and how their being in office will affect this country, and I wish more were writing about the hypocrisy of a felon and his friends, who ignored subpoenas, who ignored the then-president’s missteps, and who flat out refused to honor the law, and how it is inconceivably difficult to stomach the thought that any of these people will be in a position to decide who and who is not worthy of being imprisoned.

I find it difficult to understand and accept how it is OK for a man who seemingly had a major part in stoking the January 6 insurrection to now have to be called “Mr. President.” (https://www.politico.com/news/2021/12/01/judge-trump-allies-jan-6-violence-523600).

The president-elect has been fond of saying that under the Biden administration, the world has laughed at the United States. I doubt that and have found no evidence of it, but world leaders are concerned about what this second Trump presidency will mean for their countries and the world. (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/09/world/europe/trump-presidency-global-reaction.html)

I am worried about us – the citizens of this country and my anxiety is exacerbated by my indignation over the reality that a felon will run this country. In contrast, people convicted of far less in this country are not able to vote.

I am worried about immigrants, both legal and illegal. It is not clear how the planned mass deportation plan will be implemented, but reports say that in the roundup of illegal immigrants, some legal immigrants will be affected as well. (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/nov/18/trump-military-mass-deportation)

The fact that he is talking about arresting and imprisoning people who he considers his political enemies is troubling, but more so because our system will allow it. This man’s presence has exposed the holes in our system but not enough people seem to be worried about it.

The system needs to be overhauled so that the law clearly says that a convicted felon cannot run for president or be president. We need a clearer definition of treason because it makes no sense that people are all right that a man who was accused of stealing classified documents is now the president.

It needs to be codified that any president is required to obey the law and not be allowed to ignore it or the parts of it he or she does not like. The incoming president’s defiance of the law and his use of the courts to support him has been devastating and troubling to watch.

The world has watched America for decades and has had great respect for it. Though this country has struggled with the power wielded by the determination of white supremacists to hold onto power, the fact is that this country has presented a pleasant façade of civility, decency, and a belief in democracy.

That is all being washed down the drain as a power-hungry and greedy man, accompanied by his loyalist friends, makes a mockery of all this country has claimed to be.

A convicted felon is our president. That fact is America’s shame.