“I SAID it, I was wrong and I apologize….I have said and done things I regret. These words don’t reflect who I am.”
So said the Republican nominee for the United States presidential contest, billionaire Donald Trump, referring to a video released by the Washington Post that showed him making lewd and disparaging comments about women more than 10 years ago.
In 2005, Trump was on his way to make a cameo appearance at a “Days of our Lives” episode when he happily talked to a reporter about groping women. “When you’re a star, they let you do it…you can do anything.”
The release of the video has prompted condemnations not just from Trump’s rival Hillary Clinton and Democrats but also from among the Republicans. House Speaker Paul Ryan said he was sickened by what he had heard. John McCain, the Republican presidential candidate in 2008, said “[Trump] alone bears the burden of his conduct and alone should suffer the consequences.” Trump has been disinvited to a party event, reports say.
The release of the video and the billionaire’s apology comes before the second presidential debate on Sunday night (Monday morning in the Philippines). It would be interesting to know how Trump would defend himself and attempt to answer substantive questions on what he intends to do if he does become president.
Hereabouts, we are no longer strangers to officials making inappropriate, lewd and incendiary statements. With President Rodrigo Duterte, each day is a surprise. As a result, his alter egos hasten to explain what he means, or what they think he means, to an aghast public. If the reaction is particularly adverse, the President takes it upon himself to apologize, after which he is hailed for being humble enough to admit his mistakes.
But the people do not need their leader apologizing all the time. Once or twice may show humility, but a habitual taking back of one’s inflammatory language signals a lack of deliberation by someone who should consider every word that comes out of his mouth. Everything we utter in our unguarded moments approximate our true beliefs and the actual state of our minds.
It is tempting to imagine a cozy, colorful conversation between our President and Trump, assuming he wins. Then again, we push the thought out of our minds, because it is just so unsettling.
