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| Pres. Trump at National Day of Prayer Dinner |
There is Donald Trump, the jingoistic politician and there is Donald Trump, the conciliatory leader. Each Donald Trump appeals to a different audience.
The press paid a lot of attention to a wild political rally that
President Donald held in Florida today. He joked about shooting undocumented
immigrants as they cross the border and repeated a standard right-wing
falsehood that Democratic politicians want to legalize the murder of children
born alive. He ranted about an “invasion” of immigrants. A wild, irresponsible,
almost frantic speech. Par for the course?
But let’s forget about that for a moment. On May 1, the
National Day of Prayer, President Trump gave a speech that, although reported
in the press, received a lot less attention. He called for reconciliation,
unity, and religious tolerance. Who would have imagined?
Let’s just look at a few of the conciliatory points that
President Trump made during the National Day of Prayer Dinner, which was held
in the White House State Dining Room. At the outset, President Trump said:
“And very special —
we’re proudly joined by leaders representing many of the world’s great faiths:
Christians, Muslims, Jews, Sikhs, Hindus. Tonight, we break bread
together, united by our love of God, and we renew our resolve to protect the
sacred freedom of religion. All of us. (Applause.)”
That does not sound at all like the president who called for
a “complete and total shutdown of
Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can
figure out what the hell is going on.” Instead, Trump actually listed
Muslims second, right after Christians, and included them in “the sacred
freedom of religion.” Continuing, Trump said that “We mourn for the Christians
murdered in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday, and grieve for the Muslims murdered at
their mosques in New Zealand.” His advocacy of religious toleration continued
even more forcefully:
“During this holy
season, when Christians celebrate Easter, Jews mark the Passover, and Muslims
prepare for Ramadan, we’re reminded of how blessed we are to inherit the
traditions of freedom and religious tolerance that have defined America from
the beginning.”
The press concentrates on the reckless, rabid speeches that
President Trump often gives to his most dedicated supporters. His most
dedicated supporters seem to love the angry, irrational, hate-filled President
Trump for whom they voted. As the nation’s leader, however, President Trump is
quite capable of giving a welcoming, unifying, tolerant, thoroughly
presidential speech. Trump in the White House at a formal ceremony sounds like
a completely different man from the lunatic version of President Trump at political
rallies. President Trump once commented that, “with the exception of the late,
great Abraham Lincoln, I can be more presidential than any president who was
ever held this office.” That kind of boasting is, course, not presidential at
all. All the same, this speech at the Prayer Dinner was presidential indeed. President
Trump was conciliatory, charming, and inclusive. His delivery was gentle,
varied, articulate, and conversational.
There are many reasons not to underestimate President Trump.
One is that he always pays close attention to audience and occasion. Speaking
in a dignified setting at the White House on a national ceremonial
occasion, President Trump reinforced American values of tolerance and liberty.
The group that welcomed and applauded him in the White House was, however,
not the same as the out-for-blood group that supports him at his rallies.
Which Donald Trump is the real one? As I have said before,
both are real. Trump has two different audiences: his xenophobic base voters,
to whom he speaks at his rallies, and the diverse, great nation of which he is
president. Mr. Trump obviously knows that he cannot win an election just by pleasing his base. Most presidents try to hit a happy medium between pleasing their
base voters and serving the country. Trump, instead, juggles or flip-flops
between the two personas. Opposite as they are, both Donald Trumps are real.
Image: White House YouTube channel
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