I Was Wrong!

~ slfuchs

There is no other way to put it:

I was wrong!

I wanted to honor our constitutionally mandated electoral process and give Mr. Trump 100 days to show America that he would grow into his office and implement policies that benefit us all.

I was wrong!

The list of his egregious actions is too long and too well-known to merit full elucidation here, but two put me over the top:

  • The  Executive Order on immigration! My goodness! What kind of a heartless cretin thwarts the reunification of families for no good reason? So many of those whose lives you disrupted, Mr. Trump, have rendered valuable service that has made our nation a better place. How dare you? Bravo to all who flooded our airports in protest!

    I stand in solidarity with our Muslim neighbors who have suffered most from this outrage.

  • The Holocaust Remembrance Day Declaration that made no mention of Jews! I know that for many this incredible statement—that he had the nerve to defend—is far down the list of the new president’s sins, but for me as a Jew, a rabbi and the son of man who was arrested and abused on Kristallnacht it is a tipping point.

Yes, Mr. Trump, many more millions of people were victims of Hitler’s madness than the six million Jews who perished! But what other ethnic group had—by Hitler’s design—its worldwide population reduced by one-third?

What other European group saw its population reduced by two-thirds?

What other religious group saw 4/5 of its religious leaders massacred?

One might expect such a statement from Stalin’s Russia but not from the United States of America.

There can only be one word to aptly describe a presidential declaration re the Holocaust that makes no mention of Jews:

Disgraceful!

The fact that your Jewish daughter and son-in-law did not react publicly to this dreadful omission tells me all I need to know about the “Jewish identity” of both of them.

And again, these are just two of many grievous acts by the President that have violated  the basic values for which America should always stand.

And so Mr.Trump, consider the 100 days of grace I wanted you to have EXPIRED!

It took longer than it should have for me to reach this conclusion. I apologize to those who put stock in what I mistakenly thought was a magnanimous gesture of reconciliation.

There is no other way to put this:

I was wrong!

From now on look for me among those who dissent and protest!

 

Published by slfuchs

Loving husband, father, grandfather and rabbi. Author of, "What's in It for Me? Finding Ourselves in Biblical Narratives,” "ToraHighlights,” “Why the Kof?,” “Why Triple Chai?,” "Who Created God?," and "...And Often the First Jew." On October 17, 2017, Rabbi Fuchs was selected as the recipient of the Vanderbilt Divinity School's Distinguished Alumnus Award. To be considered for this award, one must demonstrate excellence and distinction in justice-making through their efforts in congregational ministry, religious institutions, non-denominational/all-inclusive organizations, community–based organizations, government, or other social institutions. Spent last four falls serving in Milan, Italy, (2013) and Germany (2014-2016). Otherwise, he enjoy writing and speaking after serving three congregations and as President of the World Union for Progressive Judaism. He is currently serving as Rabbi of Bat Yam Temple of the Islands, Sanibel, Florida.

12 thoughts on “I Was Wrong!”

  5. I am going to forward this to my sister and daughter, both of whom respectfully disagreed with you. I am very appreciative of your honest admittance that you were wrong, I cringe everyday when I hear or read another thing that he proclaims in the name of the presidency. I, too, am surprised & embarrassed at the lack of his daughter & on-in-law speaking out.

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  7. Very soon, my daughter will be reading my mother’s cousin’s memoirs. He has written 2 short pieces. 1. The 1st 10 years of his life…survivng the Holocaust in Hungary. He was my daughter’s age, 9, when the war ended. 2. His escape to the USA as a refugee in 1956, during the Hungarian revolution. The ties to today are very similar. I have already done several things to stand up for justice in this country…and will continue to do so. Today my mother’s cousin lives in California. I wonder what would have happened to him if he wasn’t allowed to enter the country as a refugee in 1956…

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  8. Thank you for your courage, Rabbi–both your courage of trying to defend the American principles of unity in the first place, and your courage in admitting this was a mistake. Now we know what we have to do!

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  9. I was not surprised by your initial forbearance, Steve, nor by your courage now in the face of such troubling times for the country. I trace the absurd omission of Jews from Holocaust Remembrance Day directly to Bannon, a bigot of the first order who has no business being anywhere near the Oval Office.

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  11. I figured Trump would act as badly as he he now is. It was generous of you to give him the benefit of the doubt, but in my experience abusive words lead to abuse. In any case, birds of a feather flock together, and you see the birds in his flock.

    But onward. I welcome any suggestions on resistance.

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  12. I do not remember who said, we are who we surround ourselves with or we become who we surround ourselves with. Donald Trump is a wolf in wolfs clothing. He does not try to hide it. He is a dangerous man. Putin is making his move , China is making their move, and its mostly going unnoticed by us because no one is reporting on it. The EU remains intact for now but are at a crossroads trying to decipher Donald Trump. Prime Minister Netenyahu has been uncharacteristicly silent. It’s ok that you were wrong Rabbi. Many of us were wrong so you are not alone.

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