Dear Editor:

Trump insisted that his inauguration was the biggest in history. The claim was easily disproved. Why did he pick a fight over this silly issue, making his press secretary humiliate himself repeatedly declaring, ‘This was the biggest crowd ever! Period!’? 

In hindsight, thanks to Heather Cox Richardson’s observation, the truth about crowd size was not really the issue; loyalty was. Trump was attempting to demonstrate dominance by making clear he would be in charge of determining what reality was. His followers were expected to fall in line and parrot his lies. This became a loyalty pledge.

The disorientation many of us feel this election season is no accident. We are being worn down with polarizing rhetoric and lies to undermine objectivity. The goal is to replace clear seeing with resignation or even acceptance of fabrications in order to just get along.

What have we learned since 2016? Certainly we have witnessed that Trump sees himself as above the rules others must live by. When the facts are assembled the portrait is rather stark. It’s now fair to say upon review that Trump is, in fact, a loser, and not just of elections. He’s a fraud. U.S. banks will not deal with him. He’s corrupt. Even his supporters know that. He’s is a betrayer of trust. His Covid response was utterly pathetic and unconscionable. He’s a con. He stiffs his own workers. And, let’s never forget, he’s an insurrectionist who tried to overthrow our last election and remain in power.

George Mason

Nobleboro