I am a registered Democrat; however, as an American and a retired sailor, I expect everyone, regardless of political affiliation, to behave with a modicum of decency and to, at least, treat everyone as if we had truly “been created equal,” as our Declaration of Independence suggests. I do not think I am being biased when I say that, judging by the way some people in the Republican Party treat the rest of us, I do not get the feeling that we are all equal.

   Intellectual reasoning leads me to conclude that, as a political party, the GOP is a brilliant bunch—in the Machiavellian sense of the word. Moreover, the feeling I get, deep in my chest, is that your organization (and the same is true of too many police departments across our homeland) regards those of us who do not look like you, and especially those of us who are of a different political persuasion, as second-class citizens. You might say that this is not the case; however, the general view is that the Republican Party cares mostly about three things: lowering taxes for wealthy Americans, continuously bloating the defense budget, and getting us into war with any nation whose form of government we do not approve of.

   Are these concerns unfounded? Maybe they are not.

   Just as I expect the Democratic Party to nurture a new breed of leaders, I hope that those of you in a position of leadership realize that it was the lack of a proper standard bearer within your own party which made it possible for a reality-TV show host who had not spent a single month either serving in our military or in any capacity in federal, state, or local government, to reach the highest public office in the land.

   Yes, we have you, the GOP establishment, to thank, not just for the damage which the upcoming Trump presidency will cause to America’s reputation overseas, but also for the grave dilution in the civil liberties of Americans which is certain to follow the arrival at the white house of such feeble-minded and immoral an individual as Donald Trump.

   God help us all. God help African Americans and other minorities. God help women.