Pretenders stand aside the glaring evident is calling the warriors and better angels of our nature to service – nothing less will do
“The hardest thing to explain is the glaring evident which everybody has decided not to see.” This famous Ayn Rand quote comes to mind because it no longer seems ever stuck in the present tense. Rather, the glaring evident in 2025 is present on a scale so great that it defies denial and compels long-neglected introspection.
Much has gripped public attention in recent months. Attempted assassinations of a presidential candidate, controversial Supreme Court decisions handed down, spurious lawfare prosecutions dismissed or delayed, an ignominious departure of a former President, over 90 percent of paid federal employees remaining home post pandemic, millions spent by a government agency to include funding of a transgender opera in Columbia and sex change activism in Guatemala, and these are mere samples from a long and growing list of the glaring evident. And all of this followed by a flurry of Executive Orders by a newly elected President to include elimination of a contagion that has infected and debilitated most every aspect of civic life - not Covid, but rather an autoimmune disease called diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
That President Donald Trump is a transformational figure is no longer debatable. His ability to build a broad base of enthusiastic supporters across diverse racial, ethnic, and economic classes is remarkable and portends a restoration of the hopes, dreams, and values of Americans – all Americans. Trump shares a kinship with other transformational figures in history who were destined to lead and while imperfect proved capable of consequential leadership. Pretenders, extremists, and finger-pointing ideologues can win elections but are never substitutes for true leadership. America is in terrible need of a warrior president and its citizens have decided to place their trust with Donald Trump – and many believe there is nary a moment to lose.
During the Civil War President Lincoln circumvented more senior field generals to select a much junior U.S. Grant to lead Union forces. Grant was a failed businessman rumored to be overly fond of whisky, but he was also able to brilliantly exploit his advantage on the battlefield.
During WWII, General Marshall elevated General George Patton above his peers. Patton was abrasive, given to opinions antithetical to official war policies, and was infamously profane, but he like Grant was a capable leader and the right warrior for the task at hand. Also in this war, the United Kingdom selected an oft maligned WWI cabinet official named Winston Churchill, who, unlike his chief political rival demanded fierce resistance to the Third Reich rather than appeasement. This imperfect lineup were warriors all when only warriors would do.
Is Trump capable, is he a warrior, is his time now? Like Grant and Patton, he is a rough cut in polite company, and like Churchill he knows that losing is not an option but unlike a pretender he appears to have the vision, stamina and capabilities needed to lead as a Commander and Chief. Trump does not labor under the misbelief that progressives will negotiate in good faith nor do the right thing under the weight of demonstrative truths. Too many Republicans have shown a reluctance to hold their ground in hopes that reasoned compromise wins the day. This was once a plausible expectation but the Democrat Party of old has given way to a feckless power first coalition. Trump seems willing to embrace Reagan’s “trust with verification” dictum while carrying Teddy Roosevelt’s big stick which has been molding in the Republican bag of long forgotten tools of leadership.
Irrespective of Trump’s many flaws, he seems stronger than ever, and his spirit is inspirational to those desperately wanting to see transparency, strength, and resolve return to the nation’s highest office. Good manners are not on his list, that will have to wait. Pretenders stand aside the glaring evident is calling the warriors and better angels of our nature to service – nothing less will do.
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