The behavior Americans and the world are witnessing from President Donald Trump isn’t just unbecoming of a leader. It’s unpresidential and, quite frankly, childish.
In recent weeks, instead of addressing the serious economic and social challenges confronting the nation, the Republican president has resorted to stunts that read more like the grievances of a sore competitor than the priorities of the commander in chief.
Trump recently reposted on Truth Social an image portraying former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama as apes in yet another vile, offensive display of racism.
As the first Black U.S. president, Trump has long targeted Obama with racist attacks about his citizenship and more, even before the businessman turned politician succeeded him in the White House for his first term in 2017.
Even Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, a close Trump ally and the Senate’s lone Black Republican, reacted with disbelief, writing on X, “Praying it was fake because it’s the most racist thing I’ve seen come out of this White House.”
The post, which has since been taken down, was, unfortunately, not “fake.”
Regardless of political disagreement, amplifying content that evokes dehumanizing imagery is beneath the office of the presidency. Presidents should elevate public discourse, not fuel division with imagery and rhetoric that have a long history of harm.
Equally troubling is his threat to withhold federal funding unless New York’s Penn Station and Dulles Airport are renamed after himself. Airports and transit hubs are vital infrastructure serving millions — not trophy pedestals for personal vanity. Most recently, Trump’s decision to add his name to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts — America’s living memorial to an assassinated president — smacks of self-aggrandizement rather than national service.
America is grappling with inflation, surging grocery prices, labor shortages, and a cost-of-living squeeze felt in households across the country. Families are cutting back on essentials, students are struggling with debt, and workers want economic opportunity, not symbolic battles over names on buildings.
These are the issues that he campaigned on in 2024. Yet today, having been reelected on these very same cost-of-living issues for many Americans — including members of his base — he mocks affordability. For example, in a speech last December in Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania, Trump said he believed the term “affordability was a hoax perpetuated by Democrats.”
The presidency demands a focus on unity, welfare, and pragmatic problem-solving. History will remember leaders for how they helped their nation through times of hardship — not for how many structures bear their name. If Trump truly wants to serve all Americans, he should pivot away from provocations and petty political theater and instead use the power of his office to address the real issues that affect everyday lives.
It’s time for the president to be presidential, for all Americans, not just his supporters.
It’s time for THIS president to be removed from office.