It's a Country, Not a Business

Dear Donald,

First, I want to thank you for calling upon your supporters to stop committing hate crimes in your name. The message could have been a bit stronger, but I appreciate you speaking out to stop the violence. This sends a powerful message that you do not condone these actions – I hope you demonstrate that you also will not tolerate them.

You know what else sends a powerful message, Donald? Your choice of Stephen Bannon as your senior advisor. And this message is considerably less positive. You’re doubtless already aware of the outpouring of negative opinion about this decision, so I won’t belabor it here. But I want to emphasize that I completely understand why people are reacting negatively, and I agree with them. Bannon does not represent a just and inclusive America, and he is not the sort of person with whom you should align yourself as President.

Right now, lots of your opponents think that your appointment of Bannon confirms their suspicions that you are racist, sexist, xenophobic, etc. As I’ve indicated in prior letters, it is simply not possible for you, as President, to be any of those things. Our democracy rests on the fundamental principle that every person is equal, and that every person matters – and it is incumbent upon you to behave accordingly. So I’m guessing what happened here is that, in making this decision, you reverted to what you know best: business. You're a great businessman, so this is natural. And clearly Bannon is a reasonable choice from a business perspective – after all, he got you elected against all odds, so he must be good at his job.

But Donald, let me clarify this crucial point: America is NOT a business.

In a business, you are accountable only to your customers. If you’re selling Axe Body Spray to would-be teenage players, who cares if your marketing doesn’t appeal to women? We’re not going to buy any of that stank crap anyway. Your marketing can be as annoying and sexist as you want, because alienating women won’t change your bottom line one bit. But Donald – America is NOT a business! As president, you are accountable to ALL Americans. You have the same obligation to every single one of us, regardless of whether we voted for you. You are now responsible for our safety, our liberty, and our inclusion in American democracy - EVERY LAST ONE OF US, regardless of race, sex, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity – you name it.

How do you figure a Muslim-American woman (emphasis on AMERICAN, Donald) feels today, walking down the street in her hijab, knowing that your top advisor signed off on headlines like “How Muslim Migrants Devastate a Community?” Do you think she feels safe? Protected? Included? Or do you think she’s terrified out of her mind? I’m willing to be that if you’re honest with yourself, you’ll admit it’s the latter. You’re a reasonable guy, Donald – think about it.

How about the LGBT community? Do you think they’re feeling safe knowing that you’re in the hands of a man who published an article describing a “Dangerous Faggot Tour” sweeping college campuses? And women? The sexism of Bannon’s headlines is so extreme that it’s almost funny. I actually burst out laughing at “Birth Control Makes Women Unattractive and Crazy!” Then I realized that it wasn’t satire, and it was actually endorsed by your top advisor. Now it’s not funny. At all.

Anyway, Donald, what’s done is done. Had you consulted me first, I would have told you that Bannon was not the sort of man you need in your administration. I would have told you that he makes you look like a racist and all those other nasty things that we’ve already agreed you’re really truly not. But you didn’t consult me, and here we are. At this point, the best thing you can do is keep that man on a tight leash, and hold him accountable. Tell him that the views of his “news” organization are not your views, they are not American views, and they have no place in a democracy. Tell him that if you hear him promulgating racism, sexism, homophobia, or xenophobia, you’ll use your most famous line on him: YOU’RE FIRED!

Now THAT’s good business!

Sincerely yours,

Jules

PS – sorry we didn’t get to education today – this Bannon thing seemed pretty urgent. If you were waiting on my advice before picking your new Secretary of Education, I apologize for any inconvenience I may have caused. I hope to hit this topic tomorrow.