It’s been difficult to come up with a thimble’s worth of policy agreement with Republicans ever since the Reagan era and trickle down predictably widened the gap between rich and poor. But back then the debates (though sometimes heated), centered around tax policy and war mongering. The MAGA movement is different. Now we’re talking about basic human decency, or the lack thereof.

In the Reagan and Bush eras I frequently debated tax policy and war escalation with friends sitting around a summer bbq. When they arrived they were friends. We discussed. When they left they were friends.

In 2016 we were warned that Trump had a history of racism, bankruptcies, money laundering, cheating his contractors and wives, and an inexplicable disdain for immigrants – many of whom he depended on to keep his hotels running. He got elected anyway. Then came the cries for “just give him a chance.” His disdain for the constitution, dismantling of the criminal justice system, narcissism, propensity to lie, and neurotic behavior are far worse than we feared. And it’s in plain site 365 days a year, 24/7 with every tweet.

Politics can be an uncomfortable subject in social situations. People often stay clear of it so as to not offend. Totally understandable in most situations, but this is different. With Trump it’s not sufficient to just say “Hey, I don’t have any feelings for Donald Trump.” I need nothing short of a denouncement. Anything less is contributing to normalizing a whack job.