It’s not an easy time to be a Republican, if you are an honest conservative. The adage that there is no such thing as an honest politician has been carried to an unfathomable extreme by Donald Trump. I can no longer be a Republican as long as dishonesty, racism and fear-mongering are the prime credentials that the Republican presidential candidate offers.

Recently, a fact-checker editor who covered a speech by Trump was shocked by the endless string of falsehoods and disproven statements that he took a different approach: write about only the true statements. It was a very short column, as there was very little factual information presented.

With J.D. Vance on the ticket, Trump Republicans have doubled down on dishonesty and racism. This appalls me, as I trust it does all honest folks. Vance’s denigration of not just the legal immigrants, but the whole community of Springfield, Ohio, is just about as wrong as it gets. His racist falsehoods rallied white supremacists to show up and cause problems in Springfield. Even the Republican governor asked them to back off with the racism and lies.

As the people and states horrifically impacted by Hurricane Helene try to recover and get back to some semblance of normalcy, Team Trump has been causing another form of damage, this time from toxic hot air, by being openly dishonest about the government’s response and lying about Biden diverting money away from disaster relief (as Trump actually did in 2019). Instead, they should be rolling up their sleeves and helping. Their actions are shameful at best.

Again, I ask, how can those Republicans who are honest and support the Republican ideal of fiscal conservatism not be upset with what the Republican party has devolved into? Why did no honest Republican challenge Trump? Four years ago, I supported the Lincoln Project’s efforts to shed light on the reality of who Trump really is. This pro-democracy organization is made up of Republicans who represent years of working within the party and working for Republican politicians. I urge you to read what they have to say in this election cycle: https://lincolnproject.us/.

On Sept. 28, Vance spoke at an event hosted by extremist Christian nationalist leader who seeks to end the separation of church and state, putting the US under theocratic rule, which violates the First Amendment of our Constitution. Vance claimed that “American children. … can’t add five plus five, but they can tell you that there are 87 different genders.” Even MAGA folks must be scratching their heads at that nonsense.

As a former business owner, Trump is the kind of businessman I would never have done business with. Trump-owned businesses filed for bankruptcy protection six times. This shielded him from financial liability and left contractors unpaid and many working people struggling to make ends meet. Trump got out from under billions of dollars of debt. As a fiscal conservative, I understand why a person or business might go bankrupt, but six times is either the sign of a dishonest businessman or a crook.

Trump and his supporters have forgotten what they were taught about how our democratic republic is meant to work. I would urge everyone to re-read our Constitution. We deserve more from a presidential candidate who by word and action does not believe in our Constitution and thumbs his nose at the law.

I cannot, in good faith, remain a registered Republican. Trumpians and the Congressional Freedom Caucus have shown our nation the meaning of dysfunctional. A fight in a playground has more structure and order, more substantive discussion and respect for others. Too many of this new MAGA Republican faction show little skill to understand the concept of governance. There’s a serious shortage of critical thinking.

Rick Meis

Halfway