By GEORGE BALL

Some weeks ago – before the debate debacle, before Trump’s COVID infection, before his viral “victory” lap around Walter Reade, before his trashing of the Navy Seals who killed Bin Laden, before he elevated QAnon and claimed to have saved America from Dr. Fauci’s fear mongering – before any of that, I made my first foray into presidential politics.

At a very low level. I signed up to make phone calls from New Jersey to Arizona through a computer program run by the Biden campaign.

When it works as intended, the program calls a registered voter in Arizona, regardless of party affiliation. Voters who answer the phone generate a pleasant bell tone on my computer, which (remarkably) simultaneously populates the voter’s name, along with (less remarkably) a rather lengthy script that volunteers like me are asked to read.

But I didn’t read it. I limited myself to what mattered.

I said, “I’m a Republican calling on behalf of Joe Biden,” “are you supporting him” and, if yes “do you need any information about where and how to vote.”

Over half an hour I got multiple hang ups, 2 Bidens, and 5 Trumps. Which was irritating, but also genuinely piqued my curiosity. I know why I am a lifelong Republican who supports Biden. Not because he is always or even often right. Rather, it is because he listens to more than his own ego, will change course when necessary, wears a mask, and is a decent, likeable person. But different people can see things differently. I really wanted to know why Trumpers support Trump.

So I asked each of the 5 Trump supporters to share with me what they felt were the most important things the President has done to benefit the country. Here is what I got.

One Trump supporter hung up. Another told me “the economy.”

The third cited the President’s “sincerity,” and how he “was fighting corruption.” She went on to volunteer that Trump wasn’t a “bumbling old man” like Biden. When I asked whether she was voting for Martha McSally (the Republican candidate) or Mark Kelly (the Democratic candidate) for Senator in Arizona, she told me “neither, they’re both retarded.”

A fourth shared his opinion that Trump was the “greatest president in American history,” and he supported “everything” Trump was doing. When I asked him to pick the two most important things, he said “Korea” and “standing up to China.”

Let’s spend a minute on some of this. Although “everything” is too broad for me to cover here, it is worth noting that the U.S. Department of the Army recently estimated that North Korea possesses between 20 and 60 nuclear weapons (with the capacity to produce 6 more per year), is weaponizing small pox and anthrax for potential use against the United States, employs an army of 6,000 computer hackers, and possesses the world’s third largest stock pile of chemical weapons. https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2020/08/18/national/northKorea/US-Defense-Department-North-Korea-nuclear/20200818170800386.html.

As for McSally and Kelly’s claimed lack of intellect – Martha McSally graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy with a degree in biology and later earned a master’s degree in Public Policy from Harvard University. As a colonel in the United States Air Force she served in Iraq, becoming “the first female U.S. fighter pilot to fly in combat and the first woman to command a fighter squadron.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martha_McSally.
McSally supports President Trump. https://secure.winred.com/martha-mcsally/arizona-red-search/?utm_campaign=ads_mcsally-38481_google_t38481-1131&utm_medium=text&utm_source=google&utm_content=mcsally-38481&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI-O-ghsTJ6wIVAcDICh2-zQPLEAAYASAAEgJxYfD_BwE.

Mark Kelly graduated (with highest honors) from the United States Merchant Marine Academy, and later earned a master’s degree in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. Naval Post Graduate School. Like McSally, Kelly was a military pilot who flew multiple combat missions in Desert Storm. After leaving the Navy Kelly went on to NASA where, as an astronaut, he flew 4 space missions. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Kelly. Obviously, Kelly does not support Trump.

I did not share any of this information with the callers because I was not trying to change their minds. I just wanted to understand what was in theirs.

I don’t know what the fifth Trump supporter (“TS”) liked about Trump, because we never got there. Instead, we had the following exchange:

TS: It’s Sunday. Why are you calling me on the Lord’s f—king day!

Think about that for a moment. I tried to, and responded, “is this a bad time?”

Which went nowhere. We continued. Sort of.

TS: Why are you calling me on the Lord’s f—king day!

Strike two. I briefly considered invoking the Sermon on the Mount. But punted instead.

ME: I have never heard the Sabbath described quite this way before.

TS: (Again) Why are you calling me on the Lord’s f—king day!

Strike three. Though I am not sure who was batting and who was pitching. Regardless, I ended the conversation with “enjoy the rest of the Sabbath, sir.” Not sarcastically. After all, it wasn’t personal. And there wasn’t anything else to say.

That was where we were then.  Where are we now?

Several days ago General Kelly – Trump’s former Chief-of-Staff, reportedly said  “[t]he depths of [Trump’s] . . . dishonesty is just astounding to me. The dishonesty, the transactional nature of every relationship, though it’s more pathetic than anything else. He is the most flawed person I have ever met in my life.”   https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8849681/Former-White-House-Chief-Staff-John-Kelly-says-Trumps-dishonesty-astounding.html

Since General Kelly has not yet specifically commented on this I can’t really say whether those words were actually his.  But if Kelly didn’t use those words, he most certainly could have.  Because Donald Trump is hands down our most pathetic president.

MAGA? How about “you’re fired” instead?