A former chair of SLO County’s Republican Party calls for President Trump’s resignation
Mr. President:
As a Republican who has supported you since your nomination in 2016 and as a social, national security and largely economic conservative, a former chairman of the Republican Party of San Luis Obispo County, California, I ask you to resign effective noon on Wednesday, 13 January, 2021.
I also ask you to apologize to America for the indirect role you played in encouraging a massive crowd to march on the U.S. Capitol and to assure the nation that you have foresworn any future run for the presidency.
Sir, you have many outstanding accomplishments on behalf of this nation, including no less than four nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize for your work to bring peace between Israel and many of the Persian Gulf states and other Islamic nations. No president to date has been able to be so effective or so true to his promises in your support of the nation of Israel. You have much to be proud of, including restoration of a national economy that was floundering when you took office and were it not for the Covid-19 pandemic, would be the source of tremendous prosperity for the end of the year 2020.
Yet all of that is overshadowed by the manner in which you governed. You continuously used the most caustic language toward your political opponents and sometimes your allies of any president in my lifetime. You encouraged your supporters to believe the worst about American institutions, deserving or not, to the point where substantial numbers of Americans have lost confidence in their government. Not since the Civil War have Americans been so divided nor so disdainful of those with opposing viewpoints. You didn’t attempt to heal the nation and continuously took the lowest road. I’m sorry for this outcome as, like many others, I had high hopes for what you could do for America.
This week you gathered an enormous number of supporters in Washington, D.C. You motivated them with your usual charismatic speech, but you also fell back into your habit of blaming others for what you perceived to be an unfair and corrupted political process. You encouraged your followers with the false hope that after exhausting every legal avenue to contest perceived fraudulent election activity you could somehow still reverse the outcome of the presidential election. You encouraged them to march on the Capitol to challenge a joint session of the House and Senate during verification of the states’ electoral votes, even though there is no constitutional provision for the vice president chairing the proceedings to change any of the votes.
Mr. President, there are two Americans dead as a direct result of the crowd forcing themselves into the Capitol building. Many people are injured and your encouragement of the crowd to confront Congress in joint session provided an opportunity for anarchist elements to engage in criminal activity, resulting in the deaths of a woman demonstrator and a Capitol police officer. Considerable damage was done to the interior of the Capitol and many demonstrators now face federal criminal charges with severe consequences.
Sir, you own this. You are the president of the United States and just as a captain of a ship is responsible for everything that happens or doesn’t happen, you are responsible for the outcome of this tragic event that has stained the smooth transition of power from one administration to another.
Sir, step down, apologize to America and foreswear future presidential aspirations. America doesn’t need another impeachment nor a 25th Amendment coup. If you truly love this country sir, as I’m sure you do, please step aside.
Atascadero resident Al Fonzi is a former chairman of the San Luis Obispo County Republican Party. He served 35 years in military intelligence units, from Vietnam to Iraq, retiring with the rank of lieutenant colonel in 2006.
This story was originally published January 9, 2021 at 10:32 AM.