So the great Donald Trump who says he will make America great again, held a press conference at his new luxury hotel in Washington, DC earlier today. The media billed this press conference as, Trump Set to Address "Birther" Issue.
The media anticipating Trump to say President Obama was born in the USA and maybe offer an apology had their cameras focused on the room for at least half an hour. When Trump came to the podium, several people including Medal of Honor recipients flanked him.
Trump started bantering about his new luxury hotel how it was magnificent and probably the best in the world. He then introduced the two Medal of Honor recipients who in turn introduced other military personnel. Each gave a glowing endorsement of Trump being the leader that will fix the military problems that the bureaucrats in Washington had failed to do according to them.
You have to give Donald Trump credit for finding people who are willing to ignore his many flaws and say glowing things about what he will do if elected president. Never mind that Mr. Trump has never served in any public office and has no record of accomplishment in the public arena. Somehow they along with his supporters believe he can really do the things he has no experience doing.
Finally, the moment to address the birther issue came. If you expected him to get straight to the birther issue without blaming anyone then you were wrong. Mr. Trump said,
Hillary Clinton and her campaign of 2008 started the birther controversy. I finished it. I finished it, you know what I mean. [pause] President Barack Obama was born in the United States period. [pause] Now we all want to get back to make America strong and great again.
That was it just a glib statement on birtherism with no apology. No Mr. Trump, this is not over yet because you did not offer an apology. Why an apology is needed? Your birtherism damaged Pres. Obama (by creating disrespect and hatred of him), damaged the country by causing your party to sabotage the president's agenda and in so doing prevented the country from moving forward, and it made America look bad to its allies. Therefore, nothing you say about birtherism including an apology at this stage would have erased all these things.
Mr. Trump owns birtherism and it defines him. It defines him as a man who is willing to damage the character of anyone he doesn't like. No good leader possesses this negative quality and anyone who possesses it is unfit to be president of the USA.