What America needs now is a combination of a modern-day Abraham Lincoln and a real-life Ted Lasso. A leader who will inspire all of us, remind us of the better angels of our nature and who believes in what we can become.
Most Americans are unhappy with the direction of the country. In an NBC poll from January, 71% of respondents said the country is headed in the wrong direction. It was the eighth time in the last nine NBC News surveys since October 2021 when the wrong-track response has been above 70%. Americans are also economically anxious and say the economy is the nation’s top issue. We have been living during a time of profound change to our collective culture. School shootings have sadly become commonplace. We are hyperpolarized, living amid siloed media bubbles and unable to agree on common truths.
On April 4, the country experienced a historically sad day. No matter what you think of the arrest and arraignment of Donald Trump, one should be able to admit that he has added to a list of firsts for the country and he has consistently poked the bear of our national divide. Since he came down the golden escalator in Trump Tower on June 16, 2015, he became the first U.S. president to be impeached twice, to incite an insurrection, and now the first ex-president to be indicted on felony charges. The rhetoric and comments surrounding Trump’s arraignment were highly disruptive. Ahead of his indictment, Trump had warned of potential “death & destruction” if he were to face criminal charges at a time when 88% of Americans had already feared some type of political violence.
