I have a friend who lives in Nuremberg, Germany and who also is a print journalist who works for a newspaper called Nurnberger Nachrichten.

My friend asked me to put together an essay about the seeming conflict I have in opposing Donald J. Trump while living in the heart of what might be considered Trump Country. I wrote the essay. My friend — who speak impeccable English — is going to translate it into German and will publish the essay in his newspaper.

I want to share with readers of High Plains Blogger what I wrote for my German friend. So, with that …

***

Politicians of both major U.S. parties agree on precisely one thing regarding the upcoming election of our president.

It is that we are going to conduct “the most consequential election” in memory. Perhaps in the history of our republic.

I tend to believe that the election we are about to conduct falls into the latter category of consequence. This one means more than any previous election we ever have had in our country’s history.

What is at stake? Let me count as many as I can think of at this moment.

Donald Trump has emerged as the most dangerous man ever to be elected president. I did not vote for him in 2016 and I will not vote for his re-election this time. The danger he presents is manyfold.

Trump brought no public service experience to the presidency. He has no appreciation for public service or for those who perform it. He states a bizarre affection for authoritarian leaders, citing specifically North Korean killer/tyrant/despot Kim Jong Un and Turkey’s strongman Recipp Erdogan. Trump’s affection for Russia’s Vladimir Putin is well-known.

I believe Trump sees himself as an authoritarian figure and wants to bend our system of government to conform to his desire to be the man who controls everything. Our nation’s founding fathers built a government that is based on limited presidential power and the sharing of power with Congress and the federal courts. Trump does not understand that concept. Why? He is ignorant in the extreme.

I spent more than 30 years as a print journalist and in my years since retirement I have continued to comment on political matters through my blog, High Plains Blogger. I live in Texas, which many Americans consider to be the heart of Trump Country. Yes, he won Texas’s electoral votes in 2016 but I am happy to report at this moment that the contest for our state’s electoral votes is anyone’s guess. Polling shows former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden running practically even with Trump.

Still, my blog tends to paint me as a political outlier, given that I am surrounded by Trump supporters. Indeed, I have many friends – and even a few family members – who align with Trump. I love them all in spite of our differences.

We vote in Texas in an “open primary” system, which means that when we vote in the primary, we simply choose which party we want to vote in on Election Day. I tend to vote Democrat, but I have voted Republican at times, depending on the local races involved. This presidential election has been difficult for me in one regard: I am solidly behind Joe Biden’s candidacy, but almost all my friends either are leaning toward Trump or are dedicated to re-electing him. I do not discuss presidential politics with them. It has become commonplace in Texas, I believe, for friends and family members to avoid discussing politics when there are differences of opinion regarding the presidential candidates.

Trump’s presidency has changed the mood in the United States. His divisive rhetoric has driven a wedge between family members. I have heard too many stories from people I know about how their family relationships have been damaged or even destroyed by those differences. It is one of the many tragedies surrounding this man’s presidency.

None of this shames nor embarrasses me. It does make me angry. The level of disagreement has reached a level I do not recognize from previous political eras. There is a saying in Texas that “politics is a contact sport.” I fear that it has become more of a “collision sport,” with both sides intent on inflicting permanent damage on each other. I am retired these days from daily journalism, so I am decidedly less inclined to expose myself to the collisions that are occurring all around me in Texas as my friends, neighbors and family members continue to debate the issues surrounding this campaign.

Trump’s dangerous presidency needs to be replaced with a president who understands how government works. Trump campaigned for president in 2016 vowing to “put America first.” He has insulted our international allies in the process. Trump’s threats to withdraw our nation’s support of NATO – the pre-eminent international alliance on Earth – has been frightening in the extreme. Those threats play directly into the desire of Putin, whose aim is to undermine NATO, which as you know was formed to deter aggression from what was known then as the Soviet Union.

Let us extend the danger to Trump’s decision to pull the United States out of the Paris Climate Accord. I believe we are the only major nation on Earth to stand apart from those accords. Dangerous? You had better believe it!

Trump has long boasted about how smart he is, how rich he is, how worldly he is. Trump’s intelligence is now an open question, as is his wealth. My own view has been that individuals who are truly smart and truly wealthy should have no need to keep telling others about their intelligence and wealth. Former Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney once described Trump as a “phony” and a “fraud.” Trump’s continued boasting of his wealth and intelligence confirms Romney’s view.

Americans face a critical decision on Nov. 3. It is the most critical election certainly in my lifetime. It stands as the most critical election in our nation’s history.

America’s Electoral College allowed for the election of a guy who played to Americans’ fears. We are paying the price for acting on those fears. It is my sincere hope we can snap out of it in time to elect someone who has an actual understanding of how government works.

And who knows? Texas, which for a long time has been a Republican bastion, has become what we call a “battleground state,” meaning that both presidential candidates are focusing more attention – and spending more money – to win our votes. There might be a glimmer of hope that when the ballots are counted, I might no longer be an “outlier” in a state known for its rough-and-tumble politics.