This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
I read with interest Paul Mero's opinion piece in the July 22 Salt Lake Tribune ("Trump has chased me from the GOP, and you should leave, too").
I applaud Mero for taking his stand and making it public. While he and I see things from a different political perspective, I do agree with him here. Donald Trump does not represent what I know to be conservative principles.
Mero says that "it pains me to see so many otherwise reasonable people defending the indefensible." Precisely. Additionally, Mero states, "Trump is not America first; he's cynicism first. He's fear and anger first." I am encouraged that Mero has taken his stand and finds the current political situation to be "deeply disturbing." I am similarly deeply disturbed by it.
While our two political perspectives differ, we certainly can and apparently do agree that the current state of affairs is an "intellectual disaster."We can do better. We must do better. What we don't need is fear and anger driving our national decisions. We need dialogue and debate on the issues of the day with sound reasoning and cooperation to find and implement workable solutions. We need to bring our best selves to the table and work to resolve the many serious issues that we face nationally and globally. I hope that my fellow Utahns who consider themselves conservative Republicans will take to heart Mr. Mero's words.
Matthew H. Wallace
Millcreek