New York Times Editorial Board Says Donald Trump Is Unfit to Lead: ‘Clear Lack of Moral Fitness’

The New York Times editorial board published a lengthy and scathing editorial on Thursday in which they declare Donald Trump is unfit to lead, outlining five areas in which they say he fails as a candidate for President of the United States.

“A once great political party now serves the interests of one man, a man as demonstrably unsuited for the office of president as any to run in the long history of the Republic, a man whose values, temperament, ideas and language are directly opposed to so much of what has made this country great,” the board says ahead of next week’s Republican National Convention, at which Trump will receive the party’s nomination for president.

In the editorial, the board contrasts Trump with “principled public servants” like George H.W. Bush, Mitt Romney and John McCain, saying Republicans have “set aside their concerns” about Trump because of his positions on immigration, trade and taxes.

“Mr. Trump has shown a character unworthy of the responsibilities of the presidency. He has demonstrated an utter lack of respect for the Constitution, the rule of law and the American people,” the piece continues. “Instead of a cogent vision for the country’s future, Mr. Trump is animated by a thirst for political power: to use the levers of government to advance his interests, satisfy his impulses and exact retribution against those who he thinks have wronged him.”

Pointedly, the editorial follows with: “He is, quite simply, unfit to lead.”

The opinion piece comes a few weeks after the Times’ editorial board called for Joe Biden to step out of the presidential race, a call that at the time was seen as controversial but in the ensuing weeks has been followed by similar calls from other outlets, pundits, politicians and major Democratic donors.

In their diatribe on Trump, the editorial board acknowledges the Democrats are waging their own debate regarding their nomination, which the board says “is so intense because of legitimate concerns that Mr. Trump may present a danger to the country, its strength, security and national character — and that a compelling Democratic alternative is the only thing that would prevent his return to power.”

The board says it’s a “national tragedy” that Republicans are not having a similar debate about Trump, outlining the ways in which he fails as a candidate in moral fitness, principled leadership, character, “a president’s words” and rule of law.

“That task now falls to the American people,” the editorial says. “We urge voters to see the dangers of a second Trump term clearly and to reject it. The stakes and significance of the presidency demand a person who has essential qualities and values to earn our trust, and on each one, Donald Trump fails.”

Read the complete editorial here.