What if Americans were united in respect for their president? Imagine the possible accomplishments that come with taking pride in being American, whether the president represents your party or not. We all have the rights to free opinion and speech, but respect to the presidency is an essential part of democracy.

A current issue plaguing our country is not only a lack of patriotism, but also respect. The media fails to truthfully educate the public on political topics and instead spends a majority of their articles bashing our president. While every president receives backlash, none have been quite at this level and modern day technology allows anyone to publish anything they’d like on the Internet. We should join in support for our country, regardless of who is leading.

Whether you hate President Trump, love him, or fall somewhere in between, if you’re an American he is your president. Our civilized government selects its leader in a fair and just way that has been practiced for over two hundred years, so people’s refusal to acknowledge President Trump’s authority does not make it any less legitimate. The Washington Post writer Andrew Sabl provides examples of protesters that upon President Trump’s inauguration “[had]  rejected the very legitimacy” of Trump’s presidency “under the slogan #notmypresident”. They immaturely acted like his election was going to be the end of world. Sabl states that constitutionalism allows Americans “to hate and oppose Trump as much as they want”, however they must accept him as the official leader. While the First Amendment gives us the freedom to voice our opinions, to be irrational and ignorant to facts while attempting to undermine the value of American democracy, is simply disrespectful. As an American you have a duty to respect the presidential office and what it means to our nation.

We should be united in supporting President Trump for the good of our country, not solely  because of personal political beliefs. In an article for The Odyssey, writer Ryann McEnany states that as an American, “you should root for your country regardless of the political part you identify with”. We are not one nation under the right or one nation under the left because supporting Trump means fighting for the good of America as a whole.2 If we turn against him or refuse to acknowledge his leadership, we’re harming our democratic system and the possibility for a more successful country. She further explains that if “Trump succeeds, we all succeed” because our country will be stronger and more prosperous. It’s important to remember that “success comes through compromise and understanding” when it comes to differing political views. Respecting President Trump is essential to maintaining our democracy and political system, as well as our future as Americans.

However, The Trentonian writer L.A. Parker strongly opposes respect for him because he believes President Trump is disrespectful to the media. Parker claims “Trump sounds dictatorial” and “resembles his Russian comrade Vladimir Putin” because he revoked the press pass for CNN’s Jim Acosta. In this situation Trump felt that Acosta was disrespecting him, his office, and the White House, however Acosta thought President Trump was disrespectful to him and the press. Parker thinks Trump is disrespectful and in doing so acts like an oppressive dictator. I disagree with Parker’s opinion about President Trump acting dictatorial. His allusion to Putin is offensive and low, the United States is very different from Russia and we should feel blessed to live in our free country. Trump is not trying to “silence and control a free press” but rather give Americans less false and hate news about him. The lack of fair, unbiased news is currently an epidemic in America, and in this particular Jim Acosta situation, Acosta deserved removal because of his disrespectfulness during press conferences. I believe Trump, his office, and White House all deserve respect and reporters are White House guests who may have the right to report there at any time be taken away. If the media would stop constantly trashing him and show both his successes and failures in a fair and honest light like we all want to be treated, there would be more trust and peace in our politics so Americans could be educated with political facts and form their own opinions.

In conclusion, living in America is a blessing we often take for granted. If we continue on with a war between parties and biased media, the division will only become deeper and more irreparable. As Americans, we’re all on the same team and should work together to make America great again. We must be united and proud to be American in order to prosper as one indivisible nation.