Respect. This was a term we had a good understanding of growing up in urban St. Paul, Minnesota. You know, as in, respect your parents, respect your teachers, respect your boss, etc. Webster’s Dictionary defines the word “Respect” as “a feeling or understanding that someone or something is important, serious, etc., and deserves appropriate treatment or regard.” Pretty straightforward, or so I thought. 

President Donald Trump and his administration have redefined the word respect right under our noses. Three recent incidents have led me to question whether this term still carries the connotations it historically did. The Trump administration may have a different interpretation of the word ‘respect’.

No Respect for the Press

On Nov. 14, Trump held a press gaggle on Air Force One en route to Palm Beach, Florida. At the gaggle, Bloomberg reporter Catherine Lucey asked the president a follow-up question about the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files and why he did not release them himself. Lucey: “Why not act, why not…” Trump: (pointing his finger at Lucey) “Quiet, quiet, piggy.” There was no immediate response from the White House Press Corps, but afterwards, there was universal agreement that his reply to Ms. Lucey was disrespectful.

When asked about the incident during a White House Press briefing the following week, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said,

“Look, the president is very frank and honest with everyone in this room…You have all experienced it yourself, and I think it is one of the many reasons the American people reelected this president, because of his frankness. And he calls out fake news when he sees it. He gets frustrated with reporters when you lie about him, when you spread fake news about him and his administration.”

There you have it. Incident number one underscores the administration’s redefinition of the word’ respect’.

Coast Guard Changes Their Tune

Refusing to be tied to archaic definitions of hate, the U.S. Coast Guard on Thursday, released this policy statement. “The policy acknowledges that hate symbols, including ‘representations of supremacy, racial or religious intolerance, or other bias,’ can ‘marginalize segments of our workforce. Displays of symbols “widely identified with oppression or hatred” in private spaces outside public view are specifically allowed under the new guidance.” These definitions include the displaying of nooses, swastikas, and Confederate flags.”

After a tumult of backlash, the Coast Guard released this statement yesterday. “In a clarification of a previous policy announcement, the U.S. Coast Guard prohibits the display of nooses, swastikas, or ‘any symbols or flags co-opted or adopted by hate-based groups as representations of supremacy, racial or religious intolerance, anti-semitism, or any other improper bias.”

Characteristically, the Department of Homeland Security, which has purview over the Coast Guard, denied it had changed its policy before the agency issued the apparent reversal. Once again, Trump and his administration have to walk back a policy that was made thoughtlessly, carelessly, and uncompassionately. In making the initial statement that was completely void of respect, the administration appeared to condone some of the most regrettable and hate-filled moments in U.S. history.

Trump Threatens to Execute Lawmakers

And this third gem relates to the president’s reaction Thursday to a video made by six members of Congress, all with military and intelligence backgrounds. In the video, Sens. Mark Kelly, Elissa Slotkin (Mich.), and Reps. Jason Crow (Colo.), Chris Deluzio (Pa.), Maggie Goodlander (N.H.), and Chrissy Houlahan (Pa.), speaking to U.S service members and intelligence officials, said.

“The threats to our Constitution aren’t just coming from abroad but from right here at home. Our laws are clear: you can refuse illegal orders. You must refuse illegal orders. No one has to carry out orders that violate the law or our Constitution,” 

Trump responded to the video comments with three Truth Social posts. The first one said, “HANG THEM GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD !!” That was followed by a second post that read, “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” And finally, “Each one of these traitors to our Country should be ARRESTED AND PUT ON TRIAL. Their words cannot be allowed to stand – We won’t have a Country anymore!!! An example MUST BE SET. President DJT.”

And leave it to Ms. Leavitt to turn all manner of sin into a righteous rebuttal from the president.

“No, the president does not want to execute members of Congress. You have sitting members of the United States Congress who conspired together to orchestrate a video message to members of the United States military, to active duty service members, to members of the national security apparatus, encouraging them to defy the president’s lawful orders. The sanctity of our military rests on the chain of command, and if that chain of command is broken, it can lead to people getting killed.”

Conclusion

The question remains: are the president’s comments and replies the saddest part of these engagements? Or is it the cover-up, nonchalance, and cheerleading over his actions? Whichever you choose, lack of respect runs rampant in this administration. And with the economy tanking, the release of the Epstein files imminent, and the rapidly approaching mid-term elections, this behavior from Trump and his minions will only intensify.