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Jaylin Drewry: OPINION

Trump's Reckless Tweets


The tweets need to stop.

Donald Trump is using Twitter in a very reckless way. He began using the platform to communicate with his base way before the 2016 election, and that was fine. But once you are president, your words have the power to start wars.

He joined Twitter in April of 2009, back when he was the host of “The Celebrity Apprentice.” Since he’s been elected president, his tweets have become part of the news cycle almost every single day.

He recently retweeted some anti-Muslim videos of questionable origin. These retweets were no mistake, and caused outrage over the president’s insensitivity to world religions. This is damaging to religious discourse, as well as to a country trying to heal religious divides.

Early in 2015, Trump was asked by a BBC News reporter whether he agrees with what he retweets. He said, "I do retweets, and I mean, to a certain extent, I do, yeah. I think that's right. Do you want me to say no? You know, I retweet, I retweet for a reason," he said in his rambling stream-of-consciousness sort of way.

The President of the United States should understand that his words have a strong influence on the nation and the world. The White House has even said that his tweets are official White House statements. His carelessness with these official statements, however, can be destructive to U.S. policy and our standing in the world.

The president’s more than 43 million followers on Twitter can see how the President is feeling at any given moment. If he is angry or upset or confused, he may resort to insults, threats, and, of course, lies.

Someone should take his phone and delete his account, because if the reckless tweets don't stop, a war is going to break out sooner or later.

Some examples of his petty insults and lies:

TWEET TIMELINE:

NOV. 25,2017

Trump slams CNN in tweet days after Justice Dept. sues to block merger

"@FoxNews is MUCH more important in the United States than CNN, but outside of the U.S., CNN International is still a major source of (Fake) news, and they represent our Nation to the WORLD very poorly. The outside world does not see the truth from them!"

NOV. 24, 2017

Trump tweets he turned down Time's 'Person of the Year,' but magazine says otherwise

"Time Magazine called to say that I was PROBABLY going to be named “Man (Person) of the Year,” like last year, but I would have to agree to an interview and a major photo shoot. I said probably is no good and took a pass. Thanks anyway!"

NOV. 24,2017

Trump rails against NFL for failing to quash national anthem protests

"Can you believe that the disrespect for our Country, our Flag, our Anthem continues without penalty to the players. The Commissioner has lost control of the hemorrhaging league. Players are the boss!"

NOV. 22,2017

Trump calls LaVar Ball 'ungrateful fool' on Twitter

"...LaVar, you could have spent the next 5 to 10 years during Thanksgiving with your son in China, but no NBA contract to support you. But remember LaVar, shoplifting is NOT a little thing. It’s a really big deal, especially in China. Ungrateful fool!"

NOV,11,2017

Trump insults Kim Jong-un, calling him short and fat

"Why would Kim Jong-un insult me by calling me "old," when I would NEVER call him "short and fat?" Oh well, I try so hard to be his friend - and maybe someday that will happen!"

The above are only a few of the reckless tweets he sent out in November alone. He has also retweeted videos and photos from white nationalists and anti-Muslim accounts.

You may remember that he led the movement claiming President Obama wasn't born in the U.S. He once tweeted ...

SEP.11,2012

"Why won't Obama release his college applications? Is there something 'foreign' about them?”

TRUMP VS CNN

President Trump seems to get involved in conflicts just to attract attention. His petty attacks on CNN are just ridiculous. He has repeatedly attacked the organization and suggested that Fox News more accurately covers U.S. current events.

Trump tweeted that: “CNN represents our Nation to the WORLD very poorly,” “The outside world does not see the truth from them!” CNN responded politely via Twitter: “It's not CNN's job to represent the U.S to the world. That's yours. Our job is to report the news.”

Politifact, an independent fact-checking agency, who rates news organizations, discovered that 61% of statements on Fox News for one month were either false, mostly false, or pants-on-fire false. On the other hand, 80% of CNN’s statements were rated as true, mostly true, or at least half true. To state that Fox News is more truthful than CNN is simply nonsense.

But, of course, Trump frequently refers to CNN as “fake news” on Twitter.

YOUR VIEWS

When asked if she thinks that Trump should stop tweeting, sophomore Aniyah Smith, said, “Yes, because he is putting the U.S in danger by attacking other world leaders.”

CHS student Dajahnae Hamlin, asked if the tweets help the country, said, “No, because it gives other countries or terror groups the chance to get ahead of the U.S.”

Algebra teacher Mrs. Jackson, said, “He needs to be impeached because he’s putting our country at risk.”

Donald Trump has reshaped the way a country is run by creating his own 24/7 news channel through his Twitter. Some believe that tweeting how he feels is a good way to communicate with the country, but when you start a tweet war with another world leader, that's when the problems come.

If he continues on this path, the American people will start to think he's mentally unstable and the impeachment process will begin.

Artwork: Creative Commons license: Public Domain Mark 1 / No copyright: https://www.flickr.com/photos/sandiandsteve/32660900321

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