OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
The billionaire co-founder of Home Depot and Jobs Creator Network turned philanthropist Bernie Marcus publicly announced he is now supporting former President Donald Trump, declaring that he is on a glide path to the GOP nomination.
As reported by Just the News, “Marcus, for decades one of the most influential donors in politics and philanthropy, made the endorsement in the immediate aftermath of the third Republican primary debate, which drew an unexpectedly small audience and some criticisms as well.”
Though the Republican National Committee has held three debates with a fourth planned, Trump has not attended any of them, citing his wide double-digit lead in the polls. The 94-year-old Marcus declared the debates to be “unproductive and embarrassing” spectacles given Trump’s huge lead over the rest of the field.
“Let’s face it: Donald Trump is going to win the nomination. You should be doing all you can to ensure his winning the general election,” Marcus wrote in a RealClearPolitics op-ed. “I understand the frustration of some of my Republican friends who do not like or are offended by things Donald Trump does and says. I, too, have been frustrated at times, but we cannot let his brash style be the reason we walk away from his otherwise excellent stewardship of the United States during his first term in office.”
“I endorse him not only because he has the best chance of winning the general election but because he is the best person to take on and dismantle the administrative state that is strangling America,” he added before highlighting the ongoing war in the Middle East and praising the former president’s history of maintaining peace abroad.
“America’s enemies respect and, more importantly, fear Donald Trump’s judgment, strength, decisiveness, and courage,” he declared. “I urge my fellow Democrats, Republicans, and Independents to put their love for America above all else. I urge the Republican National Committee to end the Republican debates that only benefit ad makers and political consultants.”
Earlier, he noted:
I am 94 years old and like many of you, I am exhausted by politics and saddened by what I see happening to America. I had hoped it was time for me to move to the sidelines and let younger generations continue the fight to preserve America’s founding freedoms and values. But, like so many of us, I realized that I could not let myself walk away; the stakes are just too high.
We cannot let the America we see today be what we leave to our children and grandchildren. Many of our once-great cities have devolved into lawlessness with random violent attacks on innocent people, rampant looting, and large-scale homeless encampments. There are rarely consequences for the wrongdoers because George Soros-elected prosecutors across America refuse to prosecute them.
Moreover, our southern border is unprotected, and millions of people we know nothing about pour into our nation to receive care and benefits that we cannot afford to provide to our struggling military veterans. Worse, many of the border crossers may be gang members who commit violent crimes here. Schoolchildren across America cannot read, write, or do basic math, while our educational leaders tell us that they know better than parents how to raise our children. Working men and women are struggling to provide for their families and must raid their retirement funds just to feed, clothe, and take care of their children. These are just a few of the problems America is facing after three years of bad government policies. They cannot be our legacy.
This should not be a partisan issue. This should be an issue for all Americans – Democrats, Republicans, and Independents – that I hope to reach with this op-ed.
