What bothered me about the Watergate scandal was that Richard Nixon went on camera, looked the American people in the eye and lied. When the truth came out, leaders who believed and supported him paid a political price.
During the Bill Clinton scandal, someone said something that really stuck with me. “The president has the right to send my son to war. I need to be able to trust what my president says.” Clinton looked the American people in the eye and said, “I did not have sexual relations with that woman,” exposing him as a liar.
I was uncomfortable about the Iraq War, but I never doubted that President George W. Bush firmly believed there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
Multiple times Donald Trump has been on camera making a statement, is criticized for it and then says (and continually repeats), “I never said that.” I can disagree with a president’s policies, but I need to believe when a president speaks, what he tells me is the truth.
If the president lies about small things or continually repeats things that get applause after they have been proven not to be true, how can I believe him when the situation is serious?
Karen Loveridge, Salt Lake City
