Today, Donald Trump will receive his first confidential intelligence briefing.
Think about that.
Donald Trump, the impulsive, uncontrollable, narcissist is about to receive some of the most highly sensitive confidential intelligence information available to only Presidents and Presidential candidates.
Yes, you just felt a collective world-wide shudder.
To date, the President of the United States, countless Senators, Congresswoman and Congressmen, current and former defence officials, current and former military leaders, and current and former intelligence community officials have all publicly concluded that Trump is not fit to be President of the United States, and that his presidency would be not only a danger to America, but to the whole world.
The President of the United States of America, Barack Obama, must answer one question above all, and answer it immediately: if Trump is not fit to be President, how is he fit to receive the highest level of confidential intelligence information, especially now that his self-destructing campaign of horror, division, and anti-Americanism is imploding, causing ever increasing erratic behaviour from the candidate himself?
There are no two ways about it: either Trump is fit to be President of the United States of America (and to receive the confidential intelligence information only Presidents and Presidential candidates receive), or he is not. We cannot have it both ways.
Obama cannot have it both ways.
If a Trump Presidency is a danger to the Republic, then too is a Trump candidate with access to the most highly sensitive intelligence information in the world, and the President of the United States of America has a sworn duty to protect the Republic from that danger (and, by extension, the world).
The only possible (and likely) response would be something like this: so long as Trump doesn't win the Presidency, he cannot act upon the information he is to receive today, and the Republic will still be safe.
Oh, really?
Then, why is the information secret in the first place?
Obviously, of the 7 billion plus people on this planet, every other person except for one individual will not become President of the United States of America, and if the information is only dangerous in the hands of an individual who can act upon it, the information should not be classified (by the logic of such a response).
The information is only classified to prevent it from being leaked to the public at large, and to prevent it from being acquired by any individual who would misuse it.
Doesn't that sound like Trump to you?
Trump's out right lies, fabrications and falsehoods have been as well documented as his continuing stubborn refusals to admit his many, many wrongs. Trump says whatever comes to mind, whether it happens to be true or not. And, he has done this consistently, throughout his campaign, despite the backlash it has engendered, and despite the fact that it has driven droves of his own party members away from him and his campaign.
Yet, Trump has vowed never to change.
Truth be told, just about everyone has already concluded that even if Trump tried to, he wouldn't be capable of changing. Now entering his 8th decade, Trump is who he is, and simply incapable of changing.
Is that the man the United States government wants to be in possession of Presidential level state secrets?
It is not only entirely plausible, but almost certain that Trump will lie, fabricate and misconstrue the intelligence briefings he will soon begin to receive in a last ditch desperate effort to try and challenge Hillary Clinton's commanding lead in the polls.
Trump only cares about Trump.
Trump will sacrifice the United States of America (as he has already done countless times during his evil campaign) for the sake of his own political ambitions.
Picture this: this evening, Trump starts tweeting out a storm about the intelligence briefing he just received, attempting to blame Obama and Clinton for everything, peddling his crazed conspiracy theories, and ending with the only policy he has ever had, "believe me".
The danger is that some (his acolytes most especially) will. Far-right conspiracy theorists (already in bed with Trump since his "birther" days) will feed off of his lunacy, a lunacy that will now have access, and refer incessantly, to secret United States' government information.
And what is the possible response? Any answer would either have to expose the truth of the intelligence Trump received (either directly, or indirectly by denying his version and, therefore, reveal the truth), or remain silent while Trump continues to damage the United States government.
After Trump called for the political assassination of Hillary Clinton if she wins the election, and after Trump has started to organise his mobs to descend upon polling stations to physically challenge anyone voting for Hillary Clinton, and after Trump has declared to his followers that any result other than his ultimate victory in November ought to be considered illegitimate (oh, and he wasn't being sarcastic that time), is there any reason to believe Trump will willingly sacrifice the Republic to achieve his nefarious ends?
Remember Trump's outright lies about the "secret" video he had just seen showing Obama (and, by extension, Clinton) delivering a ransom to the Iranians for freed hostages?
That wasn't even a secret intelligence video (briefing). What happens when he gets to view the real thing? What's to stop him from revealing its contents, even if in the most twisted way possible?
The law? The same law that Trump says unfairly targets him and lets Hillary Clinton off the hook for being careless with state secrets? That law?!? Will the FBI ever be able to recommend to the Department of Justice that it lay charges against Trump after it declined to do so against Clinton?
What would be the political fallout of such a conundrum in an already divided nation?
And yet, if possible, there is even one thing more dangerous than what Trump will do with the secret information he is about to receive during his campaign; it's what he will do with it after he loses.
Wouldn't Trump just love to send a self-congratulatory tweet (or tweets, to be precise) about any world event affecting the United States (oh, I don't know, say terrorism?) trying to undermine the next administrative (and, thereby, the Republic) just so he can die saying "I told you so"?
Or, even worse, with Trump's lack of self-control, and obvious Hitler-esque regard for the people (and their country) that are now turning against him, wouldn't it suit Trump just fine to reveal state secrets to America's adversaries abroad (say, perhaps, his BFF: Russia's Putin), so that the fallout would undermine Clinton's administration, allowing Trump to (pretend to) remain "relevant" through incessant "I told you so" self-congratulatory tweets?
Can the United States government guarantee that the secrets its about to reveal to Trump will be guarded at President level secrecy?
(Oh, wait, there's that whole "not fit to be President" thing again.)
And, if not, then is it not the duty of the President of the United States of America to prevent Trump, the mad ogre, from acquiring the most closely held state secrets of the government of the United States of America?
Your move, Mr. Obama.
You can't have it both ways.
Either Trump is competent to be President of the United States of America (and have access to all of its highest-level state secrets), or he is not.
Clearly, Trump is not.
Therefore, the (current) President of the United States of America must act immediately to protect the Republic.