We’d have much to say if someone from a different time period asked us to explain what President Donald Trump is all about.
But regardless of the understanding they’d have of him after walking away from that conversation, one thing would quickly become clear: He’s very polarizing as a person and particularly so as a president.
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While some would rank him as one of the worst presidents the country has ever had, actor Jon Voight recently made a statement declaring him as the best since Abraham Lincoln.
Although it’s unclear whether the person we’re talking about today is aware of that statement, he also saw fit to compare the two men.
It’s clear that he felt differently, however.
The man stood with a sign outlining the differences between Lincoln and Trump in Washington D.C.
This occurred over the Memorial Day weekend during a patriotic display of bikers riding for veterans called Rolling Thunder.
Interestingly, this may be the last year this event takes place. According to USA Today , President Trump declared that the event would continue in D.C., but its organizers said they would instead run it regionally.
But as the engines roared, the man stood in front of Lincoln Memorial with his sign.
And as it will become clear when he starts listing off these differences, he doesn’t consider Trump as anywhere near Lincoln’s league.
For instance, he said that Lincoln “united the nation during its greatest moral and constitutional crisis.”
And even before his efforts to do this led to his death, it was clear they weighed heavily on him. This photo shows how he looked before and after the Civil War was fought.
By comparison, the man said “Trump has divided this country more than at any time since the Civil War.”
The man also mentioned Lincoln’s role in abolishing slavery in the United States.
The first of his major acts towards this goal came with the Emancipation Proclamation, which the National Archives outlined as limited to Confederate states that hadn’t already fallen under Union control. Border states like Missouri and Maryland were also exempt.
Still, the declaration that “all persons held as slaves are, and henceforward shall be free” was a powerful one.
By contrast, the man with the sign said, “Trump encourages racism and intolerance.”
The man went on to highlight the differences between Lincoln’s and Trump’s military service.
While he points out that Lincoln was a captain in the Illinois militia, he also describes Trump as a “five-time draft dodger.”
Turning towards their personal lives, the man mentioned that Lincoln was faithfully married to Mary Todd all his life.
By contrast, he said, “Trump cheated on all his wives and paid hush money to his affairs.”
More generally, he saw a difference in how Lincoln and Trump comport themselves.
As he put it, “Lincoln conducted himself with dignity and treated everyone with respect. Trump whines and insults and bullies whenever he doesn’t get his way.”
He had some words to voters for the next election.
“As you decide who to support in our next presidential election, do your homework and pick someone more like Abraham Lincoln, and less like Donald Trump.”
As you can see, he said all of this to get one final message across.
The sign is here in full and serves as an encouragement to seek candidates who embody the kind of traits that we fondly recall in Lincoln. It’s clear that he doesn’t see any of them in President Trump.
