Trump and Golf

I've talked about Obama playing golf before (you can read it right here) and the issue seems to be coming up again with Trump. This isn't really about golf, a sport that I don't particularly care about. It's about trying to score cheap political points against your opponents and not being able to apply the same level of critique against people whom you agree with.

First off, whenever the president plays golf, it's no big deal. The presidency is a job that is 24/7 and all your aides and staff are always within five minutes of you contacting them. Ronald Reagan said it best. When asked about staying at his ranch in California he said "I'm the president no matter where I am." He was exactly right. If a crisis breaks out and the president is playing golf or at his/her ranch, believe me, they'll know what happens within five minutes and they'll be able to make the decisions they need to.

So, another idiotic meme about Trump golfing while the world "falls apart" is making it's rounds on Facebook. I'm not surprised by this. When Obama golfed while the world "fell apart" the left was quiet. While Trump golfs, the right will be quiet. In reality, both sides complaining about the president golfing are signifiers of how we never apply the same critique of our own views that we do of views that we disagree with. Before we start screaming about what a politician who we disagree with does, we should ask ourselves "If a politician I liked did this, how would I feel?" It's actually a good way to think when it comes to politics.