In 1986, some of us were watching television and saw a man come back from the grave with an urgent warning.
His name was Yul Brynner, a legendary actor and longtime smoker who had quit smoking — but not in time to save his life.
Shortly after he died of lung cancer, a haunting message was aired in which Brynner urged the public to not make the deadly mistake he had made.
I believe we are in a Yul Brynner moment in the life of America.
So do many of the most respected military leaders of our time — some of whom have been in Donald Trump’s inner circle and held high-level positions in his administration.
They have taken the unusual step of going on the record with grave warnings about what it would mean for the United States should Trump return to the White House — both for our national security and for our democratic liberties.
The latest alarm, as you may have heard, has come from retired Army General Mark Milley, who served as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Trump. As reported in Bob Woodward’s new book War, Milley told Woodward that Trump is “the most dangerous person to this country” and “a total fascist . . . a fascist to the core.”
If you click the photo above, you can read a superb profile of Milley in The Atlantic, which provides an inside account of how he and others in the administration worked to contain Trump’s reckless impulses and, among other things, prevent an accidental nuclear war.
I also strongly recommend that you watch the video below.
I am sharing it in response to those of you who have told me that while you find Trump an unacceptable choice for president, you are also opposed to voting for Kamala Harris because you don’t know enough about her, feel she is too far left, or just don’t like her.
As you may have heard, earlier this month former Congresswoman Liz Cheney, who was the third-ranking Republican in the House of Representatives, endorsed Kamala Harris for President.
Most people have not watched Cheney’s endorsement speech in which she explains why — as a staunch conservative — having never voted for a Democrat in her life — she is committed to doing everything she can to ensure that Kamala Harris is elected President.
I present this information now, in this way, because I don’t want any of us to be on the other side of this election — looking back — and, like Yul Brynner — delivering a message that, for our nation, comes too late.