What Donald Trump Could Learn from Old Television Westerns

Lately, I’ve been feasting on old Television Westerns, which seem to be an affirmation of a classic American value-system…1) Truth 2) Gentlemanly Behavior 3) Duty/Service to Country 4) Fair Play 5) Justice 6) Tolerance. This all got me to thinking, how would Donald Trump have fared in these old-fashioned and simple (yet effective), sketches of American ethics? Would it do for the Donald what it did for Ronald Reagan? Let’s find out!

TRUTH AND HONESTY (AND GUNS)

Alan Ladd in “Shane” (1953): “I gotta be going on. A man has to be what he is, Joey. Can’t break the mold. I tried it and it didn’t work for me. Joey, there’s no living with a killing. There’s no going back from one. Right or wrong, it’s a brand. A brand sticks. There’s no going back. Now you run on home to your mother, and tell her…tell her everything’s all right and there aren’t any more guns in the valley. Go home to your mother and father and grow up to be strong and straight. Take care of them, both of them.”

Trump interview with Axios, during 2016 Presidential Campaign:

Axios: Do you ever lie?

Trump: I don’t like to lie, no. It’s something that…it’s not something that I would like to be doing

Axios: Is it ever OK to lie?

Trump: I don’t want to answer the question because it’s — it gets to, you know, a different level than what we’re talking about for this interview.