I am a sixty-three year old man and the father of five children, grandfather of thirteen, and soon-to-be fourteen beautiful children. Saturday night, April 13, 2024, I found myself at a Trump rally in Pennsylvania.
After noticing me at the rally, people have asked me, “How can I support Donald Trump?”
I will tell you in a quick sentence. I love my country, and I feel that it is my obligation as a citizen to ensure that my grandchildren are able to grow up in a world with all of the advantages and beauty this country has to offer. I want them to live in a world similar to the world in which I grew up. I want them to have the same advantages I had, and all Americans had before me. We live in the greatest country in the world.
Is America perfect? No! But we are working on it!
Just ask the 40,000+ people who attended the rally in Schnecksville, PA. Since Saturday night, I have heard from dozens of people on social media who watched the event, and saw me there.
“Was that you?”
I am proud to say yes! The guy with the goatee over Trump’s left shoulder was me.
I was invited because of my work with the Black Conservative Federation and David Winkler for Congress PA-04. David is part of the team that is putting Pennsylvania in play! Which is why Donald Trump landed in this small town to speak to us. It is also why over 40,000 people showed up for this rally.
But the bigger question to answer is why do I support Donald Trump?
Why Donald Trump?
I was born in 1960 and I grew up in a row house in the Bronx, a borough of NYC. My home was about fifteen minutes from where Donald Trump grew up, yet I did not grow up in the more affluent section. (Today, unfortunately, it is AOC’s district). Donald Trump grew up in Queens, I lived across the Long Island Sound in The Bronx, NY. Though we were NEVER part of the same circle, and I have never met him, I understand him as someone who has a similar approach to getting things done. I believe I have an understanding, from our proximity growing up, of how he looks at people and how he approaches things.
I will be honest; I have found that my New York City bravado and way of carrying myself does not work in 99% of the country. I come across as a large person, and I strut like a New Yorker. I can tell you, similar to Donald Trump, I have found that people have had visceral dislike for me, just because of the way I carried myself. Either you love me or hate me.
New York Speak
In New York City, people talk LARGE. People like Donald Trump can back it up. He is a businessman who sells his brand, TRUMP, every day. His success comes from that. New Yorkers are always talking in absolutes. As my friend John Cummings put it succinctly (John, a more deserving candidate, unsuccessfully ran in 2020 against AOC), “Frank—we all talk like that. That is who we are. Sometimes, people don’t get us, but it is just the way we handle ourselves.”
As an example, I would say in a definitive tone, “Looking for the best Pizza in NYC, go to the Bronx – and eat at Loretta’s Pizza in Country Club. My friend Rob Gaspari, who I know from high school, will take care of you. They are the best!”
People from New York City talk like that. So, when Donald Trump speaks about the great things he has done, the great places he knows, or his achievements, he is always building the TRUMP Brand. The media hates that about him. He plays their game as one of them, so they will continually attempt to bring him down. Unfortunately, the press MUST set the standard, and woe to the person who sets the standard FIRST.
That way of talking does not affect me in quite the same way as someone from, say, Atlanta or Colorado. Texans talk big, I hear as well, but they are a Republican State, so they know what I am saying. But the press has no clue on how to subvert Donald Trump, the Trump brand, and his hold on 750 million Americans, a number growing rapidly.
Misinterpretations in Language
One area of misunderstanding is in language. Trump, while speaking in English, speaks a different language than most. His language is rooted in a New York way of speaking. As a project professional for thirty years, I developed a project management methodology based on the use of language in project management. The methodology is based on quantifying the customer’s needs. I found that the misinterpretation of a single word will more than likely ruin your project’s success. My methodology is called Quantifiable Program Management ™. I spent over twenty years perfecting it. My background of living in a bi-lingual home gave me the idea and showed me firsthand how a misinterpretation can lead to large upsets and arguments in a family.
Businesses speak in so many different languages (legal, finance, IT, HR, and general business). In many cases, some words or acronyms mean totally different things to different audiences. A single word can easily be misrepresented. The same word to one group can mean something totally different to another group, The misinterpretations can cause a project to fail. (For example, the difference between a dozen (12) and a baker’s dozen (13) is 9.23%. In a hundred million dollar project that is almost $10 Million. People get fired for having cost overruns of almost 10%!) Don’t kid yourself, it happens more than anyone thinks.
James Comey’s Vengeance Over a Mis-Interpreted Word
I stumbled upon James Comey’s book at the Dollar Store. Thankfully, it was before Biden’s inflation, so I only paid a dollar for it (one dollar would be all I would pay for that book). Today, it would cost me $1.35. I wanted to read why Comey so hated Donald Trump. I found the classic example of a single word misunderstanding. Comey called out in his book that the word was “Loyalty.”
James Comey was the FBI director, and he already walked in with a preconceived notion about Donald Trump. He expressed it in the book that he felt he was crooked, and before they ever had the first conversation, that he was bad. To him, Trump was an outsider, an interloper. At the same time, Trump was also trying to gauge his new FBI director.
James Comey, just weeks prior, took glee in destroying the life of General Flynn (a decorated patriot), and his sights were now set on “Donald Trump.”
Keep in mind that James Comey is part of a DC culture that believes the American people did not elect the “right person.” That opinion is not any different from the media’s. So, James Comey, an appointed official and not elected, took it upon himself to take down a duly elected President.
Why?
He said it was over the word Trump spoke, “LOYALTY”.
James Comey’s misinterpretation of that word set him off. His assumption was that Trump wanted fealty. Knowing the language, he misinterpreted President Trump’s questioning. But James Comey is too much of an authoritarian and thick-headed to look at where he might be wrong.
The New Yorker’s Interpretation of Loyalty
In the neighborhoods of New York City, loyalty is a BIG word, but it is not used in the same way that James Comey interpreted it. Instead of asking President Trump what he meant by what he said, Comey used it to solidify his opinion. He firmly believed that this was an example of Trump wanting to have everyone fall at his feet to worship him like a god. Having grown up in a neighborhood close by, we are talking a difference between a baker’s dozen and a regular dozen. Loyalty to a New Yorker means – when people are turning against me, do I have the benefit of the doubt that you will let me know, so we can address it? Trump was trying to win over Comey, not have Comey worship him.
In my neighborhood in the Bronx, factions are always fighting one another. Trump believed politics was similar – it was. However, Comey, like most in the FBI leadership felt Trump was not their guy! As such, Comey made his decision without facts, based only on his own impressions and interpretation. The fact is, “loyalty ” in a NY neighborhood means: are you going to believe everything someone tells you about me, or will you confront me first to discuss your assumptions and agree on a course of action? Keep in mind the FBI is not an autonomous operation. They report to the Department of Justice, that reports directly to the President, it is an executive branch authority. However, the FBI does not report to this President. They feel unlike the military; they can do as they please, even spy on a presidential candidate based on lies, they do not report to elected officials outside the club.
James Comey already had a preconceived opinion about Trump, regardless of whether Trump was elected by the people. This FBI agent believed Donald Trump was guilty and he would be the judge, jury, and executioner. Trump was already guilty, despite the 5th Amendment and the presumption of innocence. To the FBI, guilt would be proven through due course. He will find the smoking gun. This is an indication of what is wrong with that institution.
How the Media and DC Insiders Treat Trump Today
It is unfortunate, but the presumption of innocence has left the American lexicon. Once a valued right, it has been thrown to the wayside. So, too, has freedom of speech. In the 1950s, the left cried uncontrollably about the McCarthy hearings and their unconstitutionality. It was a destructive moment in American history!
But today, the Democrat party has decided to use the same playbook. The results in both cases were and are egregiously wrong. In the world of the media, Donald Trump is 100% wrong and must be punished for his belief. Every word is parsed looking for a flaw. Trump is not a politician, and his off-the-cuff remarks are what he is feeling at that moment. He is totally transparent. Trump, who prides himself on speaking off the cuff, is a large target of the media. The media gets caught up in his inarticulate presentation, not the message he is conveying. But listen to him; he is not incorrect in his assumptions.
However, this does not explain the visceral hate ginning up of the populace to the image of Donald Trump. It is like watching a Frankenstein movie, or for a classic example, I ask you to watch the video of “GET THE BEAST” from the Disney film “Beauty and the Beast.” Try replacing the words THE BEAST with “Donald Trump”. It’s not uncanny – it’s frightening.
The Media Lies and People Eat It – Some of Them
That is the media today, whipping the public into a frenzy on everything Trump does. At the same time, the liberal left lawyers on the dole from George Soros create laws out of thin air just to indict Donald Trump. They are intent on getting him in jail. Also mind you, this is an effort to take away our individual freedoms at the same time. The press revels in this, first of all, because they are no longer independent (places like OpsLens and online media are independent); these are corporate goons. Tech companies will filter out what they do not want you to see. (Case in point the 2020 election – we all know something happened. The numbers prove there was something that happened). But liberal media has shut down all debate – “There’s nothing to see here, people.”
WAIT A MINUTE – SOMETHING DID HAPPEN – BUT ANY INVESTIGATION WAS HALTED. THEIR GUY WON.
The media does not want change; they want to continue to line their pockets, with George Soros and other actors paying them handsomely to do so.
Propaganda is real. I believe this trend is disturbing. Outlets like CNN and MSNBC feed the fire. They are perplexed that some people aren’t listening. Why? Because their own eyes are witnessing the lies spread in real time. Some will repeat the lies. Others who want more are starting to question just why they are pushing so hard?
Many are just perplexed at what is happening. Some are asking questions and often thinking; when does this stop? Donald Trump and his followers today are in the crosshairs. Am I next?
Tomorrow who or what else will be at risk?
Are our liberties next?
Friends of President Trump That Know Him
I know many people in NY City who have worked for Trump for years. One of my high school friends, Phil Pignatelli, works in the NYC construction business. His construction work helped to build many buildings for Donald Trump over the years. Phil has played golf with him. He was invited to his home. Phil is not a wealthy baron; he grew up in the Bronx in my neighborhood. He went to grade school and high school with me. He is a regular guy. Phil is a lifetime New Yorker, and I have known him for over fifty years as an honorable person.
Phil said this to me today:
“I know Donald Trump; I played golf with him. Is he brash? Yes, he is! He’s not a politician! But Donald Trump is the same guy you saw on stage last night—personable and funny.
He could have retired to play his life out on the golf course and lived a great life in all of his mansions. He did not need to do this… The lawsuits and everything going against him would have stopped immediately. All he had to do was to just pack it in and walk away!
But that is not Donald Trump.
I know him, and from over thirty years of working with him, he cares so much about his country. The United States and it’s people have given him and his family so much. He is willing to risk his fortune and his freedom for the America where he grew up.”
Interesting, but isn’t that what the Founders said in 1776?
“We mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.
The People Spoke Yesterday, and Washington, DC Had Better Listen
After being at the Trump rally yesterday with 40,000 people and listening to him speak, men and women of all races and nationalities were standing side by side, interacting with other Americans. Yesterday, Donald Trump had us notice that we are not Black, Hispanic, Italian, white, or any other nationality Americans. We are all Americans. The crowd was singing along with Lee Greenwood’s “I am Proud to Be an American”.
I was in awe yesterday as people brought their children to the event. I met a beautiful twelve year old girl from Philadelphia named Sabrina; she was there with her mother (both are black women). I sat with David J. Winkler, who is running for Congress in PA04, along with others who were part of the Black Conservative Federation, the stage included other Americans. This was a rally that included everyone! The consensus is that the people of Pennsylvania have had enough of policies that do not protect them and their lives as American citizens. Enough of the media divisiveness, the race-baiting, the globalist agenda. They are tired of sending our jobs to foreign countries. More concerned at the millions of illegals that have poured across our border. Lastly, they are concerned about the absolute dilution of our precious citizenship. Because no matter the color, these people who are arriving are NOT Americans.
I met with people concerned about their rights as citizens. Rights usurped by a central Washington bureaucracy with its thirst for power and control. Pennsylvania was, and still is, the engine that built this country. First with farming, then after industrialization came the oil, coal, and gas energy jobs. Steel and manufacturing in Pennsylvania, which was the lifeblood of our country, is disappearing along with jobs. Steel was once the strength and backbone of Pennsylvania (i.e., Pittsburgh Steelers). It has now all but disappeared.
Washington does not want native Pennsylvanians to work hard anymore. Almost implying: “Let’s import cheaper labor from somewhere else.” Instead of utilizing the hardest workers in US history, Washington wants to ship Pennsylvania jobs as well as jobs from other states to places like China, India, and Mexico. On top of that, they want to import cheap labor from foreign countries that allow them to invade our borders. If that is not enough, they want to send our resources of jobs and people to foreign countries.
Wait a minute: What is my citizenship worth?
Pennsylvania Speaks
Pennsylvania is the bastion of American democracy, hope, and freedom. It is where we began as a nation almost 250 years ago. Pennsylvanians know what true freedom is. I was in awe and almost brought to tears witnessing the camaraderie of true Americans. People are proud to be American, wearing their country’s colors proudly. People who are told by the media and the elites they are simple-minded for their patriotism. I saw people caring about one another and their country. Most of all, Pennsylvanians want to take their country back. They are tired of the lies they are fed from President Biden and the media. They are told inflation isn’t hurting! Tell that to the single mothers I met or to families I sat with trying to make ends meet. They know the effects of the rise in prices and inflation. That, for those who don’t understand, is the basis of the popularity of Donald J. Trump.
I see a groundswell similar to the words echoed in the Declaration of Independence. I have seen Donald Trump as someone we should honestly support because he is risking it all. I believe he is doing it for his country and for us. He has earned our support. He has mine.
