A Political Letter
Nicholas Fogelson, MD
140 NW 14th Ave
Portland, OR 97206
11/9/2016
Dear President-Elect Trump,
I am writing to reach out to you, something I have never been inspired to do for a president-elect in the past. First, congratulations on your hard fought victory, and to your family. It was a surprise for many of us.
While it was probably a happy morning in your campaign and family, it was a pretty dark morning in my household. Our family was very supportive of Secretary Clinton, and felt that she was the best choice for the president. In particular, my wife was a ardent supporter, making hundreds of calls of the Secretary’s behalf. As a Canadian, she was quite looking forward to a continued progressive movement in our country.
We have lived through disappointing elections before, but this one is different. Unlike the general discontent we felt when Bush defeated Gore, today there is a lot of fear. Fear not that the country will not go in the political direction we wanted, but fear that the country will go into hell itself. The person you presented yourself as during the campaign was not a person who seemed to be able to be an effective President. Particularly your presented views on muslims, your seemingly sexist and misogynistic comments towards women, and your views towards Mexicans as well. These things just don’t seem to be what our country should be moving towards, no matter whether you are a Democrat or Republican.
It has been my feeling and hope that during the election you have created this image for the pure purpose of galvanizing a certain segment of society and achieving the victory you now have. It is my true hope that now you are President-Elect, that these incredibly difficult positions can be shed and you can focus on a productive and positive future for our country. It is my hope that these things we saw were actually a very purposeful act, a charade of sorts, and not truly who you are as a person.
My wife and I are both physicians. I am a sub specialist surgeon in the care of women with endometriosis. For the first time in our lives, we are literally considering whether or not the United States is where we want to live our lives. If you end up being a relatively effective conservative president that pushes Paul Ryan’s agenda more or less, we will go on being Democrats who probably vote against you in four years. But if instead you normalize racism, promote a military stance that invites nuclear war, and make it generally acceptable for people to be awful human beings, we would have to consider leaving. And it wouldn’t just be us. It would be a lot of people like us, people who can’t associate with the values you promoted during the campaign. And that would be a terrible thing for our country.
I truly wish you and your family the best, and for success in your presidency. You will now be the most powerful person in the world. I’m sure that already this weighs on your shoulders. Though I voted against you, you are now my President. Please be worthy of that title.
Sincerely,
Nicholas Fogelson, MD
Portland, OR
Dr. Fogelson is a gynecologic surgeon and endometriosis specialist who practices at Northwest Endometriosis and Pelvic Surgery in Portland, OR. Call 503-715-1377 for clinical consultation. http://www.nwendometriosis.com
Academic OB/GYN 
Thank you Dr Fogelson. Very well articulated.
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Just curious if you listened to the speeches themselves, or only sound bites or regurgitated bits claiming to say what he said — or more likely, what the author claimed Trump *meant* by what he said.
First, let me state that I didn’t vote for Trump. Or Hillary. I found them both lacking what I considered to be necessary credentials for the Presidency. I am conservative, and felt, like you, that Trump was only saying things to gin up the vote and get elected, and that he would change once elected. (Though, to be honest, I actually listened to very little of what he said, mostly because I thought he was blowing hot air.) So I understand where you’re coming from when you express dismay about Trump having been elected. I must admit that I have been pleasantly surprised that he has continued to say the same types of things, and now that I listen to him, he doesn’t seem quite as bad as I thought he was.
Second, I think it would be helpful to everyone listening to him, to hear the words that he says, and not to try to read hidden meanings into them. This is another reason to listen to him directly, the full speeches, and not just bits, and certainly not just what someone claims he means.
He’s called xenophobic (though his first and current wife are both foreign, making him more xenophilic than xenophobic) and racist, because he has spoken against allowing unfettered immigration, particularly statements against allowing in Syrian refugees, and building a wall along the Mexican border to try to prevent people from entering the country illegally.
How many Syrian refugees have been taken in by their neighbors, particularly their Muslim/Arab neighbors? I’ve heard that they have taken in NONE, and that the reason was that there was well-founded fear of importing terrorists under the guise of refugees. If you have something to demonstrate that is false, please let me know. Further, I have seen numerous reports of so-called refugees who have claimed to be children (i.e., younger than 18) who were actually grown men, who committed crimes in their new countries after being allowed in. And that the vetting process the U.S. uses for Syrian refugees is akin to asking, “Y’all aren’t terrorists, are you? No? Good — you can come in.” I’m sure it’s a little stricter than that, but again, if you have evidence that there is an independent method used to ensure that the so-called refugees are *true* refugees, let me know. [I’m also sure that most so-called refugees are indeed truly seeking refuge; but we need to ensure that they are screened to catch any bad guys that might be lying.]
As to the border with Mexico — what other nation allows free and unfettered immigration? What other nation allows people to enter illegally, and then to stay with no repercussions once discovered? What is Canada’s requirement for legal immigration? What is Mexico’s? From what I can tell, all Trump is talking about is enforcing the current laws on the books. That’s not hateful and it’s no more racist than Mexico not allowing Americans in willy-nilly.
In short, the charges of racism against Trump seem to stem from reading into his statements, rather than taking them at face value. I daresay you wouldn’t want to be judged by people who read false meanings into what you say.
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Let’s remember, Hillary Clinton led a life full of scandal, lies, and little accomplishment (not to mention rigging the democratic primary). And for decades, the political elites have not paid attention to a majority of our fellow citizens. They could not vote for someone like Hillary Clinton, whose first thoughts as president would be, “Let them eat cake!”.
I was not a supporter of Donald Trump, but it would have been worse to have elected someone from the party of slavery, Jim Crow laws, the KKK, lynchings, segregation, racism, sexism, and anti-semitism. A.K.A., the democratic party. Hillary Clintion is a person who is addicted to power, and is willing to do whatever it takes to get and keep that power. No different than a meth addict.
What this country now needs is a leader that will bring back Constitutional government. Let’s put the citizens back in charge of their lives and goverment. Will Trump be that leader? I don’t know.
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I do not question your education, but your common sense. You gave only two options for President-elect Trump. One consisted of going completely against your beliefs. The other was driving this country to Hell. The fact that you failed to recognize any other options bothers me. You are a medical professional who bases treatment on evidence based research. The unwillingness to accept alternative treatments/outcomes is a scary aspect in this scenario. When considering this personality trait with respect to politics, those opposed to one side should be willing to change their opinion when presented with new information. There is still the possibility that Trump succeeds or at least accomplishes positive strides as the President. Making decisions based on outdated political parties and an unwillingness to change your opinion is no way to go through life.
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Doctor:
I hope you practice medicine better than you practice politics.
Your generalizations of Trumps views based upon biased media characterizations are alarming for an educated person.
Just as a typical example: “Views on Mexicans” – I suppose you are one who claims Trump called all Mexicans rapists and murders, which of course he did not. What he did point out was the demonstrably true fact that illegal immigrants from Mexico consist of some good people, but a disproportionate share of criminals, who are NOT appropriately being deported back to Mexico when in custody and convicted of crimes. We have dead Americans as a result. Even your exhaulted icon of liberalism Bill Clinton made the very same argument, on the floor of Congress no less, and was cheered for it. You have painted Trump to be some type of monster, while probably his worst offense is making crass comments about women.
Meanwhile you support Hillary who’s husband committed sexual assault, and who attempted to destroy those women. I also note that your progressive Canadian prime minister found it necessary to PRAISE Castro – a brutal oppressive dictator – on the occasion of his death.
You should be ashamed of creating a needless false sense of fear within your children simply because of Trumps election.
Should your children be afraid of uncontrolled immigration and the crime and terrorism that accompanies it?
Should your children be afraid of the American medical system being destroyed by Obama?
(Don’t tell me how good the Canadian system is – or you would be practicing there. I am well aware of how many doctors and patients flee the Canadian system on a regular basis.)
Don’t let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.
True Amercian patriots will be here, defending our country and our way of life before it is destroyed by the liberal left. We will also be practicing medicine and taking care of patients – there are plenty of conservative physicians who will work as hard as we need to to make up for your departure.
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Thank God that Hillary Clinton was not elected as you hoped for.
Leaving Americans who were crying out for help for over a year helpless and defenseless, to die in a foreign country without support was atrocious enough in itself to dissuade any American from voting for her.
This country has been on the verge of losing its identity because democratic rule has forgotten American people in support of foreigners flooding into our country illegally, who are unwilling to integrate and become Americans.
When we stand up and say enough is enough, liberals cry foul and say they are afraid we are going to hell. News flash, we have been in hell and now we are seeing a new light, a reimergance of patriotism, Americans standing up for each other and saying, let’s take care of each other first, then we can worry about other people’s and countries.
Thank God Hillary Clinton was not elected. Thank God Obamas will was not done.
Now instead of being a third world country, with a 50 trillion dollar debt in eight years, we will truly be a leader freedom and prosperity again.
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How much would it cost to help you leave? Maybe we can start a professional fund raiser to help you leave.
Bill Mitchell DDS
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