To the Journal editor:

Few Americans think lying is acceptable, though most admit they do lie occasionally. That’s normal. But Donald Trump’s lying is habitual and constant; fact checkers say he’s made over 16,000 false or misleading statements since assuming office. And that certainly isn’t normal.

Emboldened by a compliant Senate and GOP, Trump has accelerated his authoritarian posturing, which may explain why his base tolerates his lies. Rejecting the Christian conviction that bearing false witness is a sin, they accept whatever their leader says, treating even his most obvious lies as fact.

Trump’s insistence that Russian meddling in the 2020 election is a “Democratic Hoax” is his perhaps his most dangerous and consequential lie. Proficient, nonpartisan intelligence sources have confirmed that Russia meddled in the 2016 election and continues to meddle in our elections today.

Creating distrust in the government and dividing Americans against themselves is a time-tested Russian strategy and it’s being used successfully in this country today.

I ask my fellow citizens to do what they can to strengthen democracy in America. Check your partisanship. Dig for facts. Own your social media behavior. And most of all refuse to be complacent.

Remember, apathy is the biggest threat to the United States.

BRENDA RUSCH

Traverse City