In 2016, many of us who wanted change in the White House took a chance on Donald Trump. We thought he’d lead as a conservative Republican. Instead, he has imperiled our republic.

We are alarmed by the anti-democratic tactics and flagrant abuse of power committed daily by Donald Trump. His actions are an affront to our Constitution and the Republican Party. Our 18th president, Ohio’s Ulysses S. Grant, called his failures “errors in judgment, not intent.”

There is no doubt that in Ohio there are a whole lot of Republican voters who are feeling buyer’s remorse today for falling under the spell of Donald Trump in 2016.

Trump campaigned like a magician who promised, with certainty, that he was the only one who could save the nation and Make America Great Again.

They may not have donned red MAGA hats and showed up at rallies screaming and shouting their fealty to the king of the political one-liners, but, in the end, they did what Republicans usually do: They voted for the presidential candidate nominated by their party.

I’m a dumb guy, especially when it comes to economics. I don’t have a Nobel Prize like New York Times columnist Paul Krugman. I don’t have a doctorate or even a graduate degree. But in spite of my unimpressive credentials, I’ve got a question for Professor Krugman and others: Does money grow on trees?

You see, when I get my credit card bill every month, I have to pay it. If I don’t, it costs me a heck of a lot more. And although my available credit is pretty generous, it eventually runs out.

I learned recently of an experiment unique in scientific circles, conducted by the U.S. Department of Satire, Parody and Other Endangered Resources. Three leading members of the Republican Party were given a truth serum, which caused them to speak honestly and openly about the current political situation. Audio recordings were made of their comments, which have been transcribed.

My mother had a special description for upstanding citizens who didn’t engage in evil acts but kept silent about the ones committed around them. She called them “good Germans.“

I suspect that if Mom were alive today, she’d describe Ohio Sen. Rob Portman and Gov. Mike DeWine that way. These two Republicans aren’t attacking law enforcement and scapegoating immigrants like Republican Rep. Jim Jordan of Urbana, who stoops to any level to win a favorable tweet from the president. Sen. Portman and Gov. DeWine are gentlemen. They would probably never lie about crowd size, demand their enemies be investigated by the Justice Department or pay hush money to cover up affairs. They just keep quiet about these things.