Corporate Purpose and Commitment. Is It Really a Choice Between Shareholders and Stakeholders? It Is Not: It Is The Quintessential Both-And Proposition.

Summary of this Article.

This comment on the Business Roundtable (BRT) announcement on August 19^th adopting a new purpose statement for corporations comes a little late – by more than four months after BRT’s announcement. This subject of stakeholder purpose or shareholder purpose for corporations, though, has been continuously discussed and debated since the 1970s.

It is offered to make the case that the shareholder purpose, or profit-as-purpose, model for corporations is absolutely the wrong model. It also is offered to strongly make a case that the broad primary stakeholder group model is the correct model for corporate purpose and commitment.

 The shareholder profit-as-purpose model has been the dominant and narrow, primary focus of corporations since Professor Milton Friedman presented it ably and forcefully in the 1970s – especially in his article in the New York Times magazine issue of September, 1970. For the most part, the literature and discussions on this purpose subject since then has pitted the stakeholder proposed model against the profit model. Books have been written, lectures given and debates held. Through it all, and in spite of well-presented arguments supporting the broader model, the profit model has not only remained dominant, it has become almost an axiom for publicly held corporations – and private companies as well.

However, it is the wrong purpose, if maximizing long term profit and value creation of the corporation is in fact one of or the main outcome corporations seek to produce.

 BRT’s August 19th announcement moved away from the profit-as-purpose model to a shared purpose and commitment to all primary stakeholder groups of a corporation – customers, employees, suppliers, communities in which they work and long term value for shareholders. This commitment was adopted, BRT said, to “deliver value to all of these stakeholder groups – for the success of our companies, our communities and our country.”

The reactions to the BRT announcement ranged from 1. Support to 2. Skepticism that it might be merely a public relations or political strategy in an election cycle to 3. Rejection. Several journalists and academics weighed in, generally along this range.

It is time for the debate about corporate purpose or the shared fundamental commitment of all corporations in a free enterprise capitalist economy to end. There should never have been a debate in the first place!

BRT and its spokesperson, Jamie Dimon, the current BRT chairman and chair of JP Morgan Chase, should be commended for, at a minimum, having good intentions. There probably was good discussion before the 181 CEOs signed the new corporate purpose statement – probably some healthy debate.

Embracing the concept, though, is only valuable to economies and societies if the full breadth and depth necessary to breathe everyday life into it in practice happens.

Let’s look at both models and see whether and how they are related. If they are related, we might see if there is a best way to move forward, a solution to this nagging, irritating and counter-productive longstanding debate.

Professor Milton Friedman and Profit as the Sole Purpose.

The dogmatic proclamation by Professor Friedman in the 1960s and 1970s - the September, 1970 New York Times magazine article in particular - set the U.S. economy (and other capitalist free enterprise economies) on a 50 year and counting profit-as-purpose path. This model is wrong for two reasons:

1.     The first reason is that a narrow and dominant focus on profit is doomed to fall short of maximizing long term profits (value creation) as an outcome for the corporation – precisely because it is so myopic. To almost always be looking at and even be fixated on the scoreboard without paying attention to all the important things that must be done correctly to produce great scoreboard results as an outcome is self-evidently a flawed model.

2.     The second is the failure to understand that a robust, sage and correct understanding of how to produce maximum long term profit or value creation for the enterprise itself as an outcome requires a corporate commitment to and focus on optimization of the long term value it provides to each of its six (6) primary stakeholder groups. These are essentially those listed by BRT. They are: Customers, Employees, Suppliers, Communities where it has a presence, Financial Investors (Shareholders) and The General Public Interest.

The Broader Stakeholder Purpose and Commitment.

These are summary thoughts about how corporations can best breathe full life into this one ultimately correct corporate purpose or commitment.  A full presentation of the pillars supporting this summary is included in the narrative following this summary statement.

To continue to debate which is best, shareholder or stakeholder purpose, is a tragic waste of time. In fact, the last 50 years of narrow focus on profit as the sole purpose has led to sub-optimal economic performance, including being the primary cause of the 2007-’08 great recession. If and only if the broader stakeholder purpose and commitment is adopted and lived by corporations will long term profit and value creation maximization for the corporation itself – and for economies - be a natural outcome.

Shareholder profit maximization, as championed by Professor Friedman and as placed on steroids by Professors Michael Jensen and William Meckling in 1976, only flows, and flows as an outcome not a reason for existence or purpose, from primary stakeholder group value optimization in the long run. It is a functional relationship and a both-and proposition.

In terms of mindsets, the shareholder mindset is dominantly short term, inward-focused and win-lose. The stakeholder mindset is dominantly long term, outward-focused and value-optimizing for the six (6) primary stakeholder groups. As an important aside, this same “stakeholder mindset” is also completely applicable to governments in democracies, especially including representative democracies.

That is, long term shareholder profits (value creation), and corporate or entity  value, are maximized if and only if the long term value the corporation provides to each of its six (6) primary stakeholder groups is optimized. The former is a direct function (result) of the latter!

The Article.

Long Term Profit Maximization (Value Creation) for a Corporation Is a Function of Optimizing Long Term Value for Each of the Corporation’s Six (6) Primary Stakeholder Groups. The Former is a Direct Function of the Latter!

The Business Roundtable (BRT), an ”association of CEOs of America’s leading companies working to promote a thriving U.S. economy and expanded opportunity for all Americans through sound public policy,” announced in late August, 2019 its adoption of a new statement of purpose for corporations. In short, BRT has embraced the broad stakeholder purpose concept and moved away from the narrow shareholder model of the purpose for corporations.

The Stakeholder Model.

From BRT’s news announcement on August 19^th, “The Business Roundtable has   changed its statement of “the purpose of a corporation.” No longer should decisions be based solely on whether they will yield higher profits for shareholders, the group said. Rather, corporate leaders should take into account “all stakeholders”—that is, “employees, customers and society writ large.” The release provided more detail about each of the stakeholder groups but this statement is the heart of the broader purpose they adopted.

The Shareholder Model.

 The shareholder model holds that the purpose of a corporation is solely to produce profit for corporate shareholders. Its origin is the teaching of Professor Milton Friedman of the University of Chicago in the 1960s and 1970s. It was placed on steroids in a 1976 article by Professors Michael Jensen and William Meckling who asserted that managers are agents of the shareholders, who they said were the “owners” of the corporation. This agency theory, with its own flaws, including this ownership matter, led to the practice of tying the compensation of the top managers of corporations to the share price and related value measures of the corporation, adding to the narrow focus on value creation for shareholders over the last 50 years. For one thing, it has been a major cause of the multiple of CEO compensation compared to entry level employee compensation going from about 20 to 30 times in the late 1970s to as much as 300 times by 2015, and through the present time. 

Reactions to the BRT Announcement.

Since the BRT announcement, several articles and other commentary from academics, reporters and corporate leaders have been written. The comments   range from endorsement of the BRT decision to cautious support but skepticism about whether it is just happy talk that might not lead to behavioral changes in corporations (not walking the walk), to outright rejection of the stakeholder model. This latter argument is simply and bluntly that attention to other stakeholder groups like employees, suppliers and communities is fine, but shareholders are still and always going to be first among equals – King!

The Answer.

In a nutshell, when capitalism is done as we present it here and when corporate purpose is conceptually defined as we define it here, and as the BRT has now chosen to define it, then the reason to debate the merits of these two models will no longer exist.

Why Not?

Because this debate, this pitting of shareholder interests - one of every corporation’s six (6) primary stakeholder groups - against the interests of each of its other five (5) primary stakeholder groups is counter-productive, even self-defeating. The debate has been about a choice that need not exist. It is a both-and proposition, not a choice!

Public companies and all organizations that focus on optimizing long term value for each of their six primary stakeholder groups will, as a natural outcome, maximize the long term value creation, including profit and all value measures, of the organization itself! Professor Friedman et al simply did not think it all through deeply enough.

They did not take into account the better angel dominant characteristics of people as people – including people as markets in the marketplace locally and globally. If the dominant capitalism model and corporate purpose model over the last 50 years or so had been the one we present here, that BRT has now supported in concept but not yet in action, the world would be a better place – ultimately better.

An Existential and Transformative Change.

It is an existential change to corporate purpose and to getting capitalism right that the BRT support for the broader stakeholder concept fortuitously prompts us all to consider and adopt. And, not just conceptually as BRT has so far done, but as a change that is behavioral, actionable, teachable and learnable. This is an opportunity to make an ultimate existential improvement for economies and societies. It also helps get capitalism right.

Its explanation and details follow here below. To repeat and be forcefully clear, the opportunity to get corporate purpose right and get capitalism right is really what the BRT and its signing CEOs have teed up for all of us. It will take effort. Embracing the concept, talking the talk, is only a first step.

 This article presents one deeply held belief about how to do it – a belief that is grounded in part on the real core teaching that the moral philosopher and father of modern Economics, Professor Adam Smith, intended or should have intended!

Professor Adam Smith’s most relevant statements on this core subject are presented here first, followed by a complete explanation of the broad corporate purpose - the stakeholder-based purpose - that the BRT recently adopted in concept.

 The primary stakeholder group value optimization model is presented below in its full detail, following our quotes from Adam Smith. These quotes were dogmatically expressed by him – he meant them!

His heart and mind are at one in these statements. His Moral Philosopher self and his “Father of Modern Economics” self are at one as well. They are:

1.   “The property which every man has is his own labour; as it is the original foundation of all other property, so it is the most sacred and inviolable…To hinder him from employing this strength and dexterity in what manner he thinks proper without injury to his neighbor is a plain violation of this most sacred property.”

2.  “How selfish soever man may be supposed, there are evidently some principles in his nature which interest him in the fortune of others, and render their happiness necessary to him, though he derives nothing from it, except the pleasure of seeing it.”

3.   “Man was made for action, and to promote by the exertion of his faculties such changes in the external circumstances both of himself and others, as may seem most favourable to the happiness of all.”

4.    ‘He is certainly not a good citizen who does not wish to promote, by every means of his power, the welfare of the whole society of his fellow citizens.”

It is as clear as can be that he connected focus on others with focus on self. He gave us an axiom that connects self-interest and other-interest.

The Proposed Stakeholder Group Model for Corporate Purpose and Capitalism.

This is the complete way to express the concept BRT endorsed. Endorsing the concept is one thing. Breathing everyday life into it in corporations and entire economies is another. We present the way we think it should be done here:

I. The Proposed New Model – The Essential Mindset for Corporate Purpose and  Capitalism Going Forward:

Self-interest value maximization is a direct function of optimization of the value provided by an organization to each of that organization's primary stakeholder groups – each relative to the others. This is the complete way to express the concept BRT endorsed.

Here is the same idea expressed as a formula:

IVM= f (S1VO, S2VO, …SNVO), where N=6.

That is, a business (and a person) will maximize its own long-term value when it devotes its time, talent and treasure to optimizing the value it provides to each of its six (6) primary stakeholder groups.

II. The Primary Stakeholder Groups of Any Organization (or Person) are:

a. Customers, b. Employees, c. Financial Investors, d. Suppliers, e. Communities in which it has a presence and f. Society at large (the general public interest).

Every business, in fact every organization (every group with a unifying purpose), will maximize its own long term value or wealth creation as a direct function of optimally serving its six (6) primary stakeholder groups.

The concise model presented above, including the critically important concept of primary stakeholder groups, is supported by and incorporates several pillars of human characteristics, including how people choose to behave as markets for goods and services. These characteristics represent and truly are at the center of the best of human nature around the world. The BRT new purpose statement will be actionable through these pillars – otherwise as said by some, it would all indeed be mostly just anodyne rhetoric!

Importantly, the details of each pillar follow the list below, and even the details need further elaboration to enable an organization to fully live them.

They are grounded in the special and wonderful aspects of what can generally be described as the best of human nature in all parts of life – including life acted out in the marketplace between sellers and buyers of goods and services, locally and globally. And, capitalism is the key economic system catalyst that enables all of these characteristics to flourish, through this model in action.

III. The Supporting Pillars:

1.       First, of course, are the six (6) primary stakeholder groups of every organization – companies (for profit and non-profit), governments, schools, nations, etc.

2.       The things most valued by each primary stakeholder group of every organization.

3.       The unalienable rights of every person in the world.

4.       The universally (ubiquitously) shared virtues of all people around the world.

5.       The traits (behaviors of people) leading to these virtues.

6.       The better angels of our human nature (all people and peoples around the world).

7.       The gold standard leadership characteristics for all organizations.

8.       The gold standard cultural characteristics for all organizations.

9.       The centrally important role of ethics and ethical behavior for all organizations.

10.     The robust understanding and conduct of fiduciary responsibilities of all organizations.

11.     Happiness.

Here Are The Important Details of Each Pillar.

These details really represent the essence of the highest nature of people around the world, interacting with each other in all ways and, especially here, in their role as sellers and buyers in the marketplace. The BRT new purpose concept gets legs through these pillars and the details for each pillar:

A. The Primary Stakeholder Groups of Any Organization:

1.       Customers 2. Employees, 3. Suppliers, 4. Financial Investors, 5. Communities where the organization has a presence, and 6. The General Public Interest.

B.  The things most valued by each primary stakeholder group of every organization. The things listed here for each group are indicative, not exhaustive, and could be amended. At the same time the valued things listed her are certainly among the core and finite list of things each stakeholder group values:

1.       Customers: 1. High quality, 2. Reasonable prices, 3. Kindness, 4. Companies that treat their employees well and 5. Companies that are good citizens.

2.       Employees: 1. Opportunity, 2. Fair compensation, 3. Security, 4. Opportunity and Challenge to achieve as individuals and teams/groups and 5. Company conducts itself as a good neighbor, a good citizen.

3.       Investors: 1. Best value creation from their funds, for any period but especially over the long term, 2. Positive company participation in communities, 3. Great company treatment of employees, 4. Great company standing in society (loved), 5. Gold standard leadership in the company and 6. Full participation in society.

4.       Communities in which it has a presence: 1. Good citizen in local communities, 2. Long term participative partner in community well-being, 3. Great company treatment of its employees, 4. Full company involvement in environmental and societal stewardship for the long term and 5. Openness.

5.       Suppliers: 1. Fair dealing, 2. Long term partnership opportunity mutually earned, 3. Great treatment of employees, 4. Positive citizenship conduct of company and 5. Enjoyable to work with.

6.       Society (The General Public Interest): 1. Great local and global citizen, participative and engaged, 2. Great social and environmental steward, long term, 3. Willing partner and participant with others (including governments) in serving the public interest and 4. Excellent treatment of its employees, suppliers and neighbors.

C.  The Unalienable Rights: The basic unalienable rights of people around the world are treasured:

1. Life, 2. Liberty, 3. The Pursuit of Happiness and 4. Property (especially that property that is one’s own aptitudes, about which one is passionate).

 Note: These four rights also incorporate health care and education as universal and unalienable.

D.  The Globally Held Virtues: Those virtues (and the traits associated with having each virtue) that are shared as precious by virtually all peoples around the world:

1. Wisdom and Knowledge (Curiosity, Love of Learning, Judgment, Ingenuity, Social Intelligence and Perspective), 2. Courage (Valor, Perseverance and Integrity), 3. Humanity and Love (Kindness and Loving), 4. Justice (Citizenship, Fairness and Leadership), 5. Temperance (Self-control, Prudence and Humility), 6. Transcendence (Appreciation of Beauty, Gratitude, Hope, Spirituality, Forgiveness, Humor, and Zest).

E.  The Gold Standard Leadership Characteristics:

1. Establish direction – Vision, 2. Personal humility and professional will – modest and fearless, 3. Inclusive, enabling, inspirational, a listener, 4. Stakeholder-focused – in a maniacally profound way, 5. Heart of a servant, 6. Ethical, courageous and just and 7. Fun.

F. The Gold Standard Cultural Characteristics:

1. Adaptive, with a core ideology (purpose and values), 2. Risk taking, trusting and proactive, 3. One in which all are heard and the truth is heard, 4. Reflective, humble, anticipatory and involved, 5. Rational and respectful, A conscientious mindset, 6. Quietly confident, unassuming while pursuing the organization’s vision and mission with passion, perseverance, humor and zest, 7. Disciplined people, thoughts and actions in a fun and dynamic environment, 8. Open, supportive and enthusiastic, 9 Happy in a stakeholder-centered (H3) way and 10. Fun.

G.  Three Essential Elements of Correct Organizational Behavior at All Times:

1. Ethical behavior in all things, 2. A robust understanding of fiduciary responsibility and 3. Happiness.

H.  People As Markets: “Markets” here is a synonym for “people.” It presents the optimization idea in street language, as follows:

1. Markets like companies that have and live the globally held virtues, 2. Markets like companies that treasure and honor the unalienable rights, 3. Markets like companies that fully understand they have fiduciary obligations to all their primary stakeholders, 4. Markets like companies that are ethical and fair, 5. Markets like companies that are effective, efficient, productive, creative and innovative (the basic blocking and tackling requirements of every excellent organization), 6. Markets like companies that produce high quality products and services at reasonable prices, 7. Markets like companies that are good citizens, pitching in and helping out in their communities, 8. Markets like companies that treasure the environment and are good stewards for future generations, attending to the public interest and 9. Markets like companies that compensate their employees fairly and create great, stimulating work environments for them – helping them be creative, innovative, challenged and fulfilled.

I.  The Better Angels of our Human Nature:

What are the better angels of our human nature?

A.    President Lincoln suggested these are: 1. Humaneness, 2. Compassion, 3. Good will, 4. Tolerance and 5. Other good things.

B.    Harvard Professor Steven Pinker examined four motives that "can orient [humans] away from violence and towards cooperation and altruism." He identifies:

1. Empathy: which "prompts us to feel the pain of others and to align their interests with our own," 2. Self-Control: which "allows us to anticipate the consequences of acting on our impulses and to inhibit them accordingly," 3. The Moral Sense: which "sanctifies a set of norms and taboos that govern the interactions among people in a culture." These sometimes decrease violence but can also increase it "when the norms are tribal, authoritarian, or puritanical" and 4. Reason: which "allows us to extract ourselves from our parochial vantage points.”

J.  Relevant Quotes From Iconic Leaders Over The Centuries: Each of These Quotes Supports the Broad Primary Stakeholder Group Purpose in Concept and Action.

1. All wrong-doing arises because of mind. If mind is transformed can wrong-doing remain? Buddha.

 2. A man is but the product of his thoughts - what he thinks, he becomes.          Mohandas Gandhi.

3. I want you to be concerned about your next door neighbor. Do you know your next door neighbor? Mother Teresa.

4. It is very important to generate a good attitude, a good heart, as much as possible. From this, happiness in both the short term and the long term for both yourself and others will come. The purpose of our lives is to be happy. The Dalai Lama.

5. “Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets. (Matthew 7:12).

6. Life's most urgent question is: what are you doing for others? Martin Luther King, Jr.

 7. “Every good act is charity. A man's true wealth hereafter is the good that he does in this world to his fellows.” Mohammed.

8. Forbes Thought of the Day – 10/21/’13. “A man's true wealth is the good he does in this world.”

9. Every art and every inquiry, and similarly every action and choice, is thought to aim at some good; and for this reason the good has rightly been declared to be that at which all things aim. Aristotle.

IV. Adaptive Strategic Planning (Organic, Changing but Grounded, etc.).

So, the day to day conduct of the work of a corporation, and every organization, must be grounded in the new purpose and the pillars supporting it.

It also must be accompanied by a disciplined but not stifling near and long term planning process – tactical, strategic and adaptive.

A Brief Explanation of the Role of Multi-Year Planning and Doing, The Main Action Vehicle For Our Model, is in order.

Strategic plans are often spoken of in a negative way. The criticisms include being too slow, irrelevant before the ink is dry on the document, esoteric and a waste of time. They are characterized as being (and often are) placed on a shelf collecting dust. It has also been said that “plans are worthless but planning is essential.”

The truth is quite the contrary. Plans and adaptive planning go hand in glove. In fact, actionable multi-year adaptive, adaptable plans, or playbooks, are the essential vehicle through which this new mindset-based purpose happens. The actionable plan is the dynamic vehicle through which it all springs to life – and continues to be vibrant. Again, let’s be clear: An adaptable, adaptive plan is the very definition of planning, which in turn keeps us on the maximum value creation trajectory over time, and it fulfills, it is fun.

To be more pointed: The SEC quarterly reports by corporations in the United States are primarily focused on the financial condition of a company (the investor primary stakeholder group).

The SEC reports in the U.S. – and corresponding reports in other nations - and all regular reviews of company financial health must be complemented by regular reporting and discussion, such as quarterly reports, on progress toward goals for each of the other primary stakeholder groups as well. That is how optimal value improvement can be obtained for each primary stakeholder group – and long term value maximized for the organization.

In addition, daily, weekly, monthly and all leadership focus behavior should consider the effects of decision choices on each of the six (6) primary stakeholder groups, so that the optimization of value criterion is front of mind always. It can sound burdensome but as it becomes second nature it is both invigorating and liberating – it leads to long term corporate value maximization as an outcome precisely because the dominant focus is correct – primary stakeholder group value optimization!

A Final Thought on This Existential Change - and Ultimate Improvement – To Corporate Purpose and Capitalism Done Right.

All too often over the years, the easy way out is to do pretty good - to beat the competition. Excellence is therefore too often not pursued. Of course breakthrough innovations have been made and do happen, but so often they have preceded organizational behavior and have flowed from the passion of true innovators before the fact.  

The great news here is that the full life well-lived – the happy life - and the highest value creation for each and all corporations (all organizations) will flow from, and only from, adopting and acting out this timely broader corporate purpose that the BRT has adopted in concept and, of equal importance, this integrally related and deeper appreciation and adoption of capitalism done right!

A Perennial Debate?

The decades long debate about whether shareholder value or stakeholder value is the proper purpose or commitment of corporations is in fact a debate that should end. It should never have been necessary.

Shareholder value and, more generally, corporate long term profits - value creation - is maximized if and only if the corporation focuses on and delivers optimal long term value to each of its six (6) primary stakeholder groups.

Capitalism as the best catalyst to enable corporations to act this purpose and commitment out is itself done right if and only if it is perfectly in harmony with and thus facilitates this model.

The essential next step is to breathe behavioral, actionable, teaching and learning aspects of what Adam Smith really intended when he wrote and taught about societies and economies 250 years ago.

A Final Thought.

The BRT initiative is timely and commendable. It prompts this elaboration on the perennial question of what the best purpose and commitment of corporations, indeed all organizations, really should be – the purpose that will enable corporations to maximize their own long term value (wealth, profit) creation as an outcome.

This elaboration makes the case that it is if and only if corporations focus on optimizing the long term value they each provide to their six (6) primary stakeholder groups will the corporation’s own long term value (wealth, profit) outcome be maximized. The model requires focus on serving these groups, not on fixating on the scoreboard – the corporation’s own profit near and long term.

Fortuitously, serendipitously or perhaps ironically it is this model that does what Professor Milton Friedman, economist, wanted as an outcome. It also is the model that Professor Adam Smith, moral philosopher and economist, taught and advocated. It enables capitalism, as a catalyst, to bring the highest long term well-being to all societies using it – all people and peoples everywhere!

The Donald Trump Presidency: One Citizen's Thoughts 2 1/2 Years In.

This post comes after an almost three year hiatus on posts at jackhaffey.blogspot.com.

The Donald Trump Presidency: Hoping For the Best.

Following his electoral college victory in November, 2016, we decided to give time to see how Donald Trump conducted himself as the newly elected president before talking more about getting capitalism right – and about him in the context of leadership with our capitalism done right model.

A Note: In brief, our model is outward-focused, long term and value optimizing for the six primary stakeholder groups of every organization -domestic and global. The dominant capitalism model for the last 50 years or so has been the Professor Milton Friedman model, which holds that the only purpose of a company is profit, to make money for the owners. It is inward-focused, dominantly short term and win-lose.

 Our capitalism-done-right thoughts apply to all organizations. Governments are, of course, very significant “organizations” themselves and the proposed paradigm applies to them as well, as we have said throughout our posts. In fact, our proposed paradigm of capitalism done right (really, think of it more broadly as organizations doing right) applies to companies, governments and all organizations around the world.

Because this conceptual and behavioral paradigm that gets capitalism right applies to all organizations – including governments – it seemed right and fair that we should take some time to see whether the new president and his administration could or would rise to the level we assert is necessary to create excellence.

Or whether, on the other hand, our prediction about then-candidate Trump in our October 23, 2016 post proved spot on correct. (our post is at jackhaffey.blogspot.com).

The Presidency of the United States of America should be among a handful of government executive branch servant-leadership models around the world worthy of emulation. The Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution provide a perfect guiding framework that fits our model for leadership that will produce long term excellence – domestically and globally - in all foreign and international relations. 

This specific president, Donald Trump, gave us an opportunity to check on whether his concept of leadership and organizational purpose – and conduct – fits our model.

It is now clear it does not. Indeed, his way is the antithesis of our way, our model.

Conclusion and Verdict.

Sadly but predictably, we were “spot on correct!”

President Trump, you must read that 10/23/2016 post. It will set your hair on fire!

It is a sad commentary on our democratic system here in the United States that the real needs and hopes of all Americans, and the more pressing hopes and needs of various sectors of our population (people in poverty, people harmed economically by job loss due to technological and related changes, people seeking a more forceful advocate for certain religious or rights-based issues, people concerned about the appropriate policies on immigration, etc.) could have their concerns be preyed upon and pandered to by such an inward-focused amoral, apolitical narcissist. We deserve so much better. The entire world deserves and needs so much better from our president. The world looks to us for wise servant leadership. 

But here we are, in the summer of 2019 and the Trump administration, led by this uniquely selfish person Donald Trump, has established itself as one-of-a-kind BAD. SO TRAGIC! 

 Therefore we must conclude that our post criticizing you as candidate Trump on October 23, 2016 at jackhaffey.blogspot.com has been ratified and affirmed as spot on prophetic by your presidency, Donald Trump, day in and day out, from the moment of your inauguration. 

You have not let us down, President Trump. In fact, you have been more inept, disordered and unfit than we ever could have predicted.

So, thank you, President Trump. Using your own style of teasing and persuading (underlined),  you are even worse than we anticipated – that much we can tell you.  

Many people have been telling us you have it in you to be so much worse. We should hope not.

We will see.

You have already set our country back thousands of years, domestically and globally. You might not know it, but we have only been a nation for about 250 years. So, use your big brain and genius attributes, along with your fertile and delusional self-concept, to figure that one out.

By the way, your name is mentioned about 10 times in this post – High Fives!