GUEST COLUMN: Civil discourse and political reality

I’ve never understood why Donald Trump seems to attract such a level of hatred and vitriol. There is nothing unusual about political candidates being vilified by opponents, but after an election or a term in office, the level of animosity usually subsides, and attacks focus on policy decisions and not as much on personality.

I experienced some hostilities when I was a Republican presidential elector in 2016. It was my fourth time to be an elector from Alabama, so it was out of the ordinary when a few weeks before the electoral college convened, my mailbox started to fill up with cards and letters imploring me to change my vote. My mailbox became so inundated with Trump hate-mail my postman, Mr. Meriwether, would leave a large box of mail beside my mailbox, only days later to leave a card saying I had to go by the post office to retrieve additional boxes.