Just Say No to Felon-in-Chief Donald Trump | Opinion

We’re living in a time where the politically unthinkable has become real, and it’s hard to wrap your head around it. In a scenario worthy of “The Twilight Zone,” in less than 40 days, Americans will vote in a presidential election where the standard bearer for one party is a man who has been convicted of 34 felonies.
Not only is former President Donald Trump running for president again, but many political analysts—me included—see him on a reasonably clear trajectory towards victory. This isn’t just a little strange—it’s a bizarre moment in history. There has never been a time when a convicted felon was this close to the Oval Office, let alone a person found guilty of dozens of serious crimes. And what’s even more unsettling is that remarkably few people seem to be calling him what he is: a felon.
It’s time to change that. Right now. From every corner of society—from private citizens to the media, from political analysts to the people on social media—we need to be blunt and consistent: Donald Trump is a felon, and we need to say it clearly and repeatedly until Election Day and beyond.
The term “felon” matters because it cuts through the incessant, deafening noise. In this era of political spin, euphemisms, and conspiracy theories, clarity is more important than ever. Trump’s strategy has always been to blur the lines between fact and fiction, right and wrong. He excels at playing the victim, claiming he’s being persecuted, and unfortunately, it works on a huge segment of the population. But there’s a simple truth here that’s getting lost: Donald Trump repeatedly and knowingly broke the law, and he’s been convicted of it. That’s a fact, and the only word that properly captures the seriousness of that is felon.
If we don’t use that word—and if we don’t keep using it—we’re letting Trump off the hook. We’re allowing him to once again reshape the narrative into one where rules don’t apply to him, where his criminal behavior is something to be brushed aside or even admired. The man has been convicted of felonies. Serious, significant crimes. This isn’t a minor misstep or a political witch hunt—it’s reality. Calling him anything less is doing a disservice to the truth.
If we stay silent on this, we are complicit in Trump’s setting a precedent that will surely change the future of American politics. If we let a convicted felon run for president without this collective reminder of his crimes, what does that say about our standards for leadership? It says that being president is just about power, not about responsibility or moral integrity. And if we, as individuals and members of the media, don’t call out the fact that Trump is a felon, we remain complicit in normalizing that dangerous idea.
In any other period in American history, this would have been unthinkable. Richard Nixon wasn’t even convicted of a crime, but he resigned in disgrace just for the cover-up of wrongdoing. At that time, the idea that someone could break the law and still be taken seriously as a presidential candidate—or president—was laughable. The American people expected more from their leaders, and the political class understood that. But now, with Trump, we’re watching the erosion of those standards in real-time, and we’re not doing enough to stop it. That’s why we need to call him a felon—again and again.
Part of the reason Trump has been able to get this far is because people aren’t being blunt enough. News outlets are hesitant to use the word “felon,” opting instead for softer terms like “indicted” or “convicted.” Those words don’t have the same impact. They don’t carry the weight that “felon” does. “Felon” cuts to the core. It’s a legal and moral designation that makes clear exactly who Trump is and what he’s done. If more people started using it, it would become harder for him to hide behind his usual illusions and delusions. The media has an especially important role to play here. By consistently referring to him as a felon, it can help frame the conversation in a way that holds Trump accountable.
But it’s not just the media. We all need to be using this language. Every time we talk about this election, every time we post on social media, we should be calling Trump what he is: a convicted felon. This isn’t about name-calling or cheap political attacks. It’s about insisting on the truth. The more we say it, the harder it becomes for people to ignore. And right now, there are far too many people ignoring it. They’re stuck in their bubbles of disinformation, believing that Trump’s legal troubles are some kind of political hit job. But the facts don’t lie—he broke the law, and he was convicted. We need to keep hammering that home because it’s the only way to push back against the alternate reality he’s created.
The stakes here couldn’t be higher. Trump’s candidacy represents a fundamental challenge to the rule of law in this country. If we let a convicted felon take back the presidency, what does that say about our commitment to justice? What does it say about our belief that no one is above the law? And even more troubling, what does it mean for the future of our democracy? If Trump can come back from this, why wouldn’t future candidates with criminal records feel empowered to run? What kind of example does that set for future generations of leaders?
While there are days it seems as if this ship has already sailed, we have a responsibility to protect the integrity of our political system. And part of that responsibility is using the right language to describe what’s happening. If we don’t call Trump a felon, we’re giving him a free pass. We’re allowing him to continue his campaign without fully confronting the reality of his criminal behavior. We can’t afford to let that happen. Not now, and not with so much at stake.
In the days leading up to this election, we need to be relentless. Every time we refer to Donald Trump, we need to call him what he is: a felon. Because until we do, we’re letting him define and control the narrative. We’re letting him dodge accountability. And we’re risking far more than just one election, we’re risking the future of American democracy.
About Aron Solomon
A Pulitzer Prize-nominated writer, Aron Solomon, JD, is the chief strategy officer forAmplify. He has taught entrepreneurship at McGill University and the University of Pennsylvania, and was elected to Fastcase 50, recognizing the top 50 legal innovators in the world. Aron has been featured in Newsweek, Fast Company, Fortune, Forbes, CBS News, CNBC, USA Today, ESPN, Abogados, Today’s Esquire, TechCrunch, The Hill, BuzzFeed, Venture Beat, The Independent, Fortune China, Yahoo!, ABA Journal, Law.com,The Boston Globe, and many other leading publications across the globe.
The views expressed in this article are the writer’s own.