“You are wrong!” exclaimed a young Chinese police officer in Xi’an, China, when we were crossing the street improperly. He could not have been more than twenty-five years old.

And he was right. We were wrong.

What a courageous young man he was to confront and correct two arrogant middle-aged American tourists who were crossing the street illegally simply to save fifteen or twenty minutes of sightseeing time, potentially putting others at risk.

I often think about his courage, and today I write about him to ask a question: Do we have a single Republican leader brave enough to stand up, look Donald Trump in the eye, as well as the Trumpists, his cronies, his compliant cabinet members, and his fellow Republicans, and tell them when they are wrong?

So far, one of the most cowardly actions has been the spreading and defense of Donald Trump’s Big Lie.

Can a single Republican leader say to him: “You are wrong President Trump, to continue spreading the Big Lie that the 2020 election was rigged and stolen from you”?

I, along with many others, will say it. With that Big Lie, among other things, you helped incite the insurrection at our nation’s Capitol in an effort to overturn the results of the 2020 election. In addition, you demonize non-citizens and falsely claim that they are registering and voting in large numbers.

In this column, I can address only a few of the harmful consequences of the falsehoods and conduct that, in my view, have damaged our country and our democracy.

The Capitol insurrection

Because of your lies and your exhortations, your vice president, Mike Pence, could have been hanged; then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi was also threatened with assassination. As a result of the January 6 insurrection, five people died and hundreds were injured, including more than 140 law enforcement officers. In addition, four officers who responded to the attack later took their own lives.

Only God knows how many more people would have died had you succeeded in your objective. We might not even retain the appearance of a democracy today.

False claims about non-citizen voting

You are also wrong to demonize non-citizens and falsely claim that 278,000 of them registered to vote.

On the contrary, the available evidence indicates that only a few dozen non-citizens voted in the 2020 election, an insignificant number within the national electorate. Analysis by the Bipartisan Policy Center concluded that non-citizen voting is exceedingly rare and had no meaningful effect on the election outcome.

There is also substantial evidence that the 2020 election was among the most secure and closely monitored elections in American history.

These claims, among others, helped fuel policies promoted by Stephen Miller and carried out by federal agencies that have detained, deported, and harassed U.S. citizens, residents, and undocumented individuals. Worse, too many people have lost their lives.

Among those whose names have been associated with immigration operations, detention, or federal custody during the Trump administration are Renée Nicole Good, Alex Pretti, Keith Porter Jr., Luis Gustavo Núñez Cáceres, Geraldo Lunas Campos, Víctor Manuel Díaz, and Ismael Ayala Uribe. Their deaths, along with many others that receive less public attention, have intensified the national debate over the use of force, detention conditions, and accountability within immigration enforcement.

We must not forget them.

Stephen Miller and ICE operations

You are wrong, President Trump, for allowing Stephen Miller, through ICE, to promote tactics that many regard as characteristic of an authoritarian model, targeting people based on their appearance, ethnicity, or manner of speaking.

You, Stephen Miller, and your associates do not appear to be pursuing only criminals, “the worst of the worst,” as promised. Instead, many of your efforts seem directed at people of color, whether citizens or non-citizens, helping fill detention facilities and private prisons connected to political and economic interests.

Why? Perhaps because the goal is a predominantly white and “Christian” America.

How many prisons will have to be filled with innocent and hardworking people to achieve that objective? In the process, you are already harming many who once supported you.

A president of disorder and distrust

You are wrong, President Trump, to claim that you are a law-and-order president.

No. In my view, you have been a president of disorder, distrust, and division.

Because of those lies, and countless others, I believe you have built one of the most extensive records of false statements in modern American political history. And you have done so with the support of cabinet members, lawmakers, and officials who repeated and defended those claims.

I believe you rank among the presidents who have caused the greatest harm to our country and its democracy.

In my opinion, you have shown an unprecedented disregard for the rule of law in modern American history, and even many who once entrusted you with their vote appear to be recognizing it.

Recent polls show that only about one-third of Americans approve of your performance. Yet what is truly surprising is not your low approval rating. What is surprising is that after all the damage, divisions, and controversies associated with your leadership, you still retain the support of roughly one out of every three Americans.

That reality should concern anyone who values truth and democracy.

But history, whose judgment you seem eager to shape, will not remember you as you wish to remember yourself. I believe it will remember you as a profound political and moral mistake, one that I hope our nation can stop and reverse before even greater damage is done.