THERE IS a danger, as we wrote a few weeks ago, that we become inured to President Trump’s mockery of democratic norms and common decency. To stave off forgetfulness, we provide here some of Mr. Trump’s actual comments at a rally in Phoenix on Tuesday night, juxtaposed with what we imagine a presidential president — a president we could be proud of — might have said:

“ You know I’d love it if the cameras could show this crowd, because it is rather incredible. It is incredible. It is incredible. As everybody here remembers, this was the scene of my first rally speech, right? The crowds were so big, almost as big as tonight, that the people said right at the beginning, you know, there’s something special happening here. And we went to center stage almost from day one in the debates. We love those debates. But we went to center stage, and we never left, right? ”

“As we begin, I just want to say on behalf of all Americans that our hearts go out to the 10 American sailors who are missing in the terrible accident involving our 7th Fleet on the other side of the world, and to their families. Our brave men and women serve far from home for months and years at a time and take grave risks every day to keep us free, and this should serve as a reminder of how much we owe them.”

“Do the people in this room like Sheriff Joe? So, was Sheriff Joe convicted for doing his job? That’s why . . . he should have had a jury, but you know what? I’ll make a prediction. I think he’s going to be just fine, okay?”

“And of course it would be wrong to come to your great state and not pay tribute at the very outset to your great senator, John McCain. John and I don’t always see eye to eye, but he is a patriot and an inspiration, and our hearts go out to him too as he battles brain cancer. Get well and come back soon, John.”

Using dozens of clips from President Trump's speeches, The Post Editorial Board reimagines his disastrous Aug. 12 address. (Gillian Brockell/The Washington Post)

“You look at what just happened in Spain and so many other places. Nope. We’re really vetting. We’re tough. Does anybody want me to be soft on the vetting, or would you like ‘extreme vetting’? — I came up with that term. That’s what it has to be.”

“And finally, before we dive into politics, let’s have a moment of silence for our brave allies in Barcelona, victims of the latest cowardly terrorist attack. It was sobering to learn that the attackers in Barcelona were young men who lived and worked right there in Spain. No travel ban would have kept them away. It’s a reminder to all of us that, while we need to safeguard our borders, we also need to foster inclusion, to discourage homegrown terrorism and to encourage cooperation with law enforcement.”

“But believe me, if we have to close down our government, we’re building that wall.”

“Now, we’re coming up on a risky time. Congress has to raise the debt ceiling, or the world won’t have faith in American credit anymore, and that would be disastrous. It has to pass a budget, or the government will shut down, and that would be disastrous, too — for thousands of my hard-working employees and their families, for people who have been saving up for years to visit a national park, for older folks worried about their Social Security checks.

“So let’s not play games here. I’ve got priorities. The Democrats have priorities. I’m ready to sit down and talk and make a deal. But nobody — nobody — should ever threaten to shut down our government.”

“You have some very fair journalists. But for the most part, honestly, these are really, really dishonest people, and they’re bad people. And I really think they don’t like our country. I really believe that.”

“No president is ever happy with his press coverage, I know that. Reporters get things wrong. They’re not always fair. But you know what? They love their country, just like you and I do. We’re lucky to live in a country where you can watch CNN and Fox News and MSNBC. I recommend you listen to a lot of different points of view and then make up your own mind.”

“And yes, by the way, they are trying to take away our history and our heritage. You see that.”

“In our complicated, glorious rainbow nation, we’re going to argue about lots of things — monuments, school names, history, heritage. God bless us for that. But there are a few things we can all agree on: Hatred is unacceptable. Bigotry is unacceptable. We can be better than the sins of our past — slavery, the slaughter of Native Americans, Jim Crow — but we must never celebrate, whitewash or forget them.”

“Well, it’s obvious that we won the state of Arizona, do you agree with that? It’s pretty obvious. And we won it by a lot. And I hear we’re winning it by even more right now.”

“Well, thanks again for welcoming me back to Arizona. You know, slightly more than half of you voted against me in 2016, if you count Hillary Clinton and the third-party candidates together, but that’s okay. It doesn’t matter to me now who you voted for — I want to be the president for every Arizonan, and I’m going to work hard every day to earn your trust and make you proud.”