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Americans have always been proud we live in a country where anybody can grow up to become president. Barack Obama is an excellent example. A biracial kid raised by his white grandparents of modest means who became leader of the free world.

Agree or disagree with his politics, Obama was an outstanding role model when it came to civility and manners.

Agree or disagree with his politics, you certainly can’t say that about the current resident of the White House.

Donald Trump shocked the world with his election last November after a rough-and-tumble campaign in which the rich political outsider upended both the Bush and Clinton political dynasties – all the while handing out insults like Halloween candy. From his oozing blood comments about Fox anchor Megyn Kelly to his “look at that face” insult of Carly Fiorina, to “Little Marco” Rubio, Trump seemed to relish any fight, no matter how low the stakes. His “crooked Hillary” mantra was almost statesmanlike by his standards.

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Many thought, or at least hoped, that would change once he occupied the Oval Office. Alas, it was not to be.

The president, it seems, is as addicted to these pathetic battles as a junkie is to crack, most recently with the likes of MSNBC “Morning Joe” hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski. And he outdid himself with his buffoonish tweet of a Trump-like avatar beating up a man whose head had been replaced by the CNN logo.

Of course Joe and Mika have happily joined the fray, calling Trump’s a “fake presidency,” contending he is mentally unhinged and even bringing up the dreaded topic of “small hands.” But while their audience might care what Scarborough and Brzezinski say, the president of the United States has more important things to focus on, and he should.

For a guy who says he hates “fake news,” it seems at times as though he’s operating in the world of professional wrestling – it’s all for show.

Therein lies the problem. Trump’s not in the WWF. He’s the president of the United States with a full plate of real problems – from North Korea to seeking some kind of consensus to fix or replace an imploding system known as Obamacare.

He actually has done some excellent work that includes a number of executive orders and appointment of a top-notch national defense team that he actually lets do its job – rather than have key decisions made by a gaggle of political operatives in the White House. Washington Post columnist David Ignatius said in a recent interview that an audience in Syria cheered every time Trump’s name was mentioned, evidence that for the first time in years we are projecting American leadership in the world’s hot spots.

But all this gets lost in Trump’s antics.

Of course CNN – with plenty of egg on its face after firing an investigative team over a major retraction and having a producer caught bragging about Trump-Russia ratings on undercover tapes – and lots of other media would rather talk about the attacks by Trump than about substantive issues pushed by the administration or passed by Congress.

For example, the passage of Kate’s law dealing with the deportation of criminal illegal immigrants was relegated to second-tier coverage status vis à vis Trump’s “Morning Joe” and CNN tweets.

For Trump, this is self-inflicted damage that seriously undermines his ability to do the work that needs to be done.

And from an American perspective, it’s sad that parents can’t tell their children the president of the United States is someone they should look up to and emulate.

“This behavior,” said Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, “is beneath a president of the United States and just so contrary to the way we expect a president to act. … I see it as embarrassing to our country.”

Trump isn’t likely to listen to Collins – or anyone else – but for the sake of the country, he should.

This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers.