Don't let Trump's fans mislead you - we are, in fact, better than this

Of all the ways Donald Trump and his supporters are defending him over the "p---y" tape, the argument that makes my jaw drop most is, "Who among us?"

We're all flawed, we're told. So who among us really has standing to criticize Trump for bragging that his celebrity status allows him to grab women's genitals without their permission?

"We all fall short of the glory of God," said Mike Pence, Trump's running mate, who has previously claimed to be a Christian first, a conservative second, and a Republican third.

"Men, at times, talk like that," Rudy Giuliani told CNN's Jake Tapper. (Giuliani demurred when Tapper followed up, "Have you talked like that?")

Trump himself hit his Republican critics not just for undermining the party's chances to win the election, but for being "self-righteous hypocrites."

This is a window into Trump's view of humanity: He believes that, deep down, everybody else is as horrible as he is.

He is wrong.

I don't think I'm going out on a limb when I say I doubt Utah Sen. Mike Lee is a hypocrite for denouncing Trump, because I doubt he has ever grabbed a woman's genitals without her permission, or bragged about doing so.

Most of us are better people than Donald Trump. I have standing to criticize him, because I am a better person than he is. You probably are, too.

I'm not a Christian, and I usually try to refrain from telling Christians how to apply their faith. But I'm appalled by the pass Trump gets from so many self-professed Christians despite having a personality that, more or less, consists of sin.

Trump is greedy. He is cruel. Boastful. Dishonest. Intemperate. Vain. And, now we know, he believes he is entitled to grab women's genitals without their permission.

Christian forgiveness is one thing - though my understanding is, forgiveness is supposed to be sought from God, which Trump says he has never done.

But even if you feel compelled to forgive Trump, that does not mean you should make him president. Especially since his sins are worse than most people's.

"Let he who is without sin cast the first stone" is not supposed to be an endorsement of moral nihilism, but a lot of Trump's supporters are twisting it into one.

This is an editorial. The opinions and conclusions expressed above are those of the author.