North Carolina’s only two-term Republican governor wrote this week that, if Donald Trump wins, America “will be willfully ripped apart.”

Jim Martin, who was governor from 1985-1993, wrote in a McClatchy newspapers column that Trump is a “clear and present danger” to the nation.

Martin panned President Biden’s debate performance and said:

“If I thought Trump could be a decent president without tearing the nation apart with a vengeance, I would want the Biden-Harris ticket to hang tough — even demand more debates. However, we know Trump will be Trump, and we’ll get the worst kind of faux-patriotic populism. His abuses will set authoritarian precedents for future presidents. Trump has promised to pardon the unpardonable and release the Krakens of Jan. 6, 2021.”

Governor Martin is a long-time, committed conservative – and a partisan Republican. But he concluded:

“If Biden cannot recover and win, somebody fresh might — a moderate Democratic governor, senator, mayor. America can surely endure four years of a moderate Democrat.

“Biden’s challenge is to save our republic from what it might not endure.”

I’ve been on opposing sides with Governor Martin over the years. Still, I’ve seen that he’s a man of decency, intelligence and courage.

He has shown those qualities at this crucial time. More Republicans should emulate him.