WASHINGTON—Stressing that the very future of the republic was at stake, President Donald Trump called upon all Americans Monday to stand strong and resolute in the face of empathy. “Now, more than ever, we as a nation must remain steadfast in resisting the urge to understand the feelings and perspectives of others,” said Trump, adding that a rising tide of dangerous empathy could, if unchecked, quickly engulf the country in compassion. “Above all else, we must never descend into treating people as separate individuals with their own concerns and desires, deserving of sympathy and respect. That is surely the path to kindness, from which a nation seldom returns.” Trump went on to say that the courage Americans demonstrated today would allow future generations to one day look at the world around them with indifference or, with any luck, pure disdain.