the usa is living in the aftermath of the trump presidency. the republican party has become the trump party. those republicans who dare to condemn the former president and his anti-democratic actions are ostracized and threatened by trump's allies. the republican members of the house of representatives who voted in favor of the infrastructure bill negotiated by a bipartisan team of senators are in danger of losing their committee assignments at the hands of the "ever-trumpers" in the house who believe that keeping in trump's good graces is more important that the well-being of the nation.
president biden is dealing with the mess he inherited from trump and is taking the blame for situations, like the afghanistan withdrawal and inflation, that were not of his making. the democratic majority in the house and senate has squandered his electoral victory by arguing amongst themselves rather than working together to support the president's agenda. now it appears that their control of both houses of congress is in jeopardy unless they can take speedy action and then convince the american people that the can govern effectively.
the conservative majority on the supreme court threatens to undo years of progress in the areas of women's rights and access to the ballot. the only remedy may be to increase the number of justices to thwart the direction the originalists on the court seem intent on taking the country. the court is allowing republican majorities in statehouses across the country to engineer electoral districts to perpetuate their power despite the decline in the number of republican voters. at the same time, these republican-controlled legislatures are restricting the ability of poor and minority voters to have access to the ballot box, making it more difficult for democrat-leaning voters to participate in elections.
the shadow of trump continues to threaten the nation. one can only hope that most americans see his failed policies for what they are: an attempt to subvert the democratic process and the constitution in order to enrich himself and satisfy his narcissistic megalomania. the only way around the electoral engineering designed to keep republicans in power at the state level and to return republicans to power at the national level is for those opposed to trump and his minions to turn out in huge numbers, despite the changes that have been put in place to make it harder for them to vote. democrats must pass national voting rights legislation and the "build back better" act, and they must convince the american people that these bills are what the nation needs if its promise is to be realized by all its citizens. we must stop trump and those who support him for gaining control of the country.
may we see trump for what he is: a greedy, selfish man who will use power to advance himself no matter the cost to others. may we support those who have a vision that makes life better for all americans. may we turn from a path that will destroy our democracy and embrace pluralism, tolerance, and the desire to help one another. may we be controlled by love rather than hate. shalom.
No comments:
Post a Comment