He’s all about him. Can we make it all about us?
Neighbors disagree. It doesn’t make them enemies.
We’ve all been on edge for days. This election is more emotional than any in my lifetime. Forget about the candidates on the ballot. What we’re waiting on is whether our democracy can withstand misinformation and division sown by the President of the United States, an office that represents the American people- all of them- and staunchly defends the principles of our democracy. It’s the right of the American people to decide who represents our country at the highest levels.
No democracy can survive without fair elections. People vote, the votes are counted, and the winner takes office. This usually means half of the country is happy and half isn’t, not only in this election, but pretty much all of them. The winner then tries to unite us. It’s not only the right things to do, it’s the smart thing. We have to work together for our economy to function. Think about what would happen if defeated Dems working for Republican supervisors- or the other way around- decided to just “phone it in” instead of working productively. Our output as a country would fall, the economy would suffer, and economic suffering means people throughout the country are suffering.
Whether Trump or Biden is declared the winner, as Americans, we can’t let this “us versus them” mentality to continue. We need to reweave the connections that have been torn apart. I think this starts by realizing our opinions and passions have been formed by our beliefs. That’s different than our values. I know too many people who voted differently than me but value their family just as much as I do, work hard to build a good life for their families, just as much as I do, and simply want a fair society where everybody has a chance of a decent life, the wish I have as well.
Most of us have very similar values. It’s our opinions that differ. We’ve lived different lives, and we’ve consumed different information. There is accurate, real information that could lead people to chose either candidate. What I’m concerned about is the false information.
Without evidence or historical precedent, President Trump is claiming voter fraud. Eighteen studies, four court cases, and nine state investigations concluded that voter fraud is nearly nonexistent. One state effort was in Kansas, where “Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, a longtime proponent of voter suppression efforts, argued before state lawmakers that his office needed special power to prosecute voter fraud, because he knew of 100 such cases in his state. After being granted these powers, he has brought six such cases, of which only four have been successful. The secretary has also testified about his review of 84 million votes cast in 22 states, which yielded 14 instances of fraud referred for prosecution, which amounts to a 0.00000017 percent fraud rate.” This fraud rate, generated by Republican investigations, equates to 25 fraudulent votes nationally.
Our country is being torn apart. And it’s not because our values are so different. It’s because we have a President who values himself far above the 330,000,000 people he represents. He wants us to look at each other and not see people we disagree with, but enemies. He wants to encourage intimidation over discussion, emboldening supporters to feel justified trying to run an opponent’s bus off the road, attempt to kidnap a Democratic Governor, feel justified in believing in white supremacy, and pepper spray peaceful protestors for personal gain.
These are not the actions of a leader. They are the actions of a President who values money, status, and personal wins over the well-being of 330,000,000 people.
President Trump is willing to deeply wound America for his own personal benefit. The question is: Will we let him?
