“It’s time to drain the swamp.” — Donald Trump, Oct. 17, 2016
This was his promise to us. We believed he noticed the mess and would scale back corruption, making authorities work for we the folks once more. Lastly.
How’s it going?
Dangle with me right here. The next isn’t an exhaustive checklist, however just a few reminders are so as.
He has enriched himself by $2 billion in the first 18 months of his present time period.
Two weeks after the United Arab Emirates invested $2 billion into World Liberty Monetary (the Trump household crypto enterprise) a deal was finalized permitting the UAE entry to our AI computing chips.
Nationwide safety warnings had been ignored, permitting Nvidia to ship superior chips to China after accounts linked to Trump invested $1 million of their inventory.
Vulcan Parts, a startup with investments from 1789 Capital (Donald Trump Jr.’s agency) secured a $620 million Pentagon mortgage.
And we can’t neglect the no-bid contract given to a Trump donor to renovate the Reflecting Pool.
Oh, and we can not neglect the shameful lack of prosecutions of Jeffrey Epstein’s friends.
Legal guidelines are damaged. The Structure ignored. The Division of Justice weaponized.
The swamp is alive and nicely and rising extra foul by the minute.
What about us? That is what the president says about our wants:
“Affordability is a con job.”
Inexpensive housing is “so unimportant.”
“We’re combating wars. We can’t maintain childcare.”
All this, and a lot extra, whereas reducing SNAP, Medicaid and Inexpensive Care Act subsidies to fund tax breaks for the tremendous rich.
Corruption is alive and nicely, and defending our folks is at the backside of the checklist. Acquired it.
I communicate with lots of of our neighbors each single week. Their honesty is surprising; their despair, palpable.
Whereas eating at a neighborhood restaurant with my husband, L sat down at our dinner desk and shared how tariffs are strangling his plumbing and heating enterprise.
M stopped me in the grocery retailer to clarify her inconceivable state of affairs of making an attempt to discover childcare so she, as a single mother, might proceed to work.
At the hospital, a nurse informed me a few diabetic affected person who was admitted as a result of he was sharing his insulin with his daughter, who had no protection and couldn’t afford it.
A household shared with me that when their son came upon the farm bailout was not coming as promised, he took his personal life.
I’ve lots of of those tales. So do you. And there are tens of millions extra.
So, once I heard the president declare America is “the most profitable nation … ever to exist in human historical past” on July 3 at Mount Rushmore, I might really feel the dissonance. Are you able to?
I appeared up, “What defines a profitable nation?”
The reply, “Human well-being, secure governance, financial stability, and peace and safety.”
We’re not the most profitable — not but.
Is our authorities listening?
Does all the blame lie in D.C.?
No. Why can we maintain electing folks to energy who haven’t felt our ache?
Why? As a result of we’ve got believed the lie that my struggling is your fault, and yours is mine.
That could be a lie used to divide us so we can be managed.
Refuse it.
How can we save us? Now. At this time. Even earlier than Election Day.
We refuse to be divided.
What does resistance appear like?
Unity.
Are you prepared on your marching orders?
We struggle by uniting.
Cease aiming our anger sideways and down. All of our issues are coming from above — corrupt politicians (in each events) who search to self-promote, self-enrich and self-protect.
They’ve betrayed and deserted us, and now they endanger us.
However they solely keep in energy if we enable them to.
Discover folks you belief, pay attention to their concepts, and, no matter get together, vote for them.
They’re petrified of our vote.
Why else would they intestine the Voting Rights Act, unfold lies about voter fraud, attempt to cease mail-in voting, shorten early voting durations, redistrict midcycle and push for the SAVE Act?
They know the energy of our vote and the way that energy threatens theirs. Can we?
Unfold the phrase. Share your pleasure to get to the polls. Provide to take with you somebody who has by no means voted earlier than. To not vote is to give up.
The headline I’m in search of on Nov. 4 is “Document voter turnout.”
That places the accountability the place it belongs.
It’s up to us.
All of us.
Vote.
Kelly Thompson is a Columbia Metropolis resident.
