The Trump Midterm: Tell Us What You Want

Tomorrow is November 6, 2018.  Majorities in Congress and at your state house are up for grabs in this midterm election.

Evey two to four years, it seems everyone from politicians to the media to Hollywood celebrities are trying to shame people into voting.  "This is the most important election in our lives!", we're told.  Maybe so, and in the next two to four years you'll be told the same thing.  Why?  Because elections have consequences.  Remember 2016?

President Donald Trump's name is not on the ballot, but the fortunes of Republican candidates--fairly or not--are tied to what he and other GOP leaders in Congress have been doing to the country for the last few years.  Can the Democrats do any better?  Can the number of women who are running make any difference?

There are other issues that can have an impact on an election.  Some of them have occurred in the past few weeks.

Mass Shootings  

In the past week or so, 16 people have died by way of the bullet in the most ordinary of settings.  Two African-Americans were killed at a Kroger supermarket near Louisville, Kentucky.  Eleven Jewish worshipers were murdered at a Pittsburgh synagogue.  Two women were shot dead at a yoga studio in Tallahassee, Florida.  The three suspects, which includes the one from Florida who ended up killing himself, were all white males who allegedly had grudges with women and minorities.  Our President once referred to such individuals as "very fine people".

Oh, we should mention that someone has been arrested in connection with allegedly delivering pipe bombs to former Presidents, media outlets and other prominent Democrats for daring to disagree with Trump. The sheer scope of the bomb threats seems to indicate that the suspect already in custody may not be the only one involved.

Immigration

A horde of people escaping poverty and oppression in Central America, also known as the "Migrant Caravan". have been making their way north through Mexico on their way to the U.S. border.  President Trump has termed these people as thugs and criminals, deploying as many as 15,000 troops to fortify the border he still hopes to wall off, while running racist political ads in the last days of the campaign that have been banned by at least two TV networks--but only after millions have already seen it.

Others say the "caravan" includes mostly women and children who want the better life that the United States provides, even as Trump threatens to sign an executive order to ban birthright citizenship under the 14th Amendment of the Constitution.  Whether he is actually serious about it or not, any change to the Constitution takes years to ratify, so this might be just a cynical election ploy.

So it is up to us to decide whether we want Trump's actions to remain unchecked in our name, or to elect a Congress that will at least grow a spine.  If you haven't already voted, please do so Tuesday for the candidate of your choice.  This is your country.  Tell us what you want.