20/10/2024
I voted! So proud to vote for this whip-smart, competent, joyful, caring, and tough former prosecutor and current vice-president, who is committed to governing for all of us, not blaming and demonizing half of us. I may not agree with Kamala on everything, but I agree with her on MOST things. And I know she'd do a far better job on the issues I care about than her opponent.
To my fellow Americans who may be inclined to vote differently: the last election was NOT stolen; #45 lost fair and square, as certified by the election officials (representing both parties) from all 50 states. People violently stormed the capitol and tried to overturn that election based on the former guy's lie, which he continues to tell. That alone should disqualify him. Also, immigrants are not eating our pets. Get serious. They're growing, harvesting, and cooking our food; raising our kids; cleaning our homes and hotel rooms; caring for our yards, and much, much more. Nor are they taking jobs from Americans to do this: US unemployment is at its lowest rate in 50 years. Here in the Methow, employers are struggling because they can't find ENOUGH workers. Further, if we created a path to citizenship, the wages that these immigrants are earning could contribute to Social Security for our aging population. And if you're worried about high prices, imagine what mass deportation would do! In addition to tearing apart families, how much would food cost without workers to bring it to market?
Regarding another falsehood that #45 tells: climate change is not a hoax. Just ask your insurance company, or the oil companies that have been raising their offshore platforms to accommodate rising sea levels. The increasingly intense natural disasters we're experiencing have been predicted by scientists, not caused by Jewish space lasers.
There are many other points I could make, but in short, our country doesn't suck. We've come through the pandemic, strangled supply chains, and the resulting inflation WITHOUT the feared recession. Our economy is once again the envy of the world.
Yes, our country has real problems to solve: transitioning to a fossil-free economy; making housing and childcare more affordable; protecting women's access to abortion and all reproductive healthcare; addressing the challenges of social media, disinformation, and artificial intelligence; and creating a more just and equitable society overall. The Biden administration made gains in all of these areas--despite the resistance of the GOP and the horrible decisions of the current SCOTUS. Yet these challenges also serve to show that GOVERNING is difficult. There are 330 million of us, and we don't all agree! Governing requires a lot of smart and knowledgeable people working together to do a lot of things well. Re-electing the former guy will not help. Blame doesn't solve problems. Replacing all of the qualified civil servants with his loyalists will not solve problems. Working together is our only chance. The Senate recently modeled this when a bipartisan committee agreed on a proposal to fix the problems with our immigration system. But you know the story: the former guy didn't want a solution; he wanted a campaign issue. That is not leadership or statesmanship. That is petty-mindedness.
The woman I am so proud to vote for is not a criminal, a sexual predator, a liar, or a cheat. She believes in the institutions of our government, of democracy. The former guy couldn't care less. His character flaws are so great that 39 of his 44 former cabinet members have refused to endorse him. His character flaws prompted the nation's top general, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley, to call him a fundamental threat to the safety and integrity of the United States. “No one has ever been as dangerous to this country as Donald Trump,” he told journalist Bob Woodward. That is quite a statement.
We can do better, People. We can elect Kamala Harris.
