Disturbing and Appalling! Please Vote, everybody. Nothing Could Be More Urgent.

https://tinyurl.com/yamvn37r

Check out the evening news. Disturbing and appalling!

We are witnessing U.S.-born terrorism.  Bombs were delivered to the homes of Trump’s political foes, including President Obama, Hillary Clinton, George Soros, Maxine Waters, John Brennan, Eric Holder, and CNN itself.  The CNN newsroom had to be evacuated.  There’s concern of another package intended for Joe Biden.  Thankfully, no one got hurt.  The packages all had Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Democratic Party icon, as their return address.

The Secret Service did a great job in confiscating these.  The FBI is all over this right now.  Hopefully, they can find the perpetrators of this horrific crime.

That said, this is extreme.

This hateful, violent spirit emanates from the very top—with the president. Unbelievably, the crowd that Trump rallied today chanted, "Lock her up" AFTER a bomb had been mailed to Hillary Clinton.

And, the bombs were to people that are open enemies of the president—even in recent days.

And this is occurring in the context of unjust policies that disenfranchise our communities so that Trump and his base can hold onto their power.

The end justifies the means.  Whatever it takes....  Even terrorism.

Aside from his own contemptuousness, Trump has loosened an even more hateful and violent spirit in his base over which he cannot possibly control.

Yet he won't retract this mean-spirited statements or approach (he didn't at today's rally where his deplorable base chanted, "lock her up"), let alone apologize to the broader polity and work to make amends for his atrociously cynical, divisive, and corrosive leadership.

And the Republicans have abdicated their responsibilities to the people.  They fail to take this administration on.  And for what?!

“[White] nationalism,” we can easily deduce.  This is a reckless weaponizing of white identity.

We need a government that serves and represents the people rather than an oligarchy and patriarchy that looks more like Talibanism than American democracy.

All Trump could see seem to say today in response was, “We have to unify.”  

In response, here is the message delivered today by Sen. Chuck Schumer and Representative Nancy Pelosi: 

“President Trump’s words ring hollow until he reverses his statements that condone acts of violence. Time and time again, the President has condoned physical violence and divided Americans with his words and actions: expressing support for the congressman who body-slammed a reporter, the neo-Nazis who killed a young woman in Charlottesville, his supporters at rallies who get violent with protestors, dictators around the world who murder their own citizens, and referring to the free press as the enemy of the people.”

Please vote, everybody. Nothing could be more urgent.  And take a family member or two with you.  

This doesn't have to last another term.  It does not and indeed, should not ever be this way. But we all must vote. And do take someone with you to the polls.

-Angela Valenzuela