Numbers Matter

Numbers Matter

I just cannot tell you how disappointed I was with the last election. I could not or would not believe that the majority of Americans would elect the Republican nominee after his statements during the campaign and particularly after George Bush’s lies and failed economic policies and eight great years of President Barack Obama. I thought finally this country was on the right track and we would not turn back. I may have been right when it comes to the popular vote, but that is not how the Presidential election is decided. It is based on the electoral votes. No matter the popular vote, if the candidate wins the majority of the electoral vote, decided by state elections, they become the winner and are subsequently sworn into office. And this time there was no Supreme Court decision, or Florida or hanging chads. The decision was clear and we had elected a new President.

We now have in charge of not only the Executive Branch but also the Congress, people who believe that the path America has been on for the past few years is the wrong one.” Draining the swamp” includes rolling back the victories won on healthcare, talking about our political opponents and our Allies, going back on our word by abandoning treaties, giving the rich cake while the rest of us eat crumbs, praising our enemies while attacking our friends, disrespecting the Press, placing personality above principle and the list goes on. It is as if we live in the world alone and no other human beings matter. We are great all by ourselves and the only thing to fear is our might. What a preposterous position.

Now comes the retiring of another Supreme Court Justice and the chance for the POTUS to add a second person to the court. After denying President Obama the chance for his nominee to even be voted on, Mitch McConnell and his Republican cronies in the Senate have promised a speedy hearing and confirmation of Brent Kavanaugh. There appears nothing can be done to stop them. So now the courts, like the other branches of government, become controlled by right winged, wrong thinking people who believe that people of color are the enemy of America and represent a greater danger to our future than trashing the constitution. This country should stand for more than raw power. It should stand for what is right and just. For decades, we have relied on the courts to understand this. I hope that time has not passed.

Maybe the coming election in November can right the ship of America. Maybe our votes can send the message that we are not like that. Maybe we can say that we must respect the constitution and the rule of law. Maybe can demonstrate that to get thing done you must work with others. Maybe we can show that our words mean something. Maybe we can return fairness and justice to how we do things in this country. We cannot be driven roughshod into oblivion. I plan to do all I can this time around. There is much to dislike on the path we are taking.

I am not convinced that the majority of Americans like the way we are doing things. But we will soon have chance to say we agree or disagree. While I want to be on the winning side, it is much more important that I be on the right side.

But numbers matter.