Wake Up America!
I have been alive through 16 presidential elections, and old enough to vote in 11 of them. Politics have always been front and center in my family’s household. In 1963 I distinctly remember my mother crying over the assassination of President Kennedy and again over the shooting of his little brother Robert Kennedy. Every November my mother would volunteer to work the polls and my aunt (my dad’s sister) was heavily involved with the League of Women Voters. Needless to say, I come from very strong Democratic roots.
In 1968, when I was eight years old, Richard Nixon won by a very narrow margin of the popular vote but won the electoral college vote over democratic nominee Hubert Humprey. Sadly, Nixon won a 2nd term against George McGovern this time by practically a landslide. I remember the disappointment the results of this election brought to my parents and it has stayed with me, but we all know how the 1972 election turned out-the Watergate scandal was just around the corner. Right after the last election when taking our dog to the beach in Provincetown, we ran into political satirist Kate Clinton who proceeded to say to us, “Who knew Nixon was the Good Old Days?”.
So here we are in 2020 with the Covid-19 pandemic raging on. Clearly the country is truly divided and with 66 days left before the election time is running out to convince more people that we have to get the most dangerous, divisive president out of office. I couldn’t believe my ears when the other morning I was listening to NPR Newsbrief and a woman in Scottsdale, AZ was being interviewed as to why she is going to vote for Trump and it basically came down to his crassness and “I don’t give f — k” attitude. When the reporter pointedly asked her about his treatment of women, citing calling Kamala Harris “a nasty woman”, she laughed and said, “I’m too old to care about that”. Really? This is an example of the mental capacity of his supporters.
When speaking with our nephew, he very cleverly told us that he can no longer get into debates or arguments as to why no one should vote for Donald Trump. Instead, he has chosen to put together a handbook of sorts giving the reader A Million Reasons Not to vote for Trump Its a good document to share if you are tired of getting into these debates. And if you don’t want to give these folks something to read, then share the website address of the Lincoln Project with them and let Republicans tell them why they shouldn’t vote for Trump.
So, with 66 days to go, I am begging and pleading with my fellow voters to WAKE UP AMERICA!! Its been very difficult to witness via the media the violence taking place on our streets and to see this pandemic rage on as a direct result of the inadequate leadership of this president. This is the most important election of our lives and we must do whatever we can to get out the vote for the country we all love.
Stay strong, be well, and stay safe.
Pam Damnit
