Last weekend a speaker at the No Kings rally in Macomb said that he knows good people in McDonough County who would give you the shirt off their back to help you, people you could rely on, good neighbors. What he couldn’t understand, some are supporters of Mr. Trump. He said we shouldn’t hate them for their support of Mr. Trump. They’re our neighbors; it’s their choice. He likened our current times to the crisis of the Vietnam War, only worse.
There are many reasons people fall into the political camps that they do: historical ties to one party, focus on a particular issue, or generally liking one approach over another.
For those who like: endless wars that sap tens of billions of our tax dollars, high gas prices—even higher diesel prices, tariff-related price increases, higher healthcare costs, higher insurance premiums, high mortgage interest rates, huge government deficits, 1,100 acre data centers swallowing our farmland, unregulated AI, and tech billionaires, then vote Republican.
If you like supporting Russia in its war with Ukraine, hamstringing Ukraine’s defenses, and sending tens of thousands of U.S. service members to fight yet another war in the Middle East, then vote Republican.
If you like the apparent corruption of Trump administration officials and the endless breaking of the law, then vote Republican.
But if you don’t like higher gas prices, inflation, a war in the Middle East, and unchecked data centers and AI, then consider voting Democrat.
I don’t agree with all the bits and pieces of the Democratic party, but I want a change. The Democrats are not blameless. They have pushed up deficits too, and sometimes I think they go too far. But the Democrats are the only choice we have now for moving beyond this chaos. I don’t want tech billionaires, an increasingly incoherent President, and a do-nothing Congress making decisions about our future. It’s obvious that the general welfare of the people is last on their list of concerns.
I’m not voting for any of Mr. Trump’s enablers. I’m voting for those who will work for the people. I’m voting for Democratic candidates. Richard Chamberlain Colchester, Illinois
