Dear President Trump,

I’m home sick today (on official sick leave) so I can write to you whenever I want and don’t have to be careful about avoiding my tour of duty hours. In a way it’s nice, but I have to be careful that I don’t squander my naptime in favor of fine-tuning this letter to you. I’ve got a function tonight that I’m hoping to be well enough to attend so I need to keep my priorities straight.

In other news, how about that wonderful “power grab for the people” in the form of H.R. 1? The House is going to vote to approve it today, and while the keeper of the drawbridge, Mitch M., won’t allow the Senate to even vote on it, this is patently not political grandstanding or posturing on the part of the Democratically-held House. It is sometimes worthwhile to craft, refine, and vote to support pro-social legislation that is not (yet) likely to be fully successful and this is one of those times. Sadly, until the campaign and election system is unrigged, we won’t be able to tackle most (all?) of the existing and looming threats to our collective wellbeing because the current system props up politicians and their ultra-wealthy patrons who ascribe to an “all for one, one for one” stance.

When one unpacks Mitch’s objections to the legislation it’s abundantly clear that

1. He is terrified that if truly free and fair elections were held, the GOP as we know it, would never win another presidential election or hold majorities in the House or the Senate.
2. He has no actual argument that even remotely justifies his “power grab” language and instead is projecting; he and his buds have been engaging in snatchy power grabs for years,
3. He can’t imagine a political system that isn’t predicated on big money greasing all the skids.
4. He has no idea how he and his GOP “colleagues” would spend their time if they don’t (can’t) devote most of their energy and strategizing to chasing big money donations to insure their re-elections.

So even though H.R. 1 hasn’t got a snowball’s chance in hell of becoming the law of the land this year or next year, I’m thrilled that Pelosi and her team are throwing down this gauntlet and forcing you all to reveal how dependent you are on a craven, crooked system that systematically disenfranchises large swaths of the electorate.

May we all be safe to vote.
May we all be happy (or at least willing) to have free and fair elections.
May those of us who need to, accept that a healthy democracy must include everyone’s voices.
May we understand that true peace and freedom require radical inclusivity.

Sincerely,
Tracy Simpson