Dear President Trump,

It might just be too early in the season, but I noticed this morning that although our rose bushes are leafing out mightily, they don’t have any aphids, which seems pretty weird. Don’t get me wrong, it’s super nice to see all those tender greenish yellowish leaves doing their thing without aphids crawling all over them and it would be wonderful if they continue to get to grow without having their sugars sapped by those little suckers. Maybe it’s because there are so many fewer cars on the road and the air and water are cleaner, making for healthier, more robust plants that aren’t as appealing to aphids. Maybe. That would be something of a silver lining to all this, wouldn’t it?

Well, focusing on aphids, or the lack of aphids, on roses was a nice diversion, but it can’t last – I need to let you have it. Last night, just before she closed Twitter, Laura read two posts that went something like “In 50 years I’m still going to be angry and sad about this” to which someone replied “In 50 years I’m still going to be angry and angry about this.” They were, of course, referencing you and your administration’s handling of the coronavirus crisis and I can totally relate to both – the odds that I’ll last another 50 years are slim to none, but to my dying day I will be sad and enraged about this situation and about your entire presidency. You are a blight. The damage you, your handlers, and your toadies have managed to inflict on the US and on the entire world in 3 short years, 75 days, 7 hours, and 30 minutes is probably worse than the damage anyone else in recorded history has ever (ever) managed to pull off. So if this was your goal coming in, congratulations, you’ve done it.

If this weren’t bad enough, your f*cking poll numbers are improving. OMG. Colbert King argues in his WP editorial today that your numbers are rising because you’ve managed to undermine so many people’s trust in the media and instead have entrained them to trust only you (and your Foxy Friends). Wait a minute! Not to malign real foxes, but they are purported to be sly, cunning, and sneaky, and they are even rumored to be deceitful when it comes to getting what they want so is it any wonder that your media mouthpiece is so named? And yes, I know that Fox News is associated with the older 20^th Century Fox, which is a subsidiary of Disney…. It would be very interesting to see an org chart laying out all these relationships, now wouldn’t it?.

Ok, I’m back and ready to re-engage with King’s editorial. While I agree with him that you have systematically and stealthily worked to convince millions of Americans that mainstream media is so much fake news, I think there’s an even more fundamental reason your poll numbers are improving: fear. In addition to undermining trust in the media, you and yours have systematically and stealthily engaged in a robust fear mongering campaign through which you’ve entrained boatloads of people to look to you as their one and only protector.

Well, those people now desperately need to believe in you. They are doing whatever mental gymnastics are necessary to avoid seeing that we are in terrible shape with this virus because of you. Moreover, they are doing some of the most messed up reaction formation forming in the history of man (deliberately chosen) to convince themselves that you’re a solid leader, that you’re doing a good, even great, job handling the covid-19 situation. They have to believe in you because you are the one calling the shots and they can’t bring themselves to believe you are shooting at them. Ergo, your poll numbers are rising.

And major bonus for you, with the coronavirus forcing us all to shelter in place, those of us who are on to you cannot take to the streets to protest – handy huh?

May we be safe from our president.
May we be willing to find ways to protest.
May we hold fast and firm to the truth.
May we accept that our leadership is betraying us.

Sincerely,
Tracy Simpson