Dear President Trump, Ok, I owe you an apology. Apparently it’s customary for current presidents to honor deceased presidents with federal holidays. It happened most recently in 2004 when GW Bush declared a holiday in honor of President Reagan, which I should’ve remembered since I was working at the VA then. It also happened in … Continue reading An apology is in order
Peace (and War)
You are beholden to the Bushes
Dear President Trump, Timing can be such a funny thing. Last night on the way home from the grocery my brother texted to let me know that George HW Bush had died (Laura was driving so it was cool for me to read my texts). We speculated and hoped that you wouldn’t be invited to … Continue reading You are beholden to the Bushes
“Breaking News:……”
Dear President Trump, You know how news sites periodically flash a bright red banner with “Breaking News:…..” emblazoned across it? Well, lately I’ve been thinking about how the phrase speaks to both the idea of some new, presumably important, piece of information breaking through the background noise and also to the idea that whatever the … Continue reading “Breaking News:……”
Bits to be grateful for
Dear President Trump, Here’s something to be grateful for on this Thanksgiving Day, 2018 – a Republican Senator (Todd Young of Indiana) was quoted in the WP as saying “Economic interests are important, but they are not the most important thing,” in reference to the lack of real effort by the Saudis to minimize the … Continue reading Bits to be grateful for
Surely they know you love them….
Dear President Trump, Who were you so busy calling on Monday that you couldn’t make it to Arlington National Cemetery? Amazing. You sure are piling on the ignoble firsts, aren’t you? It seems especially stupid for you to disrespect veterans. I’m seeing reports that they voted for you 2:1 over Clinton, but the veterans I … Continue reading Surely they know you love them….
Nice work, Mr. President
Dear President Trump, We don’t hear from Robert Samuelson all that often, but he has an excellent opinion piece in the WP claiming that we’ve all lost the midterm elections. He correctly points out that the real looming issues we need to attend to, including the budget deficit, immigration, and global warming, were all pushed … Continue reading Nice work, Mr. President
“Love moves the world towards love”
Dear President Trump, I think I’ve told you before that at the beginning of my now 466 page document holding all my letters to you there are a couple of pages of random quotes and ideas that I’ve collected for possible incorporation into some-day letters. I usually just scroll past these bits to the beginning … Continue reading “Love moves the world towards love”
Presidential, my ass
Dear President Trump, Who got stuck with trying to convince you that you couldn’t give your usual performance at the Wisconsin rally last night, that you couldn’t incite violence or dredge up the usual spiky crowd pleasers? Did they make you wear a remote controlled electric shocker so they could give you a jolt if … Continue reading Presidential, my ass
At least with a nightmare one can wake up
Dear President Trump, It was pretty self-indulgent to take a break from the mayhem with yesterday’s letter about the reservoir across the street from us, but I’m weary and feeling even more disillusioned and sad than usual lately. From the conversations I’ve had with folks this week, it’s clear I’m not alone. No one appears … Continue reading At least with a nightmare one can wake up
When you go low
Dear President Trump, Surely I’ve asked you this before, but how much of what you say do you actually believe? We know you tell multiple falsehoods a day, but it’s still not clear how much of what you say you’re saying to consciously manipulate your base and how much of what you say you’d tell … Continue reading When you go low