By J. H. Irwin
Author | Storyteller | Capturing Life, Memory, and Meaning
Election Day is November 3. There is no presidential race on the ballot, but the stakes could not be higher.
So here I sit, twenty days away from what may be the most critical election in United States history.
To me, this election is about whether democracy gets a lifeline or whether we allow Donald Trump to continue dismantling it, aided by a sycophantic Congress and a Supreme Court that has too often enabled him. We cannot keep watching the safeguards fail and assume that somehow the country will save itself.
Current polls favor Democrats, but we have heard reassuring predictions before. We have been hearing them since Trump first came down that escalator, so forgive me if I refuse to mistake a favorable poll for a victory. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me three times, and democracy itself may pay the price.
I want to believe we will turn a corner. I want to believe Americans have seen enough to understand what another two years without meaningful congressional opposition could mean. But belief alone will not restore checks and balances. That requires people to vote, including people who have spent their entire lives voting Republican.
My fear is that, given another two years with a Congress unwilling to restrain him, our country will no longer resemble what we have known as America the Beautiful. The world will continue moving toward an era in which American leadership carries less trust and less respect, while American citizens bear the consequences. We are already living with the anxiety of wondering how much more we can afford, how much more we can lose, and how much longer this can continue.
I see no empathy or compassion in the way Trump exercises power. I see ordinary people expected to absorb the uncertainty while those with wealth and access remain insulated from it. If we keep rewarding this government with more power, I fear rising costs, shrinking affordability and further erosion of access to healthcare. I fear for long-standing protections such as Social Security, and for the relationships with other countries that took generations to build. These are the things our families depend on. They deserve protection from a government that treats people’s lives as expendable.
So, to those who believe they must support their Republican candidates because they could NEVER vote for a Democrat: that is your right. We still have that freedom, and you do not owe anyone a declaration of love for another political party. But you do owe yourself an honest look at what your vote will help make possible.
Think long and hard about this one, my fellow citizens. A Republican label cannot excuse a candidate’s willingness to enable what is happening. If your representative will not challenge abuses of power, voting to return that person to office gives you little reason to expect the next two years to be different. The freedoms you value need people in government willing to defend them.
As I have said before, your vote is not a Valentine. You do not have to pledge your love to a Democratic candidate. You do not have to agree with every position or promise to support that party forever. You can cast a vote for a Democrat because you recognize the urgent need for a Congress willing to challenge and restrain this president.
A Democratic victory will not repair everything overnight. But it can give democracy a lifeline and give us a chance to begin restoring checks and balances. That is the hope I am voting for, and it is why I am asking my fellow citizens to look beyond party loyalty and consider the country we want to leave behind.
It is that simple. It is that serious. Vote, and vote wisely.
Words can still move the world. Read mine → https://substack.com/@jhirwin