It is not the FBI in tatters… it is our Ship-of-State which has sails in “tatters” and is drifting rudderless… at risk of foundering. How long can the dangerous influences of the tRump administration and Repub-controlled Congress be tolerated before we implode and sink?
I live in Iowa and am NOT proud to say my senators are Grassley and Ernst. Neither one has shown any signs of helping us to a better and more hopeful future.
Grassley has become almost as much of an embarrassment as Iowa's Steve King. I guess those of us not affected by the proposed lifting of the inheritance tax will need to take up “booze, women and movies” if we are to live up to Grassley's vision of his ’non-investing' constituents.
Grassley is working hard to help tRump, the Federalist Society and the Heritage Foundation pack our courts with far-right ideologues. His Judiciary Committee is working at record pace -- like an assembly line now, putting their stamp of approval on as many as four to six judicial nominations in one day. McConnell is ramming final approvals through the Senate in batch-fashion with little or no debate. This may end up creating tRump’s greatest legacy and Grassley is key to making it happen. These judges will mend no sails.
I have made countless phone calls, sent letters, many emails; signed hundreds of petitions and attended a few of our senator’s outreach meetings. I made frequent contacts throughout the period Grassley and McConnell were stonewalling President Obama’s nomination of Judge Garland. I have also expressed my concerns about many of Mr Trump’s nominations for Cabinet and agency leadership positions. For example, our Department of State is a mess and getting worse and the EPA has become the energy industry’s handmaiden. I often express concerns about vital environmental issues that are threatening to degrade our entire planet but seem to be of little or no concern to tRump appointees.
The responses we get from our Iowa senators are generally boilerplate ‘doublespeak’ hogwash. Sen. Grassley is still responding to most of my contacts, but Sen. Joni “make-em-squeal" Ernst no longer responds at all. This is not good.
I feel like my voice is falling on deaf ears as Grassley and Ernst have moved into lockstep behind tRrump and seem inclined to ignore those of us who believe the “swamp” in Washington has been turned into a cesspool which is getting smellier every day tRump is in the White House. Our country has gone into a downward spiral from which it probably will not recover in my lifetime. (I am 77 years old.)
I feel so sorry for our grandchildren. It is hard to describe or try to explain for them what is going on without causing them to worry about their future and maybe also worry about we old folks who they can plainly see are agonizing over what is happening. It is difficult to be optimistic when our country is becoming so divided and polarized that someone like Roy Moore is supported by voters (and politicians) who think the priority is retaining a seat in the Senate rather than upholding sound moral values.
We watched the House committee interview the new FBI director this week and it was like watching two different, contrasting, but simultaneous processes with two very different agendas. (One side clearly laying groundwork for taking down Special Counsel Mueller.) Many Congressional activities function this way these days… as if there are two tribes, each of which demands perfect loyalty and may not even speak the same language as the other.
This dichotomy extends through much of America’s present-day society… negatively affecting how we live and govern ourselves. How much longer can this trend to tribalism be allowed to grow before we see rival militias roaming our streets or some kind of civil war engulfing our country? [Time to buy those guns and ammo now, folks… before them Dems outlaw firearms!] Of course our country, or what is left of it, may be able to come together if we get into a nuclear war. Our well-armed citizens won’t be much of a deterrent.
These are days of extremes and too many voters are too easily influenced by what they see and hear on narrowly-focused media and/or are willing to let one or two issues determine how they will vote. Not to mention the growing propensity for people in power and in Congress to routinely lie and clearly expect to be believed. (Like the Republicans and their so-called ‘Tax Reform' bill.)
I have to turn off the TV sometimes because I get sick-to-my-stomach, my blood pressure goes up and it causes me to use uncharacteristic language when I see what is going on. It is very stressful. What is happening to our country is truly a health hazard… in so many ways, and at so many levels. Our ship is not only without guidance and power… it is diseased and rotting from within.
We continue to make modest financial contributions to several organizations that are trying to keep our ship afloat and the water and air clear but our funds are limited. We will vote for the right people when the time comes but what else can we do?
Volunteering and door-knocking, etc. is not an option for me. My time and energy is limited as I am the only caregiver for my wife who has Alzheimer’s.
I trust you will pardon the length and wandering of my rant, but it seems to help me cope sometimes if I write about my concerns. My wife and I live alone and because of her condition, I rarely have a chance to discuss these things with anyone else… so I write.
Thank you for your attention.