For the past eight years we have watched the Republican Party fight President Obama every step of the way in his quest to not only recover from the economic disaster he was left by President George W. Bush but to save the economy.
President Obama saved the auto industry when he was advised by Republicans to let it fail. Obama created more jobs in his 8 years than any previous President.
Two of the most important accomplishments he, along with our Democratic Congressmen and Senators, were Obamacare and Marriage Equality. These are two issues I never believed would come to pass in my lifetime.
Since the passing of The Affordable Care Act/Obamacare the Republican Party has tried to repeal it 52 times. So, Since the passing of the ACA how many times has the GOP tried to work with Obama in support of the ACA? That would be ZERO! ZERO TIMES!
Because of Obamacare millions of Americans like myself with pre-existing conditions were finally able to receive affordable healthcare. Before Obamacare I was insured through the Texas State High Risk Pool for Insurance. On the plan I chose with a $5,000 deductible I was paying over $600.00 a month for my premium. Along with that I had a $200 deductible on my prescriptions before my copays kicked in. To pay copays for doctors/multiple specialist visits, numerous prescriptions and my monthly premium I was left with only a few dollars at the end of the month. Only because I had a partner was I able to be able to afford monthly living expenses. Once 2014 came along, I was finally able to afford Obamacare and know that healthcare would not swallow my complete paycheck. This was all made possible due to the hard work of President Obama and our Senate and Congressional Democrats. Republicans thru up roadblocks every step of the way.
Also, living in Texas my partner (now husband) and I were not able to get married when Obama came into office. Because President Obama did not believe in Same Sex Marriage at the time he was elected we truly thought we would never have access to marriage in our lifetime.
Slowly but surely things began to change. State by State Marriage Equality was becoming law. I remember listening to President Obama’s interview with Robin Roberts when Obama said his daughters, Malia and Sasha, have friends whose parents are same-sex couples. "It wouldn't dawn on them that somehow their friends' parents would be treated differently. It doesn't make sense to them and frankly, that's the kind of thing that prompts a change in perspective. At a certain point I've just concluded that for me, personally, it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married."It finally happened-Obama had come out in support of Same Sex Marriage in May of 2012.
President Obama Comes Out in Support of Same Sex Marriage
Of course at the time Same Sex Marriage had to be passed by each state separately. We knew it would never pass in Texas. If Same Sex Marriage was legal in Texas I could have been on my husbands medical insurance which would have only cost us $100 more a month.
After years in court, the Supreme Court finally made Same Sex Marriage legal June 26, 2015. My husband and I had been together for 26 years and were now able to marry legally. I could now be on his medical insurance with my pre-existing conditions and not be paying out an astronomical amount to have coverage.
But, Of course the Republican Party fought this tooth and nail! They felt their “Religious Beliefs” were being trampled upon. Herein lies the problem. Marriage does not have to be determined by Religion. Let me say that again. Marriage does not have to be determined by Religion! Our ceremony was performed at the Courthouse in downtown Austin, Texas! We were married by a Justice of the Peace with our daughters and several friends there in support. We did not force a church or priest to marry us that was opposed to same sex marriage. We had a small reception a few weeks later at a restaurant in downtown Austin with 25 friends and family. We did buy a wedding cake from a wonderful bakery in Austin that we knew was gay friendly. No lawsuits were needed. My point being that this was done with opposition form the Republican Party all of the way.
The final issue that made it clear the GOP would never work with President Obama came about with the death of Justice Antonin Scalia this past February. This left a vacancy which Mitch McConnell and the entire Republican Senate made quite clear they would never fill under President Obama. Even after Obama selected a moderate judge, Merrick B. Garland, the Republicans would not even give Garland an up or down vote. Judge Garland, a former prosecutor who has served on the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit since 1997 and as its chief judge since 2013. Not only was this a slap in the face to Judge Garland but it was the Republican Party once again saying we do not care if you are the President we will not work with you in any way,shape or form, period, end of sentence. They had spoken.
So here is the main reason I am writing this blog on January 1, 2017! The GOP has continually fought President Obama the last 8 years. Hillary Clinton won the Presidency by the popular vote with 3 million votes more than Trump. The Electoral College voted for Trump to become the next President of the United States and be sworn in on January 20th, 2017.
Now Trump’s main surrogate and Campaign Manager,Kellyanne Conway, is saying we all need to come together as a Nation and Heal. That is not going to happen. In an article in The Hollywood Reporter Conway was quoted as saying "He (Trump) went way out to make sure everyone heard him loudly and clearly that he would be the president for all Americans, and that includes many that did not vote for him and did not expect him to be their president," Conway said of Trump's victory speech. "He went further. He said we need to heal and bind the wounds of a nation…[Obama and Clinton] are two leaders we'd like to lean upon to help us do that. We certainly hope we can do that. We certainly hope a number of Democrats feel the same way and even a number of non-voters. This is for all Americans." She also urged Americans to find common ground with one another. “Although we may disagree politically and ideologically, people have far more in common than they may realize when they're in the heat of the political battle," Conway said. "We need to come together as Americans. There's essential goodness in Americans. We have essential wisdom and discernment. People love this country and they love each other and they really just want the best. People looking askance at each other because they have a different political view is really unfortunate. I really hope, because I've heard a lot of it on CNN for the past year and a half, people will just tamp it down…and give this guy a chance as your president- elect as we all did with President Obama and we all did with President Bill Clinton. Give him a chance and be there for him, come together as a nation."
Seriously???? We heard enough of Conway’s hateful rhetoric about Hillary Clinton throughout the entire time she managed Trump’s campaign but to say this after the election! The Republican Party and the voters of the GOP did not support President Obama. There was no consideration or effort of any kind to support any initiative that President Obama put forward.
Besides this nauseating statement by Conway she went even further in attacking Senator Harry Reid. Former Trump campaign manager and current transition-team advisor Kellyanne Conway said on Sunday that Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid “should be very careful” regarding his post-election comments criticizing President-elect Donald Trump, and seemed to at least partially imply that Reid might face legal consequences as a result. She stated “I find Harry Reid’s public comments and insults about Donald Trump and other Republicans to be beyond the pale. They’re incredibly disappointing. […] And he should be very careful about characterizing somebody in a legal sense. He thinks he’s just being some kind of political pundit there, but I would say be very careful about the way you characterize it.” Now Conway wants to threaten Senator Harry Reid? Conway thinks this is how you bring a country together? Conway is just another flippant, hateful Trump surrogate whose self importance has made her come to believe that she actually has power.
This is just one of the reasons we will never bow down to Trump and call him President. Trump will NEVER bring our country together. Any man who uses Twitter as his means of communication to the American Public and does not have the decency or lives in fear of answering questions from our Media can never be our President. A President-Elect who tweets out “Happy New Year to all, including to my many enemies and those who have fought me and lost so badly they just don't know what to do. Love!” is just another example that shows he does not have the emotional maturity to be Commander in Chief. As Hillary Clinton stated while running for President "A man you can bait with a tweet is not a man we can trust with nuclear weapons." —Hillary
We know almost every word out of Trump’s mouth or twitter account is a lie. So many of the media outlets just run with these childish outbursts without ever fact checking any of Trump’s statements. In an article today in “Think Progress” titled “Editor of nation’s second-biggest newspaper says he will not report Trump lies, even if he lies” by Laurel Raymond she writes : Since President-elect Donald Trump won the election, he has continued his campaign habit of making inconsistent, unverifiable, or even just obviously false statements. The American public is left to rely on the media to learn the truth and make sense of his proclamations.
That’s exactly what the media is supposed to do with any politician—when the President lies, it is the press’ obligation to tell the public. But it’s doubly important with a politician like Trump, whose entire political career has often been punctuated by flagrant lies.
But when Trump lies, the Wall Street Journal—the second largest paper by circulation in the country—will not call it a lie, according to the its editor-in-chief Gerard Baker.
“I’d be careful about using the word, ‘lie.’ ‘Lie’ implies much more than just saying something that’s false. It implies a deliberate intent to mislead,” Baker told Chuck Todd on Meet the Press on Sunday.
Instead, Baker said the paper would investigate the claim, and then present both sides: What Trump said, and what the paper found. Then, the readers will be left to decide which account is correct.”
This is exactly why all the “Fake News” and Conspiracy theories started by Trump Supporters and Advisors like General Flynn continue to be thrown around by Trump’s minions. There are very few journalists that will call TRUMP’S LIES A LIE! That is why I respect Kurt Eichenwald- a Senior Writer with Newsweek, Scott Dworkin of The Dworkin Report, Documentary Film Maker and Activist Michael Moore, David Fahrenthold- Political Reporter for The Washington Post and the majority of the reporters at MSNBC including Joy Reid, Rachel Maddow, Chris Hayes and Lawrence O’Donnell for all calling out Donald Trump on his lies during the campaign and now as he continues with his pathological lying. These are among the few now reporting on Trump daily and actually holding him accountable.
I will be 60 at the end of next month. I wanted to write this today-January 1st 2016 as my New Years Resolution. My resolution is to keep speaking with my voice if only in my blog hoping to make a difference. I’ll use my voice in the hope that others will speak out and get involved in the cause to hold Trump accountable for the next four years. To hope and help others get involved in politics and organizations at the local and state level.
As I said earlier I live in Austin, Texas. I plan on speaking out and going to the state capital as often as I can. I have fought for LGBTQ rights for the past 30 years. I will continue to fight to gain Equal Rights under the U.S Constitution for not only LGBTQ but all groups. We must fight to protect Roe V. Wade, Same Sex Marriage , Obamacare and so much more. But, the fight is just beginning. When Donald Trump is sworn in as President on January 20th we must all come together. A man that supports Vladamir Putin and Russia over our own country, President and Intelligence Agencies is not a man to be trusted. Donald Trump will never be our President and the fight for Equal Rights in America is once again on trial.