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RE: The Trump
Presidency, the direction of the Republican Party
Dear Representatives:
On November
2, 2016, I wrote to you and a few others about my concerns about the candidacy
of Donald Trump and a number of things as that campaign influenced the
direction of the Republican Party. In it, I explained my decision to continue
to vote for Republicans with certain exceptions – namely, Donald Trump and any
who were forcefully supporting him.
I stand
by that decision, despite the surprising result and the benefit it gives the
Republican Party, not because I did not vote for the current President, but
because I believe, as I believe most of you believe, that there remain real
concerns about his Presidency, even while it should allow for opportunities for
Republicans to pass legislation and accomplish goals that a divided government
does not.
I write
to you today to give you my current concerns, in light of what has happened
since the election and what actions President Trump took in the interim, not
only about his Administration, but how the Republicans governs over the
following two years.
President Trump
I must admit, I was disappointed
to only receive a response from Senator X in relation to my November
communication. Especially as it relates to Senator Y, Representative Z and State Representative U, is it unreasonable to expect a
response from our representatives, especially on such an important issue?
In Senator X’s response, he
made it clear that understands the importance of Congress’ responsibilities to
“alleviate the dangers inherent in centralizer power. … Congress has the duty
to provide critical oversight of the executive branch.” It is exactly this that
I expect of my Federal Representatives. I was especially encouraged to see the
efforts of Senator Marco Rubio of Florida in recent hearings to this effect.
On the
other hand, listening to President Trump’s speech today has me very concerned.
That did not sound like a President who intends to continue the successful
foreign policy of Ronald Reagan. In fact, it sounds very much like a President
who intends on taking isolationist positions, something that I strongly oppose.
While I understand a different direction is needed from the clear failures of
the Obama Administration, this is not the response I expected from a
Republican.
He also
spoke about economic policies that are more fitting in the 1930s than today,
and certainly not befitting America’s place in the world economy.
I
reiterate my concerns relating to the release of his taxes. All of the apparent
and implied conflicts of interests remain troubling – especially considering
his lack of action to address. Would we have been comfortable with President
Clinton doing these things while he was in office? What would your reaction
have been if Senator Clinton would have won and she wanted to approach her conflicts
of interests this way? The concern you would have had in those situations
absolutely applies here.
Since
the election, he has made numerous statements about the press. While I think we
can all acknowledge that the media is a unique animal with its own issues,
this, along with other statements attacking First Amendment rights continues to
shock and concern me.
The
issue, though, that concerns me the most is the potential compromise of his
Administration by Russia, and the potential interaction between his campaign
and Russian agents. Even the idea of a US politician interacting with a foreign
power, but especially to win an election, is something that should turn every
Patriot’s stomach. At this point, we do not know exactly what happened, so I am
not in a position to make any demands other than this issue is so serious that
it needs to be fully investigated. If for no other reason than to know for a
fact that nothing happened, this needs to be completely vetted. I will say,
though, that the concerns raised to date are incredibly distressing.
The
other concerns I raised in my November 2, 2016 letter remain, but these are the
concerns that we now have a record of, and these are the most clear issues.
The Republican
Party In Power
Beyond
the Presidency, there is another Big Picture issue that needs to be discussed.
Please, I beg of you, think beyond simple victories relating to a platform.
Take the time to look at what will work best for most Americans. I am sure it
is tempting to take a unified government out for a spin and see how fast the
car can go, but we have often seen how that plays out – not well. But you well
know that there are some things in the Republican platform that are not
supported by most Americans, and an attempt to ram that through will either end
in direct failure if there are those who do not vote the party line, or it will
end in Republicans losing office.
You stand for Republican ideals,
and to the extent that you can advocate for them and push them, do so. But when
it comes to issues that may not have the majority support of American voters,
remember that you represent ALL of your constituents, not just those who are
registered Republicans. A good example of this is the recent decisions
regarding anti-abortion efforts in Ohio and Governor Kasich. An extreme option
was available, but he chose a more moderate way on an incredibly difficult and
important issue. This is the kind of leadership we need going forward.
The
biggest issue, clearly, is health care. It is absolutely true that “Obamacare”
has been disastrous. While not as bad as Hillary Clinton’s plan in the 1990s
would have been, it has clearly not solved many of the issues it attempted to
address, and has made other aspects considerably worse, all the while adding loads
of uncertainty into the electorate. Absolutely and totally, something must be
done. The massive question that is in front of you is what.
I
implore you, resist the temptation to simply trash the current law. I recognize
that it certainly would appease many upset voters, and would probably feel very
rewarding to finally have “done something” about it. But this is one of those
key moments where real leadership – no, real REPRESENTATION – is needed. Take
the time to understand the various issues, and do what you have to do to come
up with a solution that works best for most Americans.
This is
a massive opportunity to show that Republicans can do what is in the best
interest of the country, not just what satisfies the wants of the rabid
extremes of the party. Historically, Democrats have come up with Big Picture
socialist-leaning solutions. Please be more than just the party that says,
“No.” Be the leaders that look beyond their next primary. Be the leaders that
find what is actually in the best interest of their constituency, and work
through whatever means necessary to make it happen.
I leave
you with one other example of the kind of things I am looking for from you. The
decision to invade Iraq was one where the emotion of the country and the
Administration overwhelmed those who needed to be better in the moment. Was
invasion the right decision? Ultimately, probably. But the WAY it happened was
rushed, and so we went in at the wrong time, with the wrong preparation, and we
ended up starting a war that still costs lives over a decade later, and more
importantly, we did not make sure to win the peace. I believe very strongly
that if we would have made sure to do in Iraq what we did in Germany and Japan
after World War II, we would have that strong, capable ally in the Middle East
that President Bush envisioned.
But at
that time, to Senator X’s point in his December 1, 2016 letter to me,
Congress did not fulfill its responsibility to provide that critical oversight,
especially as it related to issues of coalition building and, most especially,
making sure that we would not just win the war, but that we would leave a
stable country once the war was over. Clearly, President Obama made matters
worse in the way he pulled troops out of Iraq prematurely, but I certainly hope
no one is going to try to argue that ISIS and the current issues involving Iraq
are solely his responsibility.
Specifically, I ask you to
provide that critical oversight. It is especially important for a President who
has no experience in government or military service, and who has questioned
openly the value of NATO and our other allies in the world. We did not endeavor
for fifty years, and through the leadership of President Ronald Reagan and
George H.W. Bush win the Cold War, only to throw it away now.
I wish
you the best in your endeavors this term. I pray for you and hope you can
continue to keep America great.
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