Vote with wisdom, not with fealty

I woke in the middle of the night, terrified Donald Trump could be elected; mystified that even his recent, repeated lies about Democrats, hurricanes and FEMA, toward his own political ends, have not outraged his followers. The word, fealty, has been used to describe a loyal Trumpist, like number two in the Republican leadership, Steve Scalise of Louisiana, who has repeated (!) Trump’s lie, “They (Democrats) use that (FEMA) money helping illegals here that they brought into America” (The Guardian).

The word fealty is defined historically as, “A feudal tenant’s or vassal’s sworn loyalty to a lord.” “A vassal is one under the protection of a feudal lord, one in a subservient position” (wikipedia). Are the Republicans in truth vassals who fear disempowerment should they cross their presumed lord?

Shawn Fain, president of the United Auto Workers, described Trump as, “the liar-in-chief,” after Trump’s recent appearance before the Detroit Economic Club, adding “Everything he (Trump) does is a con” (WA State Standard).

Are the millions of supporters of Mr. Trump simply deaf to his lies, so used to them as they are, or are they too vassals to their lord? In the late 1950s 75% of Americans had trust in the U.S. government to do the right thing. Currently, 35% of Democrats hold that trust while only 11% of Republicans do (Pew Research Center).

“Mr. Trump, the Republican Party and American conservatives have cultivated and employed public distrust in government for decades” (NLM). Mr. Trump, from early false claims of Obama not being born in America, repeated claims that climate change is a hoax to current lies about corruption and manipulations regarding the weather in the Southeast, all seem to be acceptable to his legions of followers.

Mr. Trump’s broken promises to the nation he so wants again to lead, are so many: repealing the Affordable Care Act “with something beautiful,” saying he was the voice of American workers while his administration stripped workers of their rights, repealed overtime protection and rolled back safety rules (The American Prospect).

We are citizens, not vassals, to protect Democracy. Vote, not with fealty, but with wisdom.

Christine Wardenburg-Skinner

Edison