I started writing this afternoon—a page-long diatribe
against Donald Trump. I, like so many of
my liberal brethren, am so sick and tired of the hate and vitriol, the noisome rhetoric. But then, it occurred to me that I have been
infected by his hatred. That is not who I am, not as a person and not as a liberal. It was time to channel that hatred into something positive.
I took some time. I
watched Khizr Khan’s speech and Reverend William Barber’s
speech. I watched Michelle Obama. Finally, I watched Vice President Joe Biden’s
and President Barack Obama’s speech.
Suddenly, I had a tiny epiphany.
I remembered what it means to be a liberal. To put a spin on the great
catchphrase, “It’s the issues, silly!!” Healthcare, education, climate change, pay
equality, civil rights….those are the issues!!
AND, it’s our spirit—our undying
and loving spirit and the audacity of hope.
It was with hope that I listened to these
great speakers. They spoke of coming
together, not dividing our country. They
spoke of compromise and common ground. They spoke of making the world better
for our children and of revival and the American Dream. They spoke of true democracy. They spoke of trying and failing, not of
sitting on the sidelines.
President Obama said something in his speech
that I have said often of late—how important it is that we get out and vote the
ENTIRE ticket. Vote for Mayors, Senators, and Representatives who share our
views and our platforms. We need to support those who will get in there and get
the work done that NEEDS to be done to move forward on the issues that drive us
as a party. But there is something
else. We need to harness the excitement
and fire of the presidential election year and remember it in two years when
the mid-term elections come around. Liberals
are particularly wont to “sit back on our laurels” after we’ve won. That hasn’t worked for us in the last two mid-term
elections and it won’t work going forward. We can do everything we can to get
Hillary Clinton elected….but a President can’t do it alone. A Vice President or Senator or Representative
can’t do it alone. We need to support
ALL of our elected officials because, as they say—we’re stronger together.
