A Virtual Church

The rocky road ahead

11:49 a.m. today

For all the celebrating Democrats did after the mid-terms, they wake up to a new reality: Donald Trump has two more years in office and he is not happy.

If anybody hoped Trump would fade graciously into the winding down of his presidency, those hopes are dashed. The president named Stephen Miller as his new chief-of-staff. That fact alone should frighten us.

Stephen Miller was the architect of the most egregious policies of the Trump administration. Deportation, family separation, and ICE violence were part of his plan to exercise power, both in America and in countries abroad.

Winning through intimidation and might is the plan. Take what you want. Full steam ahead. You want Greenland, take it. Canada, you’re next. America is becoming the pariah of the world. Nobody is safe.

Sadly, there is little anybody can do. Even with a Democratic majority in Congress come January, executive order remains the prerogative of the presidency.

The war in Iran is not ending anytime soon. Prices of food and gasoline will likely escalate, especially if the Fed raises interest rates, as it is expected to do in December. Trump thinks nothing of burdening the citizens of America because he doesn’t care. There is video evidence of his saying he doesn’t care.

The repudiation of Trump seems to have made him mad. He is having a “terrible, no good, very bad day.”

Trump has made no secret of his disdain of losers. He hates a loser. Reckoning with his own loss must drive him nuts.

Democrats surely recognize the big blue tsunami was more about harming Trump than celebrating policies set forth by the likes of AOC, Schiff, and Shumer. Hopefully they see the steep uphill they will encounter.

The steady hand, the common good, the American dream are important in calling us back to center. We have lost our way in the corruption and grift of the Trumps.

Democrats need winning ideas that benefit the middle class of America. Trump has built an oligarchy which has gotten richer and more powerful while the middle class has borne the burdens.

Righting the ship was the hope of the mid-term election, sending a signal that a lot of America is hurting fell on deaf ears.

Stephen Miller will make everything worse. He is as cruel as Donald Trump. He is also more intelligent and better educated.

The Democrats in Congress can rattle Trump by releasing the Epstein file. They can cut funding of Trump’s vanity projects. They can wear Trump out with investigations into the administration, starting with the impeachment of Pete Hegseth.

Stephen Miller comes with a lot of power and moxie, but he cannot stop everything. Speaker-to-be Hakeem Jeffries has said he won’t work with Miller.

Hang on, America. Watching and waiting are the task, along with building the war chest for candidates on the horizon for the presidential election in 2028.

“There’s always tomorrow,” the song says. “It’s only a day away.” Put your hiking shoes on. It may be an uphill climb, but the view from the top is glorious.

Lib Campbell is a retired Methodist pastor, retreat leader, columnist, and host of the blogsite Avirtualchurch.com. She can be contacted at libcam05@gmail.com. 

 

 

 

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