It may be time for Utah to address the elephant in the room. The checks and balances the Founding Fathers envisioned are all failing.
The Republican majority in congress will not stand up to Donald Trump (the few exceptions are retiring). The press is financially strapped, denigrated or too concerned with “fair and balanced” to provide a check on executive power. Fox News provides a similar service to North Korean media. The Supreme Court has become completely politicized and is in danger of becoming an extension of the current administration. The only remaining check preventing this president from imposing tyranny is the people of the USA. We are the last barrier to absolute, unchecked power.
The people of Utah must deny their conformist tendencies and vote for the Democratic candidate in every race. The benefits would be enormous.
Even if you agree with Trump most of the time, there must be checks to presidential power. The Republicans are failing in this area. In election after election, we fail to hold Republican representatives accountable. If there is an R by their name, you vote for them. They no longer represent conservatives of the state, let alone moderates or liberals. If you replaced every Republican with a Democrat for one election cycle, members of either party would start listening to their constituents, instead of only to their corporate bosses.
It must be said, voting Republican will result in the continued inhumane treatment of children at the border, the continued rollback of environmental protections, the continued racist policies and rhetoric, the continued racial and partisan gerrymandering and voter suppression, and greater corruption and income inequality. So, is that who we are? Are we better than this?
Steven L Pappas, Salt Lake City