What Will You Tell Your Kids?
A letter to a friend, and an ad that came from it.
A well-meaning Republican friend recently asked me why Biden would be better than Trump.
He voted for Trump in 2016 and (in his words, “very reluctantly) in 2020. A prosperous business leader in a major city, you might catch him on CNBC of Fox Business from time to time. For him, the economy and tax rates papered over Trump’s sins for a long time.
As he expressed it, “I don’t like him but he’s at least a strong leader on my issues.” He’s never been a full-blown Trump fan and thought he mishandled COVID, he was deeply uncomfortable over January 6th, and from the tone of his note to me, I could tell he was looking for something, anything to hold on to in making a stand against Trump.
I’ve edited out two grafs with some specific identifying material.
Dear REDACTED:
I think the simplest question is this: what will you tell your kids?
I know the economy is the thing for you, but brother, you’re rich and always will be, even if your marginal tax rate goes up by a percentage point or two. It’s not — and shouldn’t be — about the money anyway. There’s no argument the REDACTED sector is booming, and if you’re not having a record year under Marxist Communist Joe Biden’s economic terror regime, I’d be shocked.
It should be about your legacy and your family.
So what do you tell them?
That you voted for a felon and a criminal?
That you supported a man found guilty by a citizen jury?
That you went into the voting booth happy to pull the lever for the only former President in history to bear the mark of criminal shame?
Will you tell your kids that contempt for the law is how they should live their lives?
Will you tell them that lying to their families about porn stars and hush money is how they should behave? When they ask if that’s what you would have done, will you answer, “What part?”
Do you want your sons to treat women the way Donald Trump treats women? With contempt, entitlement, and violence? When you look at your boys, do you think, “I sure hope they grow up to commit sexual assault?”
Do you want your daughter to be a target for or a victim of a man like Trump? When you look at her, do you imagine her with a husband like him? A man who will cheat on her while she’s pregnant, demean her when she grows older, and disrespect her at every turn? Do you dream of the day that some future Donald Trump grabs your daughter by the pussy?
Do you hope that your kids will treat people the way you’ve taught them…or the way Trump treats anyone beneath him: with contempt, cruelty, ugliness, and lies?
Will you tell them he was the one role model they should follow?
Will you tell them that you voted for Donald Trump this time he was honest? That he was a good man? That he was the one man, the only man, who could lead America?
Will you tell them you’re proud of his cruelty? Are you happy with the ugly insults, attacks, and endless lies?
Will you tell them that the chaos, death, and danger on his watch is worth it? Will you explain to them that refrigerator trucks filled with corpses and phony promises of instant cures led to a million deaths in the pandemic?
I know how hard it is to walk away and put country over party, to leave the tribal campfire, to vote for someone with whom you disagree on policy but know is right for the country, the future, and our kids and grandkids. (Speaking of which, I’m about to be a grandfather, so this fight has become even more vital for me.)
It feels private in the voting booth.
But your kids are watching.
You’re not just voting for your future.
You’re voting for theirs.
Your friend as always,
Rick
P.S. I’m making an ad about this.
And I did:
Folks, thanks for the notes on the editing mess that version 1.0 of this piece contained. I've done a run of cleanup throughout, and I apologize again for putting speed over edit hygiene. Thanks again!
For a lot of people, money is God. I hope your friend isn't one of those people, but I fear he is. Anyway, you just nailed exactly what I'm trying to formulate in my head and turn into my own Substack entry. It's just spot on. What the hell level of cognitive dissonance does one need to reach to pull the lever for the worst human being, much less worst president, to ever sully the Oval? Is money that f'ing important? Is a tax break so goddamned supreme that you're willing to burn down the entire system we've spent 250 years building, admitted flaws and all? Are you that selfish, self-important, and most absurdly, AFRAID of actually deigning to live in and contribute to a more just and fair society? These questions rage through my mind daily. I know so, SO many otherwise good and generous and truly loving people – none of whom approach the apparent wealth or status of your friend – who have voted for this rotted shell of cells and just may again. I don't get it. I never will. Keep up the good fight, friend.