Second Inaugural Address of Franklin D. Roosevelt, January 20, 1937
The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little.
Second Inaugural Address of Donald Trump, January 20, 2025
Instead of taxing our citizens to enrich other countries, we will tariff and tax foreign countries to enrich our citizens.
We will restore the name of the great president William McKinley to Mount McKinley, where it should be and where it belongs. President McKinley made our country very rich through tariffs and through talent. He was a natural businessman.
The Democratic Party Faces a Voter Registration Crises, The New York Times, August 20, 2025, by Shane Goldmacher with Jonah Smith
Of the thirty states that track voter registration by political party, Democrats lost ground to Republicans in every single one between the 2020 and 2024 elections ā and often by a lot. That four-year swing toward Republicans adds up to 4.5 million voters, a deep political hole that could take years for Democrats to climb out from.
Comment:
By Don McCanne, M.D.
Since I was a small child, I always believed in the principle that my father taught me that was so well expressed by President Roosevelt: we always take care of each other.
Currently we are operating under a principle expressed by President Trump: we strive to further enhance the wealth of those who have much, while taking away from those who have little.
This contrast in principles correlates with the respective political parties of Presidents Roosevelt and Trump. Yet, we now see a shift wherein the Democrats seem to be joining the Republicans in placing more value on personal wealth than they do in supporting a government that would ensure that those who have too little would be adequately cared for.
How can this be when polls show majority support for social programs such as single payer Medicare for All? Rallies, such as those of Bernie Sanders and AOC, have record-breaking attendance when they promote programs that would enable all of us to meet basic needs in life. And the Republicans who hold town hall forums in their districts are met with boos and catcalls when they boast about laws they supported that would enhance the wealthy while ignoring the needs of those who are struggling.
Where should our loyalty stand? Should it be in support of social justice which takes care of everyone ā including those who have too little? Or should it be for personal wealth creation that benefits only the most affluent amongst us? I certainly have my answer to these questions, and I fail to see why a majority of us would choose the other answer. Votes should not blindly follow arbitrary loyalty to a political party. They should be based on respect we have toward fellow humans.
If someone can present me with a moral argument of why I might be wrong, I would certainly like to hear it, though I am prepared to counter any such argument. I will never accept that personal wealth is more important than our individual and collective souls.
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