As the year 2017 winds down, Democrats, in general, and the La Crosse County Democratic Party in particular; have responded to the shock of a Trump Presidency with vigor and passion.  Some of the disastrous policies of the Trump led Republicans, like repealing the Affordable Care Act and the Muslim ban, were defeated.  Some of the policies were enacted, but even those carried a gift.

Emboldened by the complete control of the government, the GOP has been acting on some of their most radical ideas to reward their special interest benefactors.  Their actions are brazenly self-serving.  Their candidates are incompetent and frequently amoral.  The Trump administration is completely riddled with obvious corruption,  All but the most radical voters are starting to recognize the moral bankruptcy and ineptitude of their party.

The elections of 2018 are ladened with the possibility of a Democratic tidal wave.  Yes, the GOP special interests will throw tens of millions of dollars into the races in Wisconsin alone. Yes, there will be character assassination carried out on Democratic candidates. But there was a poll showing Walker losing to a generic Democrat. The Wisconsin redistricting gerrymandering suit before the US Supreme Court has a decision expected early next year and the majority of prognostications are for the redistricting to be found unconstitutional.  Paul Ryan is facing a  Democratic opponent who is already getting traction.  Does anyone remember similar circumstances in  2014 or 2010?

The elections appear to be the Democrats’ to lose.  We must not become complacent, we must not fall into old habits and we must not lose sight of the prize.  We must work with vigor and confidence, with unfaltering energy and dedication, and with utter assurance in our final victory.

The Republicans have now shown their true intentions. Their agenda is to continue to use government as a means to plunder the meager wealth the ninety-nine percent of us have, to allow the basic public infrastructure of the ninety-nine percent of us to continue to decay, and to destroy the environment. All of this to benefit large corporations and the one percent.

To paraphrase, now is the time for all good people to come to the aid of their country. We need to unite for health care as a right. We need to assure that the government belongs to everyone. We need to protect our natural resources for the benefit of all. We need to fight so everyone pays their fair share of taxes on income after the basic needs are met.

We need to unite to make our voices heard . . . . and respected. Join the La Crosse county Democratic Party. Labors, progressives, Democrats, and others left behind, unite! Unite with like minded individuals to achieve our common progressive goals.