The death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a Supreme Court Justice announced Friday night is tragic, sad, and devastating. Ginsburg, nominated by former President Bill Clinton in 1993, had been an essential figure in advancing women’s rights in the country. One of her first and most popular decisions was the U.S. v Virginia case, which argued whether qualified women could attend the Virginia Military Institute. Not only did she vote in favor of the female students, but she also wrote the majority opinion, which further solidified her stance of being a champion and proponent of women’s rights.
Her loss is yet another example of why now is the most important time ever for the left to unite and show up for Joe Biden for the 2020 presidential election, just over a month away.
Trump’s Plan for the Supreme Court Position.
Via a tweet on Saturday morning, President Donald Trump announced his intention to put forth a nominee to replace Ginsburg: “We were put in this position of power to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices. We have this obligation, without delay!” September 9, President Donald Trump released his additions to his Supreme Court list of nominees. This list consists of conservative judges ranging from United States Court of Appeals judges to prominent GOP senators, who have only grown in stature during the Trump presidency. Two of the most recognizable and arguably most frightening names that can be found on this list are Senator Ted Cruz of Texas and Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas, who have both made it abundantly clear that they will overturn the monumental women’s rights ruling, Row v Wade. Cotton even blatantly tweeting just 10 days ago, “It’s time for Roe v. Wade to go.”
Roe v. Wade is arguably one of, if not, the most important women’s rights cases to ever be decided in the Supreme Court. The law protects a women’s privacy to having an abortion procedure and has helped women over the decades safely have reproductive rights over their body, in the eyes of the federal law.
But Roe v. Wade is not just the only important provision in jeopardy, under the potential Conservative super-majority Supreme Court. Cotton and Cruz have both strongly argued against the Black Lives Matter movement. Cotton’s controversial opinion piece in the New York Times, which argued to “send in the troops” to “control” supposed Black Lives Matter “rioters” was borderline fascist, to put it nicely.
He called for the Insurrection Act, a law that allows U.S. military personnel to be deployed within U.S. borders to unleash into American cities to control BLM protest, something President Trump touted implementing, which he received bipartisan disapproval for. Cotton took advantage of the use of the law which previously peacefully integrated schools at Little Rock Central High School in Arkansas in the 1950s.
Cotton’s vision for America is much different than the one in which even the most conservative Democrats would desire. His brand of American exceptionalism and denial of systemic racism that has prevented African Americans from hundreds of years of progress are just the tip of the iceberg. It’s no telling how far back the Senator would take decades of progress that American minorities have had to fight for and overcome.
Trump’s Disastrous COVID Response
There’s no question Trump’s handling of COVID-19 has been catastrophic for the American people and small businesses alike. According to NPR, 46% of the country has reported having serious financial problems, mostly coming out of the American middle and lower-middle class. Millions have continued to struggle in the discombobulation of how to save their families, businesses, and livelihoods.
A stimulus or any aid package from the federal government is apparently now considered dead. So far, Congress isn’t prioritizing further negotiations pertaining to more relief to the American people, similar to the $1,200 stimulus checks Americans received in March.
On the health front, over 198,000 deaths have been reported as of September 18. That number is expected to break 200,000 deaths in the coming week and projected to hit 378,321 deaths by January 1st, 2021 if the country remains on its current track.
President Trump’s response to COVID-19 has been lackluster at best, and seemingly borderline criminal at worst. Bob Woodward’s bombshell interview with the President on February 7 exposed the fact that Trump knew the virus is “worse than the flu” and even admitted to it being airborne. This is especially revealing because Trump has for months downplayed masks, going against his own medical advisors.
Trump’s admission to knowing how catastrophic this virus was, as early as February is damning. Essentially, he lied to the American people and admitted to downplaying it, just to keep the stock market (84% of which is owned by the top 10% of earners) afloat.
There’s no telling how many lives could’ve been saved if the President had taken the virus seriously from Day One. Being the president, you have access to an accumulation of the world’s most exclusive and high-level intelligence that no other American does. In the past eight months, COVID-19 has not only not gone away but is a daunting and constant reminder of the failure of our federal government, and specifically the chief executive of the nation, Donald Trump, to protect us both from the financial and health dangers of COVID-19.
America’s Minorities and Poor Cannot Afford Another 4 Years of DJT
Relations between Donald Trump and the African American community were already on thin ice. But the recent death of George Floyd and Trump’s pathetic response has only raised Black Americans’ animosity towards the President.
Not only did Trump fail to unite the country after the tragic video footage of George Floyd being choked to death by a police officer, but he fueled the flames of racial division in this country. The president isn’t new to this though. In 2017, after a neo-Nazi allegedly killed a counter-protester with his car in Charlottesville, Virginia, Trump called protestors on both sides “very fine people.”
In a desperate attempt to appeal to evangelicals and his base, the president forcefully cleared out peaceful protestors with gas canisters and federal agents in riot gear. This was all done for an awkward photo-op, where the president held a Bible in front of St. John’s church.
Over recent months, Trump’s rhetoric regarding African Americans has only seemed to get worse. Trump’s classist and racially motivated rhetoric regarding affordable housing is yet another addition to the President’s desperate attempt at courting suburban votes.
In July, Trump stated that the former vice president, “Biden will destroy your neighborhood and your American Dream. I will preserve it, and make it even better!” This was in response to affordable housing implementations that were proposed by the Biden campaign.
It’s extremely questionable as to where the president is trying to go with his fearmongering of affordable housing. What specifically is the problem with families who work in service industry jobs that keep the suburbs afloat from living in those communities too?
It’s especially tone-deaf to make this kind of comment during a pandemic that has ravaged the American middle class. Now, more than ever, Americans need an affordable home where they can sustain livelihoods for their families.
This is totally at odds with Trump’s 2016 messaging, where his populist rhetoric tricked voters into thinking he was some kind of fighter for the “everyday American,” something suburban upper-middle-class housewives are not.
The Case for Biden
For fellow leftists, it’s understandable if Biden wasn’t your first pick. He, for sure, was not mine. Neoliberalism hasn’t worked for America for a long time and some of the policies that Biden has backed, like the Iraq War, don’t sit well with me. But Joe Biden’s America is a much more safe and accepting place for all of us.
Under Biden, the Affordable Care Act will be protected and extended, pushing us further and further closer to free attainable healthcare for all Americans. Joe Biden will protect the rights of women and their reproductive systems. He also recognizes Black lives matter and will advocate for African Americans when we need a leader.
COVID will be taken seriously, and the health experts will be promoted and given the spotlight on the issues, without fear of being undermined. Environmental protectionism will also be taken seriously so that young Americans can grow up in a country we recognize, not ravaged by the effects of climate change.
For black, LGBTQ, female, poor, and ethnic Americans, the removal of Trump is a must that will protect and ensure our rights. America, under another four years of Donald Trump is a reality many of us can’t afford. Now, more than ever, it’s important to use your voice and vote so that we and our children can grow up in a country that is safe and meant for all people, no matter our differences.
