The Winds of Change
With our midterm elections less than 30 days away, there is still time to change course. There are several undisputed facts about our current situation. Fact: food prices are up; gas and diesel prices are up; housing costs are up; and the cost of health insurance, where available, is up. Inflation is at 3.4% – higher than when Trump took office. While wages and salaries have increased, they have generally not kept pace with inflation. Unemployment rose to 4.2% in the recent jobs report. Bottom line: the cost of living is up and affordability (not a made-up word) is down. During the Republican Midterm Convention, President Trump said, “I’m asking you to pretend I am on the ballot.” We don’t have to pretend. He is on the ballot, represented by hundreds of Republican congressional candidates. Many important state offices will also be decided. The incumbent representative for our district, Michael Baumgartner, has overwhelmingly supported Trump’s agenda. He voted for “The Big, Beautiful Bill” which will restrict food assistance and Medicaid services for thousands of people and 54% of all children. He supported the costly tariffs and voted each time against restricting or ending military operations against Iran. He claims to work for all voters, even if they didn’t vote for him. Why would he feel compelled to write that? Doing the same thing over and over, but expecting a different result, is insanity. Let’s do things differently. Vote for change. Vote Conroy.