Stacey Abrams’ Democratic response to the State of the Union was a powerful discussion of real family values and how Republicans, led by Trump, have repeatedly attacked them.
In his speech, Trump never mentioned the shutdown he engineered that negatively affected the lives of millions of Americans.
But Abrams called it out loud and clear.
“The shutdown was a stunt engineered by the President of the United States, one that defied every tenet of fairness and abandoned not just our people — but our values,” Abrams said.
Abrams also called out Trump and Republicans for their indifference to children, on everything from education to gun safety.
“Children deserve an excellent education, from cradle to career,” Abrams said. “We owe them safe schools and the highest standards, regardless of zip code. Yet this White House responds timidly, while first graders practice active shooter drills and the price of higher education grows ever steeper.”
Abrams called Republicans out for their disconnect from average Americans and their inexcusable favoring of the extremely wealthy.
“Families’ hopes are being crushed by Republican leadership that ignores real life, or just doesn’t understand it,” Abrams said.
She also took on Republicans for their repeated attacks on the right to vote, including Trump’s nomination of judges who have been instrumental in racist voter suppression schemes.
“The foundation of our moral leadership around the globe is free and fair elections,” Abram said. “We must reject the cynicism that says allowing every eligible vote to be cast and counted is a ‘power grab.’”
The “power grab” remark was a direct shot at Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who whined that efforts to make it easier to vote were unfair to Republicans.
The vision Abrams articulated was 180 degrees from the divisive, hateful one offered by Trump.
Where Trump called for discrimination and abuse, Abrams pushed for the true, compassionate values that the vast majority of Americans prefer.
Published with permission of The American Independent.
