Their MAGA minions are working to take over voting at the local level and ignoring the vote of the people at state levels. For example, the Republican candidate for governor of Pennsylvania has stated that he would ensure that the electors for the next presidential election would be cast for a Republican irrespective of the popular vote.

When you look at the Republican agenda, you see that they intend to eliminate Social Security within five years and eliminate Medicare. They are not content to prohibiting abortion, they also want to make it impossible to get birth control. In Idaho access to birth control cannot be discussed on university campuses. Methotrexate is a great drug for treating arthritis, but some women with arthritis are being denied prescriptions for it because it can be used for abortions. Talk about controlling people’s lives.

Republicans are fighting against policies that would benefit regular Americans. Republicans voted against capping costs for insulin, which affects millions of Americans. They are now trying to undo the ability of Medicare to negotiate the price of drugs, all to benefit the big pharmaceutical companies.

Republicans want to talk about inflation but deny that anything needs to be done about climate change. Inflation will become a minor issue when people are having trouble finding food because of climate change. If the droughts in the west go eastward, the breadbasket of the country will be affected. 

Climate change is affecting the U.S. as I write this. Hurricanes are becoming stronger because the oceans are warmer. Sea levels are rising because the ice in the Antarctic is melting. We will be seeing more and more devastations along the coasts and low-lying areas due to climate change. Mother Nature does not care whether you believe in what she is doing, but you will suffer the consequences if you ignore the facts.

Republicans want to talk about crime, but the states with the highest crime rates are all red — run by Republicans. If Republicans are so concerned about crime, why are they not solving that problem where they have control of government?

When they want to cut programs another Republican talking point is always the deficit. The problem is that Republican administrations account for the bulk of the deficit. The Trump administration added trillions to the national debt with the tax break for billionaires. 

Voters should not be distracted by the lies, fear mongering, and distractions put out by Republicans. Their party is driven by feelings of entitlement, fear of change and lust for power. There are no policies that benefit the American public in anything Republican elected officials are doing. They are intent on limiting citizens’ rights and freedoms and installing themselves as perpetual rulers in an autocratic state like the ones they admire in Hungary and other authoritarian countries. It is a sad situation when a vote for candidates from a once great party is a vote to destroy democracy as we know it.

Norman Hoffman

Waynesville