The democratic refutation of President Donald Trump’s speech before the congress comes from senator Elissa Slotkin, a senator from Michigan’s first mandate. She spoke for about 11 minutes.
Here is a transcription of his remarks prepared for delivery:
Hello everyone. I am Elissa Slotkin. I am honored to have the opportunity to speak this evening. It’s late – so I promise to be much shorter than you just looked at.
I will not take it personally if you have never heard of me. I am the new senator of the great state of Michigan, where I grew up. I was in the public service all my life because I was in New York on September 11 when the twin towers went down. Before smoke was released, I knew I wanted a life in national security.
I was recruited by the CIA and I did three tours in Iraq, alongside the military. Between the two, I worked at the White House under President Bush and President Obama, two very different leaders who both believed that America was exceptional.
You can find the same feeling of patriotism here in Wyandotte, Michigan, where I am tonight. It is a working -class city just south of Detroit. President Trump and I both won here in November. It may not seem that, but many places like this still exist through the United States-places where people believe that if you work hard and play according to the rules, you should do well and your children are doing better.
It reminds me of how I grew up. My father was a republican for life, my mother a democrat for life. But it was never a big problem. Because we had shared larger values than any part.
We just went through another heavy electoral season. The Americans have clearly indicated that prices are too high and that the government must be more sensitive to their needs. America wants change. But there is a responsible way for making changes and in an reckless manner. And, we can make this change without forgetting who we are as a country and as a democracy.
So that’s what I’m going to have this evening.
Because you are in Wyandotte or Wichita, most Americans share three fundamental beliefs: that the middle class is the engine of our country. This strong national security protects us from damage. And that our democracy, as disorderly, is unprecedented and which is worth fighting.
Let’s start with the economy.
Michigan has literally invented the middle class: the revolutionary idea that you could work in a car factory and offer you the car you are building. It’s the American dream. And to develop and protect the middle class, we must do some basic things:
We have to lower the price of things on which we spend the most money: grocery store. Accommodation. Health care. Your car.
We have to do more in America with well -paid union jobs – and bring our supply chains home like places like China.
We need to give American companies the certainty they need to invest and create jobs for the future.
And we need a just tax scheme for people who do not earn a billion dollars.
Look, President Trump spoke a big game about the economy, but it is always important to read the small characters. So: do his plans really help Americans move forward?
Not even close.
President Trump tries to deliver an unprecedented gift to his billionaire friends. He is hunting to find billions of dollars to transmit to the richest in America. And to do it, he will make you pay in all parts of your life.
The grocery store and the prices of houses are increasing, not down – and it has not stated a credible plan to manage either.
Its prices on allies such as Canada will increase the prices of energy, timber, cars – and trigger a trade war that will harm manufacturing and farmers.
Your premiums and prescriptions will cost more because mathematics on its proposals do not work without going after your health care.
Meanwhile, for those who maintain the scoring, the national debt increases, not down. And if he is not careful, he could walk us directly in a recession.
And one more thing: to pay for his plan, he could very well come after your retirement – the benefits of social security, health insurance and the va that you have worked all your life to earn. The president says he will not, but Elon Musk simply called Social Security “the biggest program of Ponzi of all time”.
Although we are on the subject of Elon Musk, is there someone in America who is comfortable with him and his 20-year-old gang who use their own computers to unravel your income statements, health information and bank accounts? No surveillance. No protection against cyber attack. No railing about what they do with your private data.
We need a more effective government. You want to cut the waste, I will help you do it. But the change does not need to be chaotic or make us less safe.
The insane dismissal of people who work to protect our nuclear weapons, prevent our planes from crashing and carrying out research that finds the remedy against cancer – only to recruit them two days later? No CEO in America could do so without being summarily dismissed.
Ok, so we talked about our economic security. What about national security?
Let’s start with the border. As a person who has spent my whole career protecting our homeland, each country deserves to know who and what crosses its border. Period. Democrats and Republicans should be everything for this.
But securing the border without really repairing our broken immigration system is treating the symptom and not the disease. America is a nation of immigrants. We need a functional system, keys to the needs of our economy, which allows approved people to come and work legally. So I look forward to the President’s plan on this subject.
Because here is the thing: the world of today is deeply interconnected. Migration, cyber -menices, AI, environmental destruction, terrorism – a nation cannot face these problems. We need friends in all corners – and our safety depends on it.
President Trump likes to promise “peace by force”. It was actually a line that he stole from Ronald Reagan. But let me tell you that after the show that took place in the oval office last week, Reagan has to turn into his grave. We all want the end of the war in Ukraine, but Reagan understood that real force demanded that America combine our military and economic power with moral clarity.
And this scene in the oval office was not only a bad episode of reality TV. It sums up the whole approach of Trump to the world. He believes in making fun of dictators like Vladimir Putin and kicks to our friends, like Canada, in his teeth. He considers American leadership as a simple series of real estate transactions.
As a child of the Cold War, I am grateful that it was Reagan and not Trump in office in the 1980s. Trump would have lost our cold war.
Donald Trump’s actions suggest that, in his heart, he does not believe that we are an exceptional nation. He clearly doesn’t think we should lead the world.
Look, America is not perfect. But I am with most Americans who believe that we are always exceptional. Unprecedented. And I prefer to have American leadership on Chinese or Russian leadership any day of the week.
Because for generations, America has offered something better.
Our security and our prosperity, yes. But our democracy, our very system of government, was the aspiration of the world. And right now, it’s in danger.
It is at risk when a president decides that he can choose the rules he wants to follow, when he ignores the judicial orders or the Constitution itself, or when elected leaders remain free and that it happens.
But it is also at risk when the president associates you with Americans, when he demonizes those who are different and tells some people that they should not be included.
Because America is not only a plot of land between two oceans. We are more than that. Generations have fought and died to guarantee the fundamental rights that define us. These rights and the struggle for them make us who are.
We are a strict nation. Risk takers. Innovators. And we are never satisfied.
It is the American superpower.
And look, I have lived and worked in many countries. I have seen democracies sparkling. I saw what life looks like when a government is rigged. You cannot open a company without reimbursing a corrupt official. You cannot criticize the guys in charge without knocking on the door in the middle of the night.
So, as much as we have to make our government more reactive to our lives today, do not be mistaken for a moment that democracy is not precious and which is worth saved.
But how do we do that? I know that many of you have asked this question.
First of all, do not withdraw. It is easy to be exhausted, but America needs you more than ever. If the previous generations had not fought for democracy, where would we be today?
Second, hold your elected officials, including me, responsible. Look how they vote. Go to town halls and ask that they act. It is as American as the apple pie.
Three, organize. Choose a single problem you are passionate about – and get involved. And the scrolling of misfortune does not count. Join a group that cares about your problem and act. And if you can’t find it, start one.
Some of the most important movements in our history came from the bottom.
In closing, we all know that our country is going through something right now. We do not know what the next day will hold, not to mention the next decade.
But this is not the first time that we have undergone a significant and tumultuous change as a country. I am a student in history and we have already gone through periods of political instability. And finally, we have chosen to continue to change this country for the best.
But each time, we only went through these moments because of two things: committed citizens and leaders in principle.
Committed citizens who make a little more than the habit of doing to fight for the things that are close to their hearts. And leaders in principle who are ready to receive the ball and do something.
So thank you tonight for taking care of your country. Just looking at it, you are eligible as committed citizens. And I promise that I and my democratic colleagues will do everything in our power to be the leaders of principle that you deserve.
Good night everyone.
Originally published:
California Daily Newspapers
