Political Activity
No, this isn’t one of my usual travelogue posts – not that I’ve actually *written* any “usual travelogue posts” (or any other posts, for that matter) lately…
Instead, this is about the current resident of the White House, and something I decided to do.
Warning: If you are just fine with the 45th President, you might not like the rest of this post. If you read it anyway, you can’t say I didn’t warn you.
There have been, and will continue to be, many many different ways to protest against this person – ranging from marches to rallies to postcard campaigns to get-out-the-vote campaigns, and many more.
But I decided to do something different. In addition to sending postcards and emails to my Representative and Senators, I decided to write to all five living former Presidents (Obama, Bush II, Clinton, Bush I, and Carter) and ask them to stand up, as a bipartisan group, and speak out against the worst excesses of the current Oval Office occupant.
Here is my letter:
“Dear President [ ],
“I’m writing to you and your fellow Presidents Emeriti and asking you, as a group, to please speak out against the worst excesses of President Trump.
“I realize there’s an unwritten rule that past Presidents don’t comment on their successors’ policies, plans, or actions. I respect that. But the current occupant of the Oval Office is so totally at odds with everything our nation should expect a President to be and do that I hope you’ll consider my plea.
“Each of you has been my President. While I disagreed with some of your policies, I never felt that I, my country, or the world was in any particular danger from your Presidencies. I *do* feel this way about the Trump Administration – the man himself scares me, and the actions he and his Administration are taking are truly terrifying.
“You and your fellow Presidents Emeriti are members of a very exclusive club. You are from both major political parties and collectively have more than 30 years of experience in the White House. If there are issues that you all agree on, whether it be Trump’s constant lies, his nepotism, his narcissism, his misogyny and sexism, or any other personal traits, including his appalling inability to control his impulses; if it’s one of his policies or initiatives – such as the National Monument review, the immigration bans, the gutting of agencies like the Department of Education or the EPA, or any of dozens of other actions; or if it’s personal decisions he has made, like his refusal to release his tax returns or divest himself of his businesses, I ask you this:
“Please speak out with a unified voice. Do not remain silent. Let it be known that you are still engaged in the world’s affairs.
“Thank you.
“Sincerely,”
This is where I sent each message:
Obama 2012, 2008
Contacted through website: https://barackobama.com/contact/
Bush II 2004, 2000
Contacted through email to Office of George W. Bush: info@ogwb.org;
Clinton 1996, 1992
Contacted through Clinton Foundation website: https://www.clintonfoundation.org/about/contact-us
Bush I 1988
Contacted through email to Bush 41 library: contact@bush41.org
Carter 1976
Contacted through email to Carter Center: info@cartercenter.org
Please copy, share and use this letter, or write your own. The more people who contact the former Presidents, the more they may see the value in speaking out as a group.
The Peripatetic Traveler 
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