Letters

With the election now well behind us and the postmortems still being fleshed out, there is optimism shared by the Trump side and blame that naturally follows for Democrats. The cure for Trump derangement was the candidacy of a far-left woman who wouldn’t or couldn’t transition (wink) into something she wasn’t: competent. Coincidentally, among her actual bona fides was her former vocal support for the gender transition of people in jail at the expense of the American taxpayer.

While she and the Democrats would never explain their broken immigration policy or take ownership of lagging inflation left behind from spending the nation into staggering new debt, “deplorable” parents really took notice of progressive school policy that assisted young children in revoking their born gender without their parents’ knowledge or consent. The intrusion of pronoun fluidity and woke ideology into the homes of families was no longer the sole problem of the progressive campus. It scared the hell out of regular people normally not interested in the extremes of the left.

Even traditional Democrats were uncomfortable with the radical direction of their party leadership. James Carville himself admonished the extremism, but to no avail. In spite of a huge fundraising differential in favor of Democrats, the Republican message was heard by white women, Latino men, Black men, Jews and even the youth.

Most Trump people preferred the clarity of open partisanship to the deception of the legacy media supporting Kamala Harris dressed up as honest brokers of the news. A sad truth is that in some cases the derangement affliction endorsed by the left has caused irreparable harm to some families and friends. Grown children proclaiming they won’t tolerate parents who voted for Donald Trump. Neighbors who will no longer answer an invitation to socialize with their Trump-supporting friends.

If anyone doubted the seriousness of this fanaticism, remember it at Thanksgiving, when empty chairs will speak volumes.

For those of us who supported President Trump, these days before the start of the new term are full of the optimism you feel for your favorite team before they have taken the field. Unlike 2016, the cabinet now being assembled will be ready to govern unencumbered by Washington, D.C., naivete from day one.

Meaningful reform is headed for Washington. Waste, inefficiency and unnecessary regulation will be rooted out. Woke DEI policy will be purged from government. Our border will be closed, and criminal elements that gained access illegally will be expelled. A bloated, unelected federal bureaucracy will finally find itself accountable for its excesses. Like pruning a plant or tree, new, healthy growth will be stimulated.

Naturally, Democrat leader Chuck Schumer has vowed to resist. What else would he have to offer?

Ed Surgan

Westhampton