Republicans are frequently criticized (and with good reason) for putting their party above everything. “Whatever it takes” to remain in power. Think Donald Trump. Think Mitch McConnell. On our “worse day,” Democrats are much, much better than Republicans on their “best day” when to comes to defending and protecting our democratic (lower-case “d”) values. Integrity. Honesty. Equality. Fairness. Justice. Kindness. Compassion. Respect. You get the picture.
However, what if the situation was reversed, where Democrats controlled the White House and both houses of Congress? Would we be guilty of doing the same thing for which we criticize Republicans – putting our party above everything else, values be dammed? Some of you might say, “No, never!” While others may respond with, “It depends.”
Our topic for today’s Newsletter is to further explore the “It depends” response. And, we’ll frame the question within the context of the Arbor Hills Landfill. If you are not familiar with and/or would like to know more about this issue, please check out The Conservancy Initiative’s website (https://conservancyinitiative.org). TCI is a non-profit organization that was formed to oppose the expansion of the Landfill in 2015. Their mission is to “improve the environment by working with neighbors, government entities, area businesses and community leaders to create a clean and safe place to live and work.” Now, you might think that the “by working with” group would also include “elected officials,” but you would be wrong.
So, let’s look at a hypothetical situation. Mark Abbo is running as a Republican for Northville Township Supervisor, and since he is running unopposed (i.e., no Democrat is challenging him on the ballot), he is likely to win that seat.
Our Northville community is strongly opposed to the Landfill and there is concern about Abbo’s stance on the dump. What if another Republican or Independent candidate(s) would agree to run as a write-in candidate, someone with strong opposition to the dump? Would you, could you vote for him them? Would you, could you support a NDC endorsement for them him? (Sorry for the Dr. Seuss dialogue; your editor is a relatively new Grandpa!) If this seems to you like an “impossible choice,” you may want to read our blog post, The Enemy of My Enemy is My Friend (https://www.northvilledems.com/post/the-enemy-of-my-enemy-is-my-friend), where we talk about The Lincoln Project. TLP was founded by a group of conservative Republicans, is tirelessly working to defeat Donald Trump and Trumpism and is strongly supporting and endorsing Joe Biden for President. If TLP can do this, can we?
So, what do you think? We know you have thoughts and opinions on this – probably strongly-felt thoughts and opinions. So, this will be one of the items on our agenda for Monday’s Zoom Membership Meeting. We’re looking forward to hearing from, and seeing, all of you!
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