The question remains, are you better off today than you were almost six months ago when Trump began? Only if you felt that starting a tariff war with our nation's allies was on your to-do list. Only if you believed that stealing from the poor to further enrich the super-wealthy was a must. And only if you are enthusiastic about the dismantling of our federal government and its protective agencies. I myself give all of those a thumbs down.

As we endure the daily horrors and lunacy of the Trump Government, we should focus not only on what the GOP are doing but what we must do to steer Democratic Party candidates to become more appealing to voters. Simply stated, if we want voters to throw the bums out then we must rid our own party of those whose only desire is to perpetuate their own survival there, term after term after term. Democrats need a better vision for America, or we will continue to suffer the consequences.

There exists a "relationship of forces" in all human endeavors, as my sociology professor said in my college classroom. If we, the middle class, think we can escape the consequences of Trump's spending bill that steals from the poor to further enrich the wealthy then we are deceiving ourselves. We will pay later with higher crime, diminished state services, and widespread disease. We must help the poor to elevate their lives, not sell them out for the crumbs Republicans toss our way.