Dear John, If you’re anything like me, you wake up each morning dreading what awful racist or anti-democratic thing President Trump has said this time. Trump’s recent attacks on minority members of Congress who dare to criticize him have been appalling and profoundly un-American. Whether it’s saying four congresswomen should “go back and help fix the totally broken and crime-infested places from which they came,” presiding over ugly “Send her back!” chants, or calling Baltimore a “disgusting, rat and rodent-infested mess,” Trump is doing his best to whip up racial animosity and divide our country. Meanwhile, Trump’s right-wing echo chamber is having a field day. Many of the same social media influencers who went to Trump’s “Social Media Summit” earlier this month have been quick to defend his latest racist rants. Worse yet, as CMD reported last week, millions in funding from right-wing billionaires and their foundations and donor conduits is fueling the fire. CMD estimates that the Kochs and their network, the Bradley Foundation, the Mercers, and the Sarah Scaife Foundation have pumped close to $20 million over the past five years into groups that back Trump’s anti-immigrant agenda and give voice to white nationalist extremists. This rise of racism and intolerance poses a serious threat to the American promise of dignity and democracy for all. It’s time to say “No!” to Trump’s divided America. We need your help to shine a light on the powerful forces preaching hate! |