Pundits will study the 2024 election for years, and for good reason. Never before in our lifetime have we seen anything like it — and chances are, we’ll never see anything quite like it again.

President-elect Donald Trump’s decisive 312 electoral vote win stunned many analysts. But it especially stunned those isolated within the Beltway or in newsrooms far away from everyday Americans, especially mothers and fathers working tirelessly to support their children and leave the world a little better than they found it.

Those of us outside elite circles weren’t shocked by the outcome. Traveling around the country, I visit with families who have been carrying heavy burdens. These are financial, personal, emotional, and spiritual in nature. They’re weary and often worried.

American families are eager to get back to normal. It’s not normal to have to choose between your deeply held religious convictions and your job. It’s not normal to be bullied and harassed by activists for over a decade, but that’s what our friend Jack Phillips has been contending with here in Colorado.

Masterpiece Bake Shop is delighted to serve anyone, but Jack has drawn the line when it comes to using his creative talents to make something for an occasion he believes is sinful. The Supreme Court ruled in his favor once — but that hasn’t stopped other activists and courts from coming after him. He’s been hounded relentlessly for more than 10 years.

Originally published in Higher Ground