For those who indulge in hiking the Smoky Mountains, there is a time that climbing them becomes beyond discouraging. Maybe it is too hot or too cold on the trail going up or perhaps trees are blown down on the trail like an obstacle course and the climb is just torturous. The trail is often steep, rocky, and wet, however, the reward at the top of the mountain is great. Many times, one can look over range after range of the mountains, see unique, beautiful flowers and trees, and just inhale the amazing beauty that surrounds us there. It is worth the pain of the climb to get to the top. To stop climbing, while easy, does not get one to the top of the mountain.

In Anderson County, we are climbing a very tough trail. Many residents here are Republican with many of them supporting Donald Trump come thick or thin. By listening or watching within the conservative bubble and distrusting all other news sources, their view of the world is shaped by Trump’s dysfunctional narrative. So when Trump first condemns Mueller, then praises him, and then condemns him again depending on what the news cycle is focusing on, they miss the untrustworthiness of these tweets. He tells them the economy is doing great, Democrats are traitors and liars, and the enemy of the people is the free press. The first comment then seems to excuse the following ones so the Republicans lock step into thinking that anyone who opposes him are the true enemy of America.

I have had enough of the corruption and greed of Trumpism. Had enough of his obstructing justice…enough of his cruelty to migrants and refugees…enough of his reckless tariffs and support of tyrants…enough of the Republican party bending to his will. I hope you feel the same way.

Go up and never stop. Resist as we have done before. Step by steep step, the word gets out and those people begin to see the cracks on Trump’s very clay feet. Using all means necessary, we push our narrative of truth from the Mueller Report to his corruption of our government. It is discouraging, to lose every race and not see much progress, to feel burnt out and winded while the trail just gets tougher, but we must continue to go up and never stop.

There will be a day…maybe soon or more than likely far away, when we will get to the top. Trumpism will be swept away like all the other failed political systems and a true democracy will be in place. All we need do is to go up and never stop.