Us or Them

Recently, I spent dinner bending a close friend’s ear with talk of politics.  Are you in the Sixth District?  Have you heard about #Flipthe6th?  Have you heard about Jon Ossoff?  No?  Let me tell you what I’ve learned.  Jon Ossoff (D) blipped onto my radar with the Republican’s first negative ad against him.  He is running in the Georgia Sixth Congressional District Special Election, with seventeen others, to replace Tom Price (R).  Old video surfaced of Jon dressed up as Han Solo and another of him playing beer pong in college.  The ad’s intent—to have people dismiss him as a frat boy—had the opposite effect on me.  How is Han Solo a bad role model to emulate?  I’d be disappointed if he hadn’t played beer pong in college.  I started Googling.  Turns out he had a message that resonated with me.  A positive one.  He isn’t running negative ads against his opponents.  His campaign slogan is 'Make Trump Furious.'  Full disclosure, I find that intoxicating.  The ‘us against them’ attitude is more than skin deep, so how do we rise above it?

Ossoff hails from Georgia.  His mother immigrated from Australia.  She co-founded a non-profit organization, NewPower PAC GA, whose mission is to empower, endorse, and elect qualified women to office – at the municipal, county, and state level.  She had me at women to office.  I read the info on his investigative journalism and Insight TWI’s (The World Investigates)—phenomenal work.  My interest had been piqued.  Wait.  What if he is just another politician saying the right things, but with a hidden agenda?  How do you ever know for sure?  You can’t.

I continue the struggle to snap out of my electorally induced melancholy.  Most of my time is spent reading articles on current events such as the healthcare debacle, Russia, Syria, and the executive orders issued that receive minimal coverage but have maximum impact to the environment and Planned Parenthood.  I have one question.  What can we do to stop the madness?

Then, the email arrived.  Subject line: Meet & Greet Jon Ossoff.  One word below that line: Interested?

Remember my friend from the aforementioned dinner?  She received an invitation, and thought I might jump at the chance to meet him.  I jumped.  I may have danced a little.  For the next two days, it was all I could think about.  As an FYI, I do not like crowds, meeting several strangers at one time, socializing overall, much less walking into someone’s home with the sole purpose of meeting a political candidate.  This new urge to be engaged fills me with a sense of fear and excitement.  My new found political interest has the hair on my arms standing at attention, trying to decide if we flee or persist.  We persist.

Ascending the staircase, into the area where others awaited the arrival of the candidate, my stomach tightened.  I can’t do this.  What if I show my lack of knowledge on issues, or policies?  What if I can’t keep up with the conversation?  Panic bubbled up.  I pushed it down.  At that moment, a man and woman smiled at us, then introduced themselves.  They were from the U.K., and had lived in the U.S. for over twenty-five years.  They are not part of the sixth district, but their son is.  He had encouraged them to meet Jon.  They were excited about change, and unhappy about Trump’s win, immigration plans, and healthcare.  We clicked immediately.  The room buzzed excitedly as people discussed how they heard about Jon, and their concerns with the new administration.  The relief of being able to openly speak about your concerns, felt like finally finding the mothership.  Sharing the emotional toll that Trump’s win had taken on our psyches, and realizing you were amongst others in the same disheartening place, provoked a euphoric feeling.

The murmur of voices quieted, as Jon stepped into the room.  Who knew a “Meet and Greet” is literally where you meet and exchange greetings with the candidate?  He stopped to shake hands, and talk to everyone in that room.  The best way I can convey my reaction is comparing it to my first teen crush.  Heart racing.  Palms sweaty.  I discreetly put them in my jacket pocket to wipe away the moisture before he extended his hand to me.  His girlfriend, Alisha, stayed at his side.  I did assume she was his wife, but read later to the contrary.  I am learning not to assume anything without fact checking.  He conversed with the U.K. couple, regarding his time in London.  He is a personable young man, who listens attentively.  The time came for Jon to address the group.  I made my way to a strategic front row spot, passing a sign leaning against the wall.  It spoke volumes on why so many women are speaking out.  I will not go quietly back to the fifties.

Why did Jon decide to run?  T-Day affected him like many of us.  He felt compelled to do something.  When Tom Price’s spot opened up in Georgia, in the district where Jon grew up, he decided he had to give it a try.  For the record, I’m paraphrasing, as he stated these things much more eloquently.  The most resounding note for me is his decision to run a respectful campaign dedicated to local issues before national politics.  Bring more tech jobs to Georgia.  Work to fix the problems with the Affordable Care Act.  Most importantly, hold people in office accountable, regardless of their party affiliation.  He has talked to Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and other voters alike.  He genuinely seems to want to work across party lines.  To me, this is the most critical point.  If the parties continue to stay at war, how does this impact the American people?  The ‘us against them’ mentality has resulted in an unwinnable battle.  Both sides seem to have forgotten who should benefit, and who actually loses with the decisions they make.

Me, Jon Ossoff, and Cassandra Solomon

After he spoke, he took questions.  I will admit, even though I had some, I could not pony up the courage to ask them.  I did overcome my aversion to being photographed, and had my picture taken with him and my friend.  Another out of character action for me.  After the photo, I told him that I had researched him.  He told me jokingly to only believe the good. I said, “I only believe fifty percent of what you say, anyway.”  He laughed at this.  I followed it with, “If you can follow through on half of what you promise, I see that as a step in the right direction.”  He smiled and gave me a simple nod.

The ads increase significantly, the closer we get to Election Day.  “He’s not one of us.”  Against Ossoff (D) from the Republicans.  “Vote for Dan. He’s one of us.”  By Senator David Perdue (R), for Dan Moody (R).  Us.  Them.  You can’t dispute that the people in this nation have a multitude of different beliefs, religions, ideals, and opinions.  It is one of the incredible benefits of living in a free country.  Yet somehow, we have reached a point in our government, where they have forgotten you must collaborate, find common ground, and most importantly, the needs of the few (i.e. Politicians), do not outweigh the needs of the many (i.e. We, the people…).

I’m finding that the new active for me, may be in the pen not the sword.  Inspiration strikes at every corner, like the corner of Ossoff volunteers I recently passed.  They were waving their hands and signs.  The immediate rush caused me to throw my hand in the air, give them a thumbs up, and roll down the window, so I could cheer with them.  I ended by honking for Ossoff.

The optimism is a tidal wave consuming people of all types to come together in a flood of hope.  It is contagious.  Flipping the Sixth District to blue has taken on a life of its own.  Initially, it was about dealing a blow to Trump.  Now, it is about revitalizing our government, and finding the right people to elect who have new ideas.  People who will work together, not constantly fight to the death.  The handling of the Supreme Court Justice appointment of Neil Gorsuch, via the nuclear option, is a perfect example.  Hypocrisy runs deep on both sides of the aisle concerning this confirmation.

My newfound tentative optimism doesn’t fit like a glove yet, but it is getting easier with every encounter of someone whose life was changed after the election.  Each day brings a new crisis, topic, or tweet.  It challenges my ability to hold on to the optimism, and not fall back on anger, the comfortable old glove that fits me to a tee.  The ‘us against them’ mentality is easy to slip into when you are passionate about your beliefs.  We have to be able to take a step back.  Can there be an option in government that doesn’t include going nuclear to force a decision?  The purpose of voting seems to be falling to the wayside.  Popular vote doesn’t count.  Congressional votes don’t all count, if you change the rules.  If ‘them’ won’t work with ‘us,’ and ‘us’ dismisses ‘them,’ how will we keep the most important ‘us’ of all alive and well?  Who is the most important in this chaos?  Us or them?  Why U.S., of course. Let's make our votes count again.