A momentous midterm

This may well be the most consequential mid-term election in the 250-year history of the United States. We’ve never had a president who had such blatant disdain for the rule of law, who so ruthlessly bullied and intimidated those with whom he disagrees or who dare to challenge him, who so unashamedly used his office to enrich himself and his family, who so recklessly took the nation to war, or who so foolishly alienated our allies and embraced dictators who wish us harm.

President Donald Trump has been enabled by a GOP-majority Congress too impotent to block even his most dangerous impulses and a Supreme Court that has too often chosen to interpret the Constitution to embellish rather than check his power.

The challenge to our form of government is profound unless Americans elect senators and representatives who will fulfill their Constitutional duty to be a check on a President whose taste for self-aggrandizement and revenge far outweigh his concern for the welfare of the American people.

Early voting began Oct. 15 and ends today in North Carolina. Of the 8.8 million eligible voters, more than 2.6 million had already voted as of Oct. 31, a 35 percent increase over the number that had voted at same point in 2022. In the final 2022 midterm count, just under 3.8 million eligible voters, less than half the electorate, cast ballots. Voters are on track to exceed 2022 turnout, but this is a year when every voter should make his or her voice heard.

In a democratic republic, no single person should have the power to unilaterally drag the nation into an unnecessary, ongoing war that alienates allies, undermines our economy and, by depleting our stockpile of weapons, threatens our ability to defend ourselves. Nor should anyone have the ability to use the instruments of government to bully and harass people who disagree with him, criticize him, attempt to hold him accountable or simply report the truth of what his administration is doing, as President Trump continues to do.

Our founders established three branches of government to prevent just such abuse. But a spineless Republican-led legislative branch consistently fails its constitutional duty to reign in the worst impulses of a president who defies the boundaries of his power.

Our best hope for reversing this dangerous course lies in electing senators and representatives who will take back their power and do their constitutional duty to restrain President Trump’s harmful impulses and refocus government on doing the people’s business.

The President and his party have done everything in their power to put a thumb on the scales to ensure the House and Senate continue to be controlled by Republicans. The President tried to restrict voting. He pressured states into redistricting to create more Republican-leaning districts, setting off a national frenzy joined by North Carolina’s GOP-led legislature. Unfortunately for Republicans, North Carolina was already so gerrymandered, only one new GOP-leaning district could be created.

Republicans have created lying AI-generated advertisements, including one that shows N.C. 11th District Democratic candidate Jamie Ager dancing with a drag queen at a barn dance that never happened. In a clear attempt to bribe voters, the President has promised to send every American a check for $5,000 if Republicans retain control of the House and Senate, a promise he has no power to fulfill. While Democratic candidates have raised more money, outside groups and individuals, including Elon Musk, have given millions to support GOP candidates.

In North Carolina, in a likely attempt to turn out more conservative Republican-leaning voters, the GOP-led legislature, with little deliberation, put three proposed amendments to the state Constitution on the ballot. One would cap the state income tax at 3.5 percent, one would allow state lawmakers to control the amount of property tax counties could collect and one would require a photo ID for all methods of voting.

Whatever lawmakers’ motivation, if voters approve them, all three of these amendments will harm North Carolina. As the non-partisan League of Women Voters says on its website, constitutional amendments deserve particularly careful scrutiny because once enacted the limits and requirements they established are far more difficult to repeal than ordinary laws, for which voters can hold their representatives accountable and which can be changed to respond to changing circumstances.

Concern about efforts by the Trump administration to disrupt voting, intimidate voters and challenge the outcome of the midterm election if it is unfavorable to Republicans have resulted in a major effort by Democrats and nonprofit watchdog groups to train observers to monitor the polls on Election Day, Nov. 3. The Republican National Committee also plans to deploy “election integrity deputy state directors” in 22 states, among them Arizona, Michigan, Georgia and North Carolina. All of these observers are, for the most part, our neighbors trying to ensure the election goes smoothly and fairly.

It is a momentous midterm. The last day to vote early in North Carolina is today, Oct. 31. If you miss that deadline, make sure you go to the polls on Nov. 3. Make your vote count.

Joy Franklin is a journalist and writer who served as editorial page editor of the Asheville Citizen-Times for 10 years. Prior to that she served as executive editor of the Times-News in Hendersonville.