Dear Editor: When You Lay Down With Dogs...

Dear Editor,

My inclination to be active in politics has been minimal. I had a farm to run and sons to raise. I marched in the '80s for reproductive rights and again in 2016 to protest Trump's presidency. I've signed the odd petition, always voted, always paid my taxes.

Regardless of the political party in power and I've voted for both, I have never felt that this Republic or the democratic principles on which it is based were at risk. That has changed.

We have a convicted felon with no respect for the law who is a lame duck president protected by the Supreme Court from prosecution for illegal acts during his presidency. If power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely, I don't see this ending well for our Republic, the principles of democracy, or the American people.

For those whose news comes from the Fox Entertainment channel and/or Facebook, please know this: I am an American citizen, and I'm not being paid by George Soros, contrary to Mike Johnson's claims. I would welcome the opportunity for an in-person Town Hall with Montana's very wealthy but morally bankrupt national representatives – Zinke, Downing, Daines, and Sheehy – to ask why they are allowing Elon Musk to ride roughshod over the agencies that serve and protect the people of Montana and this country.

Question: Why is firing park service employees, nuclear scientists, and air traffic controllers a better idea than simply taxing the rich?

Respectfully submitted,

RUTH LOTT

Cardwell, Montana