The visions of the Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol will be seared in my memory forever. I understand why rural blue-collar workers voted for Donald Trump. Both the Democratic and Republican establishment enabled multinational corporations to send manufacturing facilities to the nonunion South, and then overseas. The result: Schuylkill County is dotted with areas of depopulation and blight. Yes, the unemployment rate was low before the pandemic. However, do the numerous warehouses that have been built along Interstate 81 pay livable wages for a family? So I understand why 48,871 people in Schuylkill County voted for Trump.

I was a Reagan youth during the 1980s and campaigned with Dave Argall, a fellow Tamaqua graduate, when he first ran for state representative in 1984. Over the years, I left the Republican Party over policy issues. For one, I do not believe major tax cuts for the wealthy “trickle down” to help the middle class. However, Argall has changed over the last 10 years and has become part of the Republican establishment and a political opportunist.

Both chambers of the Pennsylvania Legislature are controlled by the Republican Party. They helped to create Act 77 which allowed mail-in balloting. Argall voted for this electoral reform, along with a bipartisan majority, and it was signed into law by Gov. Wolf on Oct. 31, 2019. As chairman of the Senate Majority Policy, Argall held a sham hearing in Gettysburg with Rudy Giuliani following the November election. They were criticizing mail-in ballots, which Argall and other Republicans voted for. By the way, there were 6,150 mail-in votes for Trump in Schuylkill County. Should they be nullified?

Congressman Meuser has been a Trump sycophant since the beginning of his tenure. Meuser was one of many who stormed a security room during the impeachment hearings. He echoed Trump’s remarks that the pandemic would be gone by April. On Wednesday, he was one of at least 140 who opposed the election results. He voted against Pennsylvania’s certification, which he claimed was due to unlawful mail-in ballots. Again, the Republican Legislature in Harrisburg voted for Act 77.

I am using my constitutional right of freedom of speech to write these words. Protesters were allowed to be in Washington. However, Trump urged the protesters to march to the Capitol. Giuliani called for a “trial by combat.” Both Argall and Meuser enabled and encouraged the president and his lawyer to foment this act of domestic terrorism. Today we are not Democrats or Republicans. We are Americans. We must defend our Democracy. Argall and Meuser should resign.

Todd Zimmerman

Andreas