At Some Point
This past weekend, I got the urge.
It's something that exists for anyone who has worked on a political campaign. It's a feeling that comes from knowing exactly what is going on at this very moment in all 50 states. It's not something that simply fades away; it's always there, trying to reel you back in. It gnaws at you, making you feel guilty that others are out there putting in their 70-80 hour work week on the campaign while you've gone soft with your 9 to 5 job while simultaneously raising your child. How dare you! How dare you fade away into normality while Trump and his minions are a midterm victory away from continuing to wreck the country that you know and love! Can you honestly look your thirteen-month-old daughter in the eye and tell her that you're doing everything in your power to curtail American fascism?
And so, to quiet this voice in my head, I threw my hat back in the ring. I found an opportunity through a campaign alumni network to work on the Texas Together campaign to cut turf ahead of GOTV. For those unfamiliar, cutting turf is the process of creating walk packets for all volunteers who will be canvassing certain neighborhoods. As someone who worked on two campaigns and cut turf as a volunteer in 2024, this was right in my wheelhouse. Despite never having been to Dallas, or Austin, or San Antonio, or Corpus Christi, I was easily able to divvy up certain wards and precincts to make them walkable and accessible for upcoming volunteer shifts. By the end of Sunday when a dozen of us had cut 150 turfs, I was high on adrenaline, ready to do more. So it should come as no surprise that I immediately reached out for additional opportunities, starting with the Texas text team on Tuesday.
Texting has been my go-to volunteer activity since the 2018 cycle. As an introvert, it's right up my alley. I enjoy the ability to communicate with people without actually talking to them. I can use my blogging repertoire and share relevant links and articles. As a millennial who grew up using search engines (Hello, Jeeves!) I can quickly find voter information, no matter the state or county. I'm a fairly fast typist and with a work schedule that allows me the opportunity to work two days from home, I have more than enough time to balance my regular 9 to 5 with a side hustle of texting voters. When I signed up for my first batch of 50 text responses yesterday afternoon, it was like old times and it felt like I had never left.
Except something changed.
And by something, I mean everything. Because after doing a batch of messages, I suddenly realized that this was no longer my fight. After a decade of going all in on every election, I realized that at some point my fellow Americans are going to have to take ownership of their lives. They're going to have to understand that both parties aren't the same. They're going to have to understand that Republicans actively work to hurt them and their families. I can never sway someone calling him James Talafreako just as much I can never sway someone who won't vote for either candidate because they both accept Super PAC money. America has a 250-year track record of liberal and conservate political movements. Figuring out which one actually helps the majority of Americans is the easiest research a person will ever do.
But many don't. Which is why we've ended up where we are. I don't wish all the pain and suffering we've seen the last 21 months on anyone. Yet it has been necessary because so many of our fellow Americans failed to understand that their votes, and more specifically, their non-votes have consequences. The 80% of farmers supporting Republicans needed this lesson. The White-adjacent Latinos who thought they weren't the "bad hombres" needed this lesson. The rural midwestern communities losing their health centers needed this lesson. The Dearborn Muslim community needed this lesson. Donald Trump showed us all who he was not once, not twice, but three times. If you went into the voting booth in 2024 and thought he was all bluster, then you simply weren't paying attention. We knew things would be bad and we knew they would be bad for everyone except Trump and his cronies. But 6 million Democrats chose not to continue the American recovery and 89 million Americans couldn't be bothered to vote. Their choice or lack thereof put us in this very predicament that we're experiencing today.
Which is why I can no longer do the work. Not just in Texas, but in any swing state. The evidence is overwhelming as to how awful Republicans are at all levels of government. I'm not going to hold your hand and tell you why you should vote Democrat for Senate. Or Congress. Or governor. You've literally been experiencing that every single day since January 21st of 2025. Lost your federal job? Republicans did that. Paying more for gas and groceries? Republicans did that. Worried about infectious diseases and recalled food? Republicans did that. Seeing your community torn apart by ICE and losing longstanding immigrants without criminal records? Republicans did that. Being stressed out because each and every day you have to wake up, wondering if a senile maniac started a war because he's surrounded by slithering sycophants who all wear shoes that are two sizes too big because nobody can say no to him? Republicans. Did. That.
I'm voting blue up and down the ticket. That's a given. But I no longer have the will to continue to try and reach the unreachable. I admire those who do. But for me, a jaded veteran of now six campaign cycles, I can do no more. At some point, American voters are going to have to make a decision: do they want to give Democrats a chance at governing or are they perfectly content to continue voting for Republicans or sitting out elections with everything we've seen and experienced these last 21 months? If you can't answer that question, then you're a lost cause. You don't understand basic democracy. The year 2026 is once again an open book test and if you still can't pass it then you're beyond hope. I know you're out there because people like me are talking to you nonstop these last three weeks. Just know that while some of the most determined volunteers will continue to indulge you, people like me are fed up with your shit. We've seen the likes of your kind for the past decade and we're over it. If you still can't figure it out, then you're not worth our time.
Some of us, like yours truly, have better things to do.
Texting has been my go-to volunteer activity since the 2018 cycle. As an introvert, it's right up my alley. I enjoy the ability to communicate with people without actually talking to them. I can use my blogging repertoire and share relevant links and articles. As a millennial who grew up using search engines (Hello, Jeeves!) I can quickly find voter information, no matter the state or county. I'm a fairly fast typist and with a work schedule that allows me the opportunity to work two days from home, I have more than enough time to balance my regular 9 to 5 with a side hustle of texting voters. When I signed up for my first batch of 50 text responses yesterday afternoon, it was like old times and it felt like I had never left.
Except something changed.
And by something, I mean everything. Because after doing a batch of messages, I suddenly realized that this was no longer my fight. After a decade of going all in on every election, I realized that at some point my fellow Americans are going to have to take ownership of their lives. They're going to have to understand that both parties aren't the same. They're going to have to understand that Republicans actively work to hurt them and their families. I can never sway someone calling him James Talafreako just as much I can never sway someone who won't vote for either candidate because they both accept Super PAC money. America has a 250-year track record of liberal and conservate political movements. Figuring out which one actually helps the majority of Americans is the easiest research a person will ever do.
But many don't. Which is why we've ended up where we are. I don't wish all the pain and suffering we've seen the last 21 months on anyone. Yet it has been necessary because so many of our fellow Americans failed to understand that their votes, and more specifically, their non-votes have consequences. The 80% of farmers supporting Republicans needed this lesson. The White-adjacent Latinos who thought they weren't the "bad hombres" needed this lesson. The rural midwestern communities losing their health centers needed this lesson. The Dearborn Muslim community needed this lesson. Donald Trump showed us all who he was not once, not twice, but three times. If you went into the voting booth in 2024 and thought he was all bluster, then you simply weren't paying attention. We knew things would be bad and we knew they would be bad for everyone except Trump and his cronies. But 6 million Democrats chose not to continue the American recovery and 89 million Americans couldn't be bothered to vote. Their choice or lack thereof put us in this very predicament that we're experiencing today.
Which is why I can no longer do the work. Not just in Texas, but in any swing state. The evidence is overwhelming as to how awful Republicans are at all levels of government. I'm not going to hold your hand and tell you why you should vote Democrat for Senate. Or Congress. Or governor. You've literally been experiencing that every single day since January 21st of 2025. Lost your federal job? Republicans did that. Paying more for gas and groceries? Republicans did that. Worried about infectious diseases and recalled food? Republicans did that. Seeing your community torn apart by ICE and losing longstanding immigrants without criminal records? Republicans did that. Being stressed out because each and every day you have to wake up, wondering if a senile maniac started a war because he's surrounded by slithering sycophants who all wear shoes that are two sizes too big because nobody can say no to him? Republicans. Did. That.
I'm voting blue up and down the ticket. That's a given. But I no longer have the will to continue to try and reach the unreachable. I admire those who do. But for me, a jaded veteran of now six campaign cycles, I can do no more. At some point, American voters are going to have to make a decision: do they want to give Democrats a chance at governing or are they perfectly content to continue voting for Republicans or sitting out elections with everything we've seen and experienced these last 21 months? If you can't answer that question, then you're a lost cause. You don't understand basic democracy. The year 2026 is once again an open book test and if you still can't pass it then you're beyond hope. I know you're out there because people like me are talking to you nonstop these last three weeks. Just know that while some of the most determined volunteers will continue to indulge you, people like me are fed up with your shit. We've seen the likes of your kind for the past decade and we're over it. If you still can't figure it out, then you're not worth our time.
Some of us, like yours truly, have better things to do.