On July 4th, 2022, as we remembered the birth of the United States of America, a republic 246 years into its experiment in government by a free people, I hope we stopped to consider the first-hand accounts of our Republican officials serving in the highest levels of government in our land.

It is wise to hear all sides of a story before making decisions, especially those of such importance as who our leaders will be. Some are telling us to ignore information we need to hear in order to judge for ourselves as free Americans. If we follow their lead, we surrender to the very strategy that has been used to end the democracies that came before us. What kind of personal freedoms will we enjoy then? Consider carefully: If the actions of January 6th, 2021, had succeeded, encouraged by our own president, would we be closer to the freedoms of the America of July 4, 1776, or the Germany of January 30, 1933?

Only after hearing all the key players for ourselves should we form our opinions.

Then we will see what history writes about us on November 5, 2024 and whether our great nation “can long endure.”

A former lifelong Republican,

L. Keith Ward,

Pocatello