Dear Mr. President

What happens when we cut off all aid to countries who rely on us to support them? I see China rushing in to fill the gap. Is this what you intend, Mr. President?

What happens when the United States has alienated every ally? Do you really think that we are stronger without friends, that the United States, as wealthy and as powerful as we are, can stand alone against the world?

Who, exactly, are you working for? It’s certainly not the American people. If that were the case, you wouldn’t have fired the federal employees who oversee federal agencies, the inspectors general who weed out the bad actors and investigate fraud.

Are you giving loyalists the right to raid the treasury and get away with it?

What happens when the tariffs start to take effect, and prices become even more unaffordable for everyday Americans?

To add insult to injury, you want to add work requirements for Medicaid and food assistance. How will that work for a single mother who can’t afford daycare? How will that work for someone who is too ill to work but depends on Medicaid to stay alive? Do you believe in the rights of the handicapped to live the best lives they possibly can?

I’m afraid of you and your lack of empathy. I’m afraid for our safety. I’m afraid for our health. Mostly, I’m afraid for our ability to keep speaking up, our ability to keep our republic.

You can’t make America greater by cutting all ties. You certainly can’t make the country stronger by destroying the lives of those you deem unimportant. We are all important. We all belong. We all contribute to the economy you exploit.

When those who can afford to leave the country do so, what kind of economy will we be left with? Sure, the billionaires will still be here, but remember that you owe them more than they owe you. If you tear down unions and worker protections, when too many are trying to get by on a minimum wage that hasn’t been raised in years, when people have nothing left to lose, what then?

I wish you could ponder these questions, but I know you will not. No one can tell you anything you don’t want to hear, but citizens must keep speaking as long as we are allowed, and maybe even if we aren’t.

If you won’t listen, maybe others in positions of power will.