Welcome to another edition of Red State Scripts, a resource for U.S. folks living in geographies represented by pro-Trump elected officials but who nevertheless feel inclined to have a bit (or a big) of a holler. These scripts aren’t meant to change any assholes’ minds — though it’d be nice, surely! — but are instead about finding a way to voice opposition, build community, and articulate grievances. Use 5Calls to find your reps, and give them a piece of your mind.
I’m real ding-dang mad but also short on time this week. There’s a fuck of a lot going on. I’m relying on the excellent WTF Just Happened Today? and Rebecca Solnit’s Meditations in an Emergency newsletters to keep me apprised of much of the fuckery. I am treating myself to nice whiskeys, and laughing when I’m not crying. Because this shit is genuinely as hilarious as it is disgusting:
I hope more trolling is coming down the line. I am happy to see the system being gummed up, even for a few minutes, in the service of exposing the Trump Administration’s dangerous but nevertheless hapless and self-serving bigotry.
This week, I am once again jumping on the 5Calls database and using it to holler at my red-state reps about the whole shebang. Here’s what I’m saying:
I’m [my name] and I live in zip code [mine].
Who are we? I am forced to ask this question because you represent me, despite my dearest wish that you didn’t: Who are “we?” By “we” I mean us, Texans [or whoever], but indeed Americans of every stripe. Are we people who abandon our allies, as the U.S. did on Monday when we voted at the UN with Russia, against condemning Russia’s attack on Ukraine? Are we people who divest from the noble project of democratic civil service by subjecting longtime federal workers to demeaning, devaluing tests of their work at the behest of Elon Musk, an unelected, brain-addled, and bigoted billionaire? Are we a country that purges seasoned military leaders, replacing them with unqualified yes-men in a politically-motivated purge? The answer to these questions seems to be yes, and every day that you do not speak out against it, if not in the service of your own position but at least in the service of your country, ought to fill you with shame.
As ever: I’ll aim to post a new Red State Script on Monday or Tuesday every week, depending on the news cycle. If you have a script suggestion, leave it in the comments for others to use, and if you’re looking for an issue to comment on, let me know. And especially if you work for a state, local, or grassroots org producing such content for constituents, holler at me and I’ll share it, happily, with edits and adaptations made for diverse geographies — I’m grimesandrea@proton.me by email. (And if you have a script in mind and want to share it with the world, tag me on Bluesky or post it in the comments!)
As ever: Let’s holler into the void alone, together.
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