The last quarter of 2018 was one filled with rain. We complain when we have too much, and when there is too little. We seem to never be satisfied. I might not be ecstatic about it but I figure God knows what he’s doing and since He’s in control of the weather, I’m okay with whatever He sends us. He has His reasons for the rain and storms.
We shouldn’t be worried about what this year (2019) will bring either. God tells us to not worry about anything so this year let’s work on trusting Him more.
I do ponder over what to expect this year, though I don’t stress or become anxious about it. For our country, the attack from the left on President Trump will continue and probably escalate. No matter how good the country is doing, or how much things improve, the liberals which includes most Democrats, are totally against him and he can do nothing right. Even the things they say they wanted before he was elected, they are now against, just because Trump is president. It’s a sad state of affairs for our country when it is controlled by partisan politics.
Just two short years after we survived disastrous policies from the former administration, America is thriving again. I personally believe it is because of the solutions produced by conservatives which have given us a surge in economic growth; one of historic proportion.
The Democratic controlled House, which could be also called left progressives because they claim their agenda is progressive, in reality is an effort to give the government more control over your life. They want society to totally be dependent on them. Why? There are many reasons but it boils down to greed and power. They believe in a one-world order and are bent on getting us there.
If they really cared at all about our country, they would truly try to do what is in the best interest of the whole and not buck at everything Trump proposes just because it’s his idea.
If you really care about your country and are against socialism and a new world order, then we need to take a stand. We need to support our president. Many people are doing just that in different ways. Some people are still afraid of being bullied or retaliation from the left for taking a stand. Yes, this is the United States of America but it happens every day.
Some people laugh at Trump with his claims of fake news but I’ve found it to be true on many labels. If you go back in history, he was not the first one to call out the media and their coverage.
President John Adams actually signed an act known as the Sedition Act of 1798, which banned “false, scandalous and malicious” writing against Congress or the president. The act made it illegal to conspire “to oppose any measure of the government. The law expired in early 1801 and President Thomas Jefferson, leader of the Democratic-Republican Party, pardoned everyone convicted under the law which included a newspaper publisher.
Freedom of the press took a hit under President Lincoln as well. He might not have ordered the military to shut down newspapers which were pro-Confederate or anti-war but the Union army targeted them and the President did nothing about it.
Eventually the government and the military punished editorial opposition to the war by banning pro-peace newspapers from the mail, shutting down those newspaper offices and confiscating printing materials.
After we entered World War I, President Woodrow Wilson petitioned the Democrat-controlled House to allow censorship of the press in the interest of public safety. Congress turned him down so Wilson formed a Committee on Public Information. The agency was part of Wilson’s plan to control news coverage and also established a government-run national newspaper called the Official Bulletin.
FDR’s administration frequently targeted newspapers, publishers and journalists for tax audits. All of those targeted were against his new deal programs.
President Nixon used the Fairness Doctrine given by Johnson’s administration, to threaten TV stations. The doctrine required equal time for both sides of a controversial issue. He kept an enemy list which mainly consisted of journalists. President Reagan did away with the Fairness Doctrine.
According to the New York Times, the Obama administration’s Justice Department launched more leak investigations under the World War I-era Espionage Act than any other administration in history. The administration targeted NYT reporter James Risen. They seized phone records of reporters of the Associated Press and editors . This included their cell phone records we well.
The difference is, of course, the press gave President Obama good coverage and more leeway. They give none whatsoever to Trump. Because of Obama, Trump could actually throw a whistle-blower in jail for talking to a reporter and could have the FBI spy on a journalist. So far, he has only taken to making negative remarks, other than kicking one reporter out of the press conferences.
Perhaps Trump should take a page from FDR whose fireside chats were a successful political move for him. He sidestepped the press by going directly to the people, so there could be no question as to what he said, why he said it and what he intended to do. Though I don’t really do Twitter, I understand Trump posts something similar to fireside chats on there. That’s great for those who tweet regularly, but he needs to go further to reach the people, perhaps TV, etc.
Yes, 2019 will be interesting.©2019

VICTORIA SIMMONS Is a columnist, author, motivational speaker, minister and publisher of The Georgia Post/Byron Buzz. Contact her at: vsimmons54@gmail.com