Karen Sanderson, Minot

I made a decision today.

Kelly Armstrong – I’m working to see you voted out this November. Because I believe your challenger can do better – because he cares about real people like me, and he is not oozing with your arrogance and entitlement.

Doug Burgum – I’m working to see you voted out this November. Because I believe your challenger can do better – because she cares about real people like me, from both sides of the aisle.

John Hoeven and Kevin Cramer – you’re not up for re-election this year. But I made a decision about you, too. I will no longer ask and demand that you listen to all your constituents, not just the red ones. And when you happen to deem me worthy of an answer, I refuse to accept your platitudes, lies, and obfuscations about how magnificent the Republicans are and how the Democrats are blocking every good thing you are trying to do.

On that, I call bull!

You will need me (in 2022 and 2024, respectively), and I plan on giving you the same meaningful and earnest responses afforded to me. Nada.

I’ve made a lot of friends under a beautiful rainbow of demographics – White, Black, Hispanic, Native American, LGBTQ, young to old, poor to affluent, native-born to newly arrived, current military and retired military, families of every stripe, and clergy of near every faith. And I’ll bet my heinie that these people are more representative of North Dakota than those who may still want to vote for you in a couple of years.

The GOP is imploding under Trump. You must see it. What are you going to do come November when (if there is a God, Jehovah, Allah, Buddha, or Waheguru) the true patriots vote Trump out, and you no longer have your power? What will you do when our White House, the House and the Senate are managed by a truly rich diversity – with an assortment of religions and women and people of color and military and doctors and teachers and scientists – all the awesome-sauce of what makes us America?

In 2018, I was part of the Blue Wave you like to dismiss – the Blue Wave that took back The House. I am that grandmother in Minot who has zero happy-flappy flying figs left to give because I don’t care so much about me, but I do give a whole bushel of figs about a better state and a better country for my family and friends. For all those people you constantly dismiss or allow to be maligned by this “president” because they fall outside your stunted notion of a constituency.

The tide is turning in North Dakota – I feel it, I believe it. I may not be “from here” as so many of your full-gorged, maga-hatted bugbears remind me when I comment on your page, but I’m here NOW. And I’m gonna be here when you are up for re-election. Count on it.

I’m the Nana who organized marches and events in North Dakota and stood with my friends when you were getting down and dirty with Trump, trying to take away human rights and indigenous rights and health care and a women’s right to choose and the rights of my friends to love who they want to love.

Just months ago, I was the MeeMa who stood outside with friends in minus 9 degrees in support of impeachment. You had the opportunity to vote on impeachment and removal – to save your country and your North Dakota constituents – but you chose to goose-step with the party. To lead us right into this current criminal handling of a pandemic.

I’m the lovable granny who promotes progressive Dem candidates in all 50 states because I believe we can and will maintain the House, take back the Senate, and regain the White House and America’s moral compass and global standing that has been lost under Trump with the hands of a decent, competent president.

I’m the Gramma who stood peacefully with hundreds of North Dakotans in Minot to demand justice for George Floyd and who stood up for #BlackLivesMatter.

And I’m the MoMo who will engage with people from Antler to Fort Yates, from Beach and Bowman to Fargo and Grand Forks because I want a better North Dakota.

So, for now, Hoeven, Cramer, Armstrong, and Burgum, and all the rest of the Republican go-alongs under Trump, I may tweet at you once in a while, I might call your office and get your recording, or I may write to you so I can be ignored yet again. But know I’m working my hind end off to see you replaced by as many Democrats as possible. Not only across North Dakota, but beyond.

Yes, I’m that grandmother.