For the last two years, many Americans have wondered what it will take for our country to come together as people did during 9/11 and condemn the actions of an administration that is continually pushing the boundaries of the law. For many of us, it was seeing the news coverage of fellow neighbors and friends who were rounded up, slammed to the ground, and arrested or deported (sometimes to countries that were alien to them). Some of the courageous protesters like Renee Good and Alex Pretti were killed, exercising their First Amendment rights to protest the actions of the federal government. And in both cases, a bystander filmed what happened, showing that Kristi Noem’s account that Good and Pretti were trying to injure ICE agents was false.
But that’s not all that is concerning. The coverup involved with the Epstein files has caused an outcry even among some MAGA supporters. Trump’s Justice Department has withheld pages and heavily redacted others so many of the names cannot be read in the Epstein Files. Shamefully, it has released the names of some of the victims, showing that the Justice Department has not complied with the Epstein Files Transparency Act to protect the identity of victims, show the “full scope of Epstein’s crimes,” and identify people who were a part of the operation and those who protected the perpetrators.
Even more concerning is the fact that the U.S. has threatened and attacked other countries. On Feb. 28, 2026, the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran. And a few days later, U.S. military planes accidentally bombed an elementary school in Iran, killing over 100 children and also adults near the school. The conflict has continued to escalate and has led to increases in gasoline prices worldwide and conflict between not only the U.S. and Iran but also between Iran and other countries in the Mideast. Since that time, Trump has threatened several times to destroy the entire country and its civilization if Iran does not reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Some members of Congress and the United Nations have expressed alarm about the comments and many Americans have been shocked to see a U.S. President make these types of comments. These comments are not surprising since our president has managed to alienate our closest allies such as the United Kingdom, Canada, South Korea, France, and Germany while he befriends dictators like Vladimir Putin of Russia, Kim Jong Un of North Korea, and Xi Jinping of China.
And we continue to wonder if Americans have had enough to band together to save our country. Perhaps they have. Many Americans became concerned in September when Trump tried to ban reporters from three news outlets–CNN, MS Now, and Politico–from the White House, claiming that their reporting was fake news. Secret Service agents took their badges away and deactivated the badges. These actions caused a public outcry, and competing networks like Fox News and the chair of the television press pool decided to stand together with the three suspended networks and stop coverage of presidential events until the boycott was lifted. The five networks that banned together were Fox news, ABC News, CBS News, NBC News, and CNN.
Was Trump’s action the final straw? If not, it should have been. In 2017, Senator John McCain defended the American press when Trump accused it of being “the enemy of the American people.” McCain warned that destroying the press is “how dictators get started.” He went on to state that “If you want to preserve democracy as we know it, you have to have a free and many times adversarial press.” McCain knew that the press controls what people see and can confirm with their own eyes. During World War II, it was radio coverage that let Americans know what was happening in Europe and in the Pacific. And in the 1960 and 1970s, it was TV coverage of Vietnam that showed Americans what our soldiers were facing. And it was TV coverage that convinced Americans to demand that we withdraw from Vietnam.
It’s up to us to stay informed and demand that our news outlets remain impartial and independent of political favoritism. Can we trust the press today? We can trust some of it, but we need to be discerning and well informed. America’s press is currently in trouble. Billionaire David Ellison, who owns Paramount, is taking over Warner Brothers, which includes CNN and CBS. Viewers are concerned about what will happen at CNN when Ellison takes over. Ellison made Bari Weiss editor-in-chief of CBS News last year, and she replaced the executive producer of 60 Minutes and fired many of the top producers and correspondents. Anderson Cooper resigned on his own, and we all know that Stephen Colbert’s contract was not renewed. Reporters have complained about the lack of editorial independence and political favoritism since Weiss took over.
We have power. Networks are dependent on viewers for their ratings, and we can choose to boycott them just as viewers did for the Jimmy Kimball show. It’s a good idea to listen to a variety of sources, such as TV stations, radio stations, and written articles to be sure that the news is accurate. But most of all, examine what is happening around you and the effect that the current politicians are having on your everyday life.
Your greatest power is your vote. And together we can bring about change in this country. Vote for the politicians who will make the changes that are best for your community. You can help Congress become an independent, co-equal branch of government again. Make a plan to vote today.
References
Mitchell Sobieski, “Tucker Carlson’s Allegation Puts Trump at Center of Epstein Files Cover-Up as Press Censorship Sharpens,” Milwaukee Independent, Sep. 21, 2026
“Suppressing Free Press Is How Dictators Get Started,” Reuters, February 19, 2017
Erin Maxwell, “Bari Weiss Could Be Gone From CBS News After Merger: Report” TV Insider, September 29, 2026.