To the editor,

It’s hard to know what to say about a president of the United States who publicly fantasizes about being a king in a jet plane dropping excrement on crowds of his fellow Americans. Trump’s AI-generated video in response to last Saturday’s massive No Kings rallies depicts just that, fully revealing Trump’s scatological and vindictive attitude toward citizens who disagree with him.

Trump and the GOP now obviously believe they can get away with anything. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, for example, has refused for the past month to swear in Adelita Grijalva apparently because her vote may enable Congress to finally release the Epstein files. Grijalva was elected to represent 800,000 Arizona constituents, so why has she not been seated? What are Republicans afraid of in withholding the facts surrounding Epstein’s horrendous crimes against underage girls and women?

Meanwhile, against the backdrop of the current congressional shutdown paralysis, Trump has demolished the East Wing of the White House to replace it with a tacky ballroom, disrespecting the “people’s house” and its historical tradition. Who, I wonder, but his rich friends will benefit from this gaudy display of wealth?

Also, Trump is now demanding the Department of Justice pay him $230 million in “reparations” for congressional investigations into possible mishandling of official documents and election ethics violations. We should remember that this is a felon convicted on 34 counts in a court of law asking to be enriched by $230 million out of taxpayers’ pockets. If we’re going to be paying reparations, there are a lot of people in line ahead of Donald Trump.

Add these things (and more) all together and you get an American nightmare. Thankfully, millions are turning out to raise their voices in protest. In River Falls an estimated 1,000-1,200 flooded downtown streets on Saturday, Oct. 18 to say with one voice, “No more!”

Thomas R. Smith

River Falls