This morning, as I considered what topic to write about, I told myself I would try to find something that doesn’t involve criticizing the Republican Party. Too many of my columns since last January have been critical of what President Trump, Governor Pillen, or other far-right conservatives have been doing to our country.

I try to be fair in my commentary. I don’t believe that most people who disagree with me are bad people. I believe they are fellow Americans with differing opinions. And to be honest with you, sometimes it seems like going after this administration and their blind followers is going after low-hanging fruit.

So, I wanted to write about something different. But then I read that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth shared a video on social media from a Christian Nationalist church that promoted taking away a woman’s right to vote.

So here I am once again.

I wonder how Senator Deb Fischer feels about this. She voted to put the drunken adulterous former Fox News commentator who shares Top Secret information via text, into this high-ranking position. Now he wants to take away her right to vote. I know the senator will be a good Republican and not criticize or condemn it, but I wonder if deep down she supports the idea.

I wonder how the Secretary of Defense feels about Blacks, Hispanics, Gays, or other minorities’ right to vote. We know how Republicans want to take away Democrats’ votes by gerrymandering in Texas, or closer to home here in Nebraska, when they want to take away the Democrats’ voice in presidential elections by making us “winner-take-all.”

Now, while I vehemently disagree with the idea of taking away a woman’s right to vote, I support a person’s right to feel that way. After all, it is a First Amendment issue as misguided as it may be.

If the women in this Christian Nationalist church want to stay home on election day or go to the voting booth and vote the way their husband demands, that’s their right as Americans.

But the very idea of taking away another person’s right to vote is downright un-American!

Which is why I find myself having to speak out once again about what this administration is doing to try to dismantle the foundations of our great country.

We need to speak up while we still can.

Hegseth isn’t some 1950s-era stand-up comic telling jokes about women drivers or how women can’t hold an important job. He is the Secretary of Defense in charge of the most powerful military in the world. A military with thousands of women who may have to risk their lives to protect our country. A country that has important people wanting to take away their right to vote.

Yes, I hate that so many of my columns are criticizing the Republican Party, but I can’t stay quiet when they are trying so hard to take away our freedoms. I can’t stay quiet when they protect pedophiles, put immigrants in concentration camps like Alligator Ally, try to end birthright citizenship, spend millions on a ballroom, military parade, and a gold-plated Oval Office, while cutting back on benefits for the less fortunate or spending on research that will save lives. I can’t ignore how they rammed through legislation that will increase our deficit by trillions of dollars, while lying about who pays the price for higher tariffs. I must speak out against their attacks on the news media or firing the heads of government agencies that put out reports the president doesn’t like.

And that’s just some of the things we’re aware of. Who knows what else is going on behind the scenes?

Our right to vote is a sacred trust that is the foundation of our democracy and our freedom. If Republicans are so afraid of losing elections, they should run better candidates with smarter platforms, not take away the voting rights of others.

As we approach election season, we need to get every candidate on the record about how they feel about a woman’s right to vote. Or every citizen’s right to vote, for that matter. Get Senator Ricketts, Governor Pillen, Mike Flood, and the Republican candidates for District Two to speak out. Keeping silent is not acceptable; in fact, it’s downright dangerous.

Not everything this administration is doing or has done is bad, but the bad things that are going on are so bad that I must write about them.

I really wish I didn’t have to.

Tom Becka is a long time Nebraska broadcaster who for over 30 years has been covering Omaha and Midwest issues on both radio and TV. He has been a guest on numerous national cable and news shows, filled in for nationally syndicated talk radio programs and Talkers Magazine has recognized him as one of the Top 100 talk show hosts in the country 10 times. Never afraid to ruffle some feathers, his ‘Becka’s Beat’ commentaries can be found online on Youtube and other digital platforms.

Opinions expressed by columnists in The Daily Record are not necessarily those of its management or staff, and do not constitute an endorsement or recommendation. Any errors or omissions should be called to our attention so that they may be corrected. Contact us at news@omahadailyrecord.com.