As an Air Force brat, I was proud of Republicans for supporting our democratic institutions and leading on environmental stewardship. Nixon signed the Clean Air Act and created the EPA. Reagan signed the Brady Bill gun control law. Things have changed.

Today’s Republican party would not be recognizable to Reagan. The politicization of not only the Supreme Court, but also the Justice Department, are endangering Democracy. Excusing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and limiting our financial support would never have been tolerated.

Today, Republican politicians are only concerned about fiscal responsibility when they are out of power. An example is Education Freedom Accounts. This expensive school voucher scheme was 5,000% over budget the first year, and has doubled in its second year. This is going to drastically raise local property taxes.

The Republican party has completely rejected environmental stewardship and become an extension of the fossil fuel industry, even in the face of the visible and devastating impacts of climate change.

My political opinions haven’t changed since I was in my 20s. Back then I was a moderate Republican. Now, with the same views I held back then, I am a proud Democrat.

If you are like me and think the Republican party has moved too far to the right, it is OK to vote your principles by voting for Democrats. We are good people. The bottom line is we need to defend democracy, not just vote the way we voted in the past.