Make him love me again (Love: stand back and standby)

Chapter 4

"Did you see the debate?" Susan braced herself. She had tried to avoid politics as much as possible, up till now. But she hadn't knocked on his door just for fun and time was running out.

Chad frowned. "No, I'm not into politics."

"You have a 'Trump/Pence' sticker on your car."

"That's old. I bought that truck from a friend."

"If you don't support him, you could take it off."

"I do support him. I just don't buy all that stuff."

Although she suspected him to be a Trump supporter, she still felt a shock when he confirmed it. She'd hoped there was a good explanation for the bumper sticker. Susan liked Chad. To be honest, she more than liked him. They could talk for hours on the phone, making plans and sharing jokes. He always tried to make things easier for her and it didn't hurt that he was handsome, either. Could she fall in love with someone whose values were so different? Didn't he care about all the awful stuff that was happening right now? "And what do you support?"

Chad shrugged. "You know, the economy, the immigrants that are flooding our borders. I guess you don't mind having millions of people bringing all kinds of drugs into the country?"

Susan tried to stay calm. "You should change the channel once in a while."

Chad frowned. "I hardly watch any TV, you know that."

"Then how come you're telling all the lies Fox is broadcasting on a daily base?"

"So you want me to believe there isn't a problem at the border?"

"Problems arise at the border only when it's time to vote. What did Trump do in the past four years to solve it? And don't tell me he built a wall, because he didn't, at least not more than a few miles, and Mexico certainly didn't pay for it."

"Maybe we should change the subject?"

Susan took a deep breath. It was now or never. "Yes. Let's change the subject. How about how he promised COVID would 'magically' disappear? Over two hundred thousand people have died now. They are dead, Chad, not coming back to their families because Trump botched the response."

"It's not his fault China released a deadly virus."

"No, you're right. Nobody could predict a virus would come our way except Obama did. Even Bush was aware of the big fat chance a deadly virus would come. Preparations were made, but what did Trump do? He dismantled everything Obama ever did, including the pandemic response team. You know why?"

Chad held his hands up. "Let's stop, okay? You don't like the guy I get it. He wouldn't be my best friend, but he also did some good things."

Susan tried to remain calm. "Name one."

"The economy, the..."

"Please," Susan clenched her fists. "He inherited a thriving economy and now the unemployment rate is at an all-time high."

"That's because of the pandemic."

"Which you don't think is serious."

"Other people believe it's serious and are too scared to go to their work."

Susan let out a big sigh. "Because it is serious. Chad, please, you trust me, right?"

He looked her in the eyes. "Just like I trust my friends."

Susan tried a different approach. "What do you know about Trump?"

"Like I just told you. I don't like him, but..."

"I mean, before he became president."

"He's a successful businessman in real estate. A self-made man..."

"Ah, that's the first lie. Did you know his father was super duper rich? Trump started his business with 400 million dollars in his pocket. That's not exactly self-made, is it? And he still lost money. He bankrupted a casino. A casino! A place where people always lose money."

"You tell me I watch too much Fox News. But I can tell you watch too much MSM."

Susan did her best not to roll her eyes. "MSM? Mainstream Media? And what do you mean by that? Fake news? Did you know that's the first step of fascism? To call everyone who disagrees with you a liar?"

She could see she finally got to him.

"Are you calling me a fascist?"

She put her hand on his arm. "No, I think you're a great human being, but sorely misinformed."

Chad shook off her hand. He walked to the window. "I think it's time for you to go."

"What?" Susan felt a pain she hadn't expected.

Chad turned around. "I thought I could look past your leftist views, but you can't accept me as I am. So..."

"So you break up with me?"

He shrugged. "It's for the best."

Susan swallowed. "Maybe you're right."

She picked up her bag and coat. "I'm sorry if I pushed too hard." Because the damage was already done, she did a last ditch effort. "Chad, can you promise me something?"

He didn't answer, but she saw he was listening. "You vote, right?"

He nodded.

"Before you vote, please do some research into Trump. He's not the man you think he is. Look for more than one source. And if you believe CNN is too left, search for more neutral sources like NPR, PBS, or even the BBC. Can you do that for me?"

"If you watch a segment of Fox News."

"You know Fox News isn't a real news channel, right? They're listed under 'entertainment'. Look it up." Susan opened the door.

"And...er... Sleepy Joe's hiding in a basement!"

She turned around one more time. "And those childish nicknames are something from a kid in sixth grade. Bye, Chad. It was nice knowing you. I hope you wake up before it's too late."