Three Kinds of Republicans on the Hill

Christine Merser, June 3, 2025

Last week, a friend of mine shared a story from his recent visit to the doctor. While they were talking, the doctor mentioned he had a friend, a Republican, a sitting member of Congress, either a senator or representative. Doesn’t matter which.

The doctor said he and his friend on the Hill spoke about the current political situation and corruption, and they both agreed that the Democrats really messed up, with Biden thinking he could serve two terms.

He said his friend told him there are three kinds of Republicans sitting with him in office right now. Those who are fully supportive of Trump because of the party, those who actually believe in most of it, and those who are afraid. “This friend is in the third category,” the doctor said.

The representative told him he doesn’t agree with most of what Trump is doing. But he’s afraid. He’s gotten anonymous calls reminding him about the whereabouts of his daughter and his wife, what they wore that day, as a sort of “we are watching you” and “we know where your family is” kind of threat.

So he’s not going to stand up and challenge. He’s just going to serve out his term, and then he’s not going to run again.

“Isn’t that awful? That they’re being threatened?”

As he continued talking, I started to think about it. I thought about what’s at risk. I thought about how many months are left between now and the election. Months where this man, who says he won’t run again, will still hold power. Will still vote. I thought about the fact that he earns close to $176,000 per year and, even if he doesn’t run again, he will still receive 80 percent of that salary for the rest of his life. He will keep his health benefits and every other privilege that comes with the title, even if he uses that title to do nothing while the country unravels. And I thought about how, by 2026, it will likely be too late.

If Republicans who still have a conscience don’t stand up now, not later, not after reelection, then we will lose our democracy. Checks and balances will be gone. Free elections will be gone. The threat won’t be theoretical. It will be law.

I told my friend this was an opportunity.

I told him he should call the doctor, not to criticize, but to remind him that this is not a time for quiet discomfort. That maybe the senator or congressman hadn’t thought it through. That maybe even the doctor hadn’t. But now they must.

Because if this member of Congress is too afraid to act, too afraid to uphold the oath he took, then he must step down immediately. Not in a year. Not after he cashes out his pension. Now. And let someone with courage take his place before it’s too late.

Because every day he stays in that seat and votes the way he’s pressured to vote, he is helping dismantle democracy. He is giving in to the threats. He is showing his children, the very ones he says he’s trying to protect, that he is willing to trade their future for his fear. That he sold out his country to keep his benefits.

Together, my friend and I drafted a letter for him to send to the doctor. It’s going by snail mail, not the medical portal. Too many eyes there.

There are three men and a woman in this story. The Congressman. The doctor. And my friend J and I.

Each has a role to play in whether this moment becomes a turning point or a footnote.

J doesn’t want to alienate his doctor. He likes him. He respects him. He doesn’t want to shame him. But this is not a time for pleasantries. This is not a time for silence. Maybe the doctor never thought it through. Maybe the Congressman hasn’t either. But now they need to.

And we need to start writing to every member of Congress like this one.

Are you voting this way because you’re afraid?
Are you voting this way because you’re corrupt?
Or are you a true believer?

All are unacceptable. But at least have the courage to say which one you are. At least come out of whatever closet you’re hiding in.

This is not a time for cowards. And it is not a time for people to coast toward retirement. If you’re not running again, step down now. Make space for someone who will fight.

And let’s be clear. If the doctor doesn’t deliver that message, or its essence, to his friend, then he’s complicit. If you hear these things and say nothing to preserve your relationships or your comfort, then you are not neutral. You are an accomplice.

Silence is assent.

So the question becomes, who are you going to be in these next months? How will you be remembered by your children? By your community?

Because it’s game day. First quarter. No timeouts left. And they have the ball.

But I still think, if we stand up, we’re the crowd favorite.