Reader Responses to Political Player

I was disappointed by the profile of Parker Poling ’99 in the May/June BAM. There was not one word about Poling’s values or why she still considers herself a Republican. How does Poling feel about the fact that the Republican Party is now the Party of Trump? Is she just fine with the corruption, the incompetence, the misogyny, and the shameless mendacity of this president? 

The writer quotes her hope that the GOP takes back the House in 2020, but how? Suppressing votes through gerrymandering, voter purges, voter ID laws and the like, deliberately targeting minorities, students and young people, has been the chief Republican strategy since 2010. This profile celebrates Poling’s rise as a “power player” without concern about the game she’s playing. 

It was particularly poignant to read the obituary of Maryori Conde ’19, who in her too-short life worked to protect the vulnerable immigrants Trump viciously scapegoats and terrorizes. It’s a shame to see a puff piece about someone like Poling in the same BAM.

I found it interesting that the story “Political Player” (Beyond the Gates, May/June 2019) said Parker Hamilton Poling ’99 lived in “her GOP-heavy adopted hometown of Washington, D.C.” The Washington Post and other sources note roughly 6.1 percent of District voters are registered Republicans. “GOP-heavy” compared to where? Brown?