Katie Krug -- Bush 43 Alum
Why she's supporting Harris-Walz in 2024
When I was in middle school, I got in trouble for telling a classmate her parents were “dumb” for supporting Michael Dukakis. That night, my mother, a deeply conservative woman, held me back at the dinner table and, in her gentle way, told me that what I had done was wrong. That we didn’t talk like that. That good, well-meaning people could disagree on politics, but essentially, we all wanted what was best for this country we all loved, we just disagreed on certain specifics.
As my own politics and beliefs changed, I never forgot what my mother had said to me when I was a child. I supported and voted for candidates I felt reflected my own priorities and values, but I never doubted the good faith of those on the other side. To me, that was the essence of our system - honest disagreement, no ill will, and a shared belief that we were all in this together.
And then came 2016. I was dismayed at Donald Trump’s election, but I still believed there was common ground we could all share, despite his nasty rhetoric and twisted vision of America. But it only got worse and more hateful. Muslim bans. Charlottesville. COVID. Peaceful protesters tear-gassed in Lafayette Park. And, finally, January 6. I watched events unfold that day on my computer screen and cried.
The vision and expectation of decency that my mother had instilled in me was smashed. President Trump made a liar of her. He exposed and emboldened an ugly underside of this country that has rocked me to my core. I am supporting Vice President Harris and Governor Walz because I believe both in their vision for our country as a land of fairness, respect, and opportunity, and in their personal decency and commitment to the rule of law and democratic institutions.
I am proud to cast my ballot in November for these two experienced, steady, and patriotic public servants.
Katie (Simonds) Krug served in George W. Bush’s Office of Presidential Correspondence from 2001 to 2005 as Senior Gift Analyst and later as Deputy Director of Personal Correspondence.