The woman down the street in the MAGA hat.

To say something, or not to say something? That is the question ...

So a bunch o’ times per week I roll out of bed, brush my teeth, pee, stretch, check my phone, stretch some more—then call for Poppy The Superdog, leash her up and head off on a two-mile walk through the neighboring streets.

It’s a genuinely lovely stroll. The morning dew. Citrus trees. A puppy over there, a squirrel over here. Sometimes I listen to music, other times a podcast. Mostly, I just soak in the sounds and smells of another day in beautiful Southern California.

This morning, I saw her.

She’s a woman in her 70s. Blonde hair, sorta short. Usually sports leggings, a T-shirt and … a black MAGA hat.

This one:

I’d say I spot her on, oh, 70 percent of my walks. She’s usually walking toward me, I’m walking toward her.

And in my mind, this unfolds …

ME: “Hey, can I ask you a question?”

HER: “Sure.”

ME: “Why do you still support Trump?”

HER: “Because he’s making America great.”

ME: “Um.”

HER: “You don’t think so?”

At this point, I unspool all the shit Donald Trump has done to undermine America. The greed. The corruption. The racism. The homophobia. The transphobia. Deals with Russia. Placing his name on everything. Suppressing the Epstein Files. The nightmare in Iran. On and on and on. I tell her that, for a guy who hates DEI, Trump sure rewards white incompetency. I tell her that, for a guy who speaks out against anti-Semitism, it’s weird how many Jewish-hating statements he’s made. I ask her why it’s OK for him to cheat on multiple wives, then pay off a porn star. I ask her why it was fine for him to ridicule POWs because they were captured. I break out my phone to show her the “Grab ‘em by the pussies” video, then the ridiculing of a disabled reporter.

I’m on a roll. Left, right, right left. Jab. Jab. Uppercut. Hook. Bringing forth every possible argument against Donald Trump. Proof that the woman in the MAGA hat has been seduced by a cult that gives not two shits about her.

•

Alas, I say none of it. I smile, wave, wish her a good morning and walk back toward home.

Poppy needs her breakfast.

And I need to maintain my sanity.