The message to the President I would have given

Today's column was written prior to Tuesday's cancellation of President Trump's visit to southeast Missouri.

Though the rally was canceled, the message of the column remains true. Had the President been here this week, this is what I would have said.

Welcome Mr. President.

We Missourians are the fly-over Americans who often go unnoticed.

I guess we fall into that infamous "basket of deplorables", though few among us are the racists, homophobes, etc. that Mrs. Clinton branded us.

For the most part, we're hard-working, God-fearing people who still stand for the National Anthem and believe personal responsibility is the key to success.

We don't have to be told that our economy is improving because our paychecks tell us that.

We're not Hollywood nor East coast liberals, we're farmers and warehouse workers and small business people who get up each morning truly blessed to live in this great nation.

We know without being told which restroom to use and we would never wear a mask and promote violence in the name of socialism.

We worry about the future for our children and grandchildren but instead of pointing a finger of blame, we try to see what we can do to improve that future.

And despite the tragically misinformed characterization, not all of us own guns but most of us do own a bible.

And we know what the word respect means because our parents or grandparents or a teacher or preacher helped us understand the meaning of the word.

We will always need the guidance and help of our government but we are not totally dependent on that government to provide for our every need.

And yes, we respect law enforcement at all levels. We recognize it is those brave individuals who wear the uniform to protect us from those who would bring harm into our lives.

We have a hard time understanding those who seek to remove tradition and rewrite history. We fully recognize past mistakes but we recognize those mistakes are in the past. They cannot and will not define our future.

We worry more about pot holes in our streets than we do about North Korea because we have placed our trust in our leaders to solve those problems far beyond our control.

And despite not having a Harvard education, we can see that the mainstream media is hellbent to undo the progress that is once again restoring greatness to our nation.

We voted for you overwhelmingly because we were sick and tired of the misguided direction that the former administration was taking us.

We are far from perfect but love this country and believe with all of our heart that this is the greatest nation on the earth that is at long-last regaining the respect of the world community.

We will view with a level of disdain at the protesters who will surely greet you here. Yet we will defend their right to protest unlike the respect they would show us.

We are Americans first and Missourians second. And we trust you to carry us through these perilous times.

Just like us, you have flaws Mr. President. But unlike us, you have a voice to fight for our concerns, our needs and our future. And we believe that's exactly what you are doing.

Even though a hurricane derailed your visit, you're always welcome in Southeast Missouri Mr. President.

Michael Jensen is the publisher of the Standard Democrat in Sikeston, Missouri.