Senator Slotkin Warns Young Conservatives Against Entering Trump Administration

Senator Elissa Slotkin arrived at the University of Chicago last week with a warning for young conservatives: stay away from government or face consequences. Her visit drew little attention at first. She spoke carefully about helping the middle class and criticized President Trump's economic policies while hinting she might run in 2028. But hidden inside her standard political talk lay a clear threat to youth on the right side of the aisle. When asked if she wanted to impeach the president, she shifted gears and talked about effectiveness instead. She noted that sixty-seven votes for conviction in the Senate are too hard to get. So, better targets would be people around the president. That way, young folks thinking about joining the Trump administration would think twice. They might say, "Lord, this looks like buying myself a ton of problems I do not want."

I felt that threat personally. During high school, I worked as a United States Senate page. The program picks thirty juniors from across the nation to spend a semester in school and working inside the Senate. I did math homework on the Senate floor when Congress was out of session. I ran around delivering messages and papers during sessions. I made many close friends there, few of whom share my political views now. I gained deep respect for that body. When I finished the program, friends and family asked if I felt more optimistic or pessimistic about our government. News from Washington looked so bad they assumed I would be gloomy. They wanted stories about senators yelling at each other and fighting to the death in pointless partisan battles. But I left feeling more hopeful than ever. The top reason was that senators encouraged us, a group of impressionable high schoolers, to enter politics and make our voices heard. I felt excited about making a real difference in our country's future. Hearing Senator Slotkin speak leaves me wondering if that early impression was wrong.

Still, I choose to believe the United States Senate can remain the world's greatest deliberative body. Young people can have a say in our shared future. Senator Slotkin's remarks should be an exception, not the rule. Her threat could not have come at a more prescient time. The midterms are only two weeks away. Her words are not empty; they form a game plan for Democrats if they retake Congress this November. Running that plan will cost young men and women interested in serving their country. In that same discussion, Senator Slotkin left the door open to running for president in 2028. It is far from inconceivable we will welcome President-elect Slotkin into the Oval Office two years from now.

That makes it more important than ever for young conservatives to speak out and show up. It does not matter if you hold a Ph.D. from Harvard or dropped out of high school. Your voice matters in this country. If you love our nation and have the capacity to serve in government, I encourage you to do so. I recognize that is not an easy ask. If Senator Slotkin is serious, and there is little reason to think she is not, serving your country will come at a great personal cost. Some very powerful people will seek to make you a pariah, as the host remarked to Senator Slotkin during her interview. During the Biden administration, Democrats in the White House and Congress did so to many young conservatives.

Charlie Kirk was murdered last September by a radical gunman, and that tragedy cannot be forgotten. But some battles are tougher than others, and those hard fights matter most for winning. If our government falls into the hands of people seeking power only to take revenge and target the weak, then our fates will belong to tyrants. Stopping such a future needs young people to step up. John Adams once spoke to a crowd of young patriots in Philadelphia, saying America and the world would look to their youth as one of our firmest bulwarks. Two hundred fifty years after our nation's founding, those words sound truer than ever before. Do not cower when Senator Slotkin makes threats. Instead, take her threats as a reason to serve our country. I sincerely believe the fate of our Republic depends on it.