Both political parties are corrupt, antiquated and broken. But let’s be honest, there is simply no way that the Republican Party could sink any lower than it is at this moment.

This is not hyperbole. A majority of Republicans polled still think that Donald Trump won one of the most highly-scrutinized and transparent elections in U.S. history in spite of all of the rock-solid proof that is easily available (which has been illustrated by multiple bipartisan judges in the outcomes of over 60 lawsuits trying to overturn the election).

Yet the leading Republican candidate for 2024 continues to perpetuate this blatant lie, refuses to even take part in the debates, and faces four state and federal felony indictments.

Now, due to both the ineptitude of Speaker Kevin McCarthy and the stranglehold the far right has on the Republican Party, we were facing another government shutdown. This could have been economically devastating for the United States, especially given the worldwide inflation and general chaos caused by Vladimir Putin’s illegal and senseless invasion of Ukraine.

What sort of picture do these ridiculous shenanigans send to the rest of the world? Extremism has no place in America, on either side of the political spectrum. The word “compromise” is no longer in their vernacular, and McCarthy can’t even unite his party, much less his country.

I hope people help save our democracy from crashing and burning by making sure these hypocritical zealots don’t ever get the keys to the car again. We are nearing the brink.

Eric Rohrbach, New Gloucester