For many months people asked,
"With Trump as president, what could go wrong?"
Well, a lot. It's already started,
And it hasn't taken very long.

Gag orders have been imposed
On various agencies, saying "Whoa!"
Not only to our freedom of speech,
But also to our right to know.

Cutting the flow of information
Of agencies such as the EPA°
Is a frightening sign and something
We must address straightaway.

It's ONE thing for Trump not to agree
With an agency's recommendations;
It's ANOTHER thing altogether
To silence the voices of organizations.

To silence agencies meant to protect
Our quality of life? Shame! Shame!
Whose voice will he stifle next?
At which right will he next take aim?

An authoritarian country wants
Its people to live in ignorance and fear
By limiting what people can say,
By limiting what people can hear.

A growing number of angry voices
Will shout the command: "For'd, harch!"
If we care about our rights,
There might have to be another march.

- by Bob B (1-25-17)

°Environmental Protection Agency.
The Department of the Interior and
the Department of Agriculture were
also affected.
°°24 hours after the gag order was
issued, it was rescinded. Pressure
and public protest work.