President
By Janice Miller Potter
The president of lies preens
loyalty to his person
the president of shamelessness
gorges on words
stuffing meaning down a capacious maw
like kindling to a furnace
burning truth from the architecture
of our common language
even the word liar
has lost repulsiveness for loyalists
the rest of us worn down
by daily assaults are
mesmerized by the chaos of conflicts
that comb the highways of his orange-crush hair
while the president of lies
shamelessly grabs
the private parts of women
the spines of men
the spoils of public office
the rule of law
the emoluments outlawed
the weak consciences of politicians
the public eye
the power to erode and destroy
women men our cherished ideals
earth water fire air
even the ghostly elephants of Africa
Janice Miller Potter grew up in western Pennsylvania, but she has lived in New England for most of her life. She is the author of three poetry collections: Thoreau’s Umbrella (Fomite, 2019), Meanwell (Fomite, 2012), and Psalms in Time (Finishing Line, 2008). Her poems have also appeared in various journals and anthologies, including Poet Lore, Bloodroot, J Journal, The Fourth River, and most recently among the pandemic poems in Verse-Virtual. She lives in Cornwall, Vermont.
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