Thump by Wayne F. Burke

a loud THUMP on the door of
liberty
has splintered the wood,
shattered the glass;
the barbarians are at the gate:
the alarm sent too late,
Alaric in the driver’s seat
and boots tramping on varnished floors…
A seismic shift and
spin and axis altered–
a redneck win
hick victory
evangelical triumph–
the looting of the shrines begins–
the Know Nothings, disavowed by the Republic
in the 19th century
have arisen from the dead
and the country trembles.