Scott Presler's #BaltimoreCleanup Is Further Proof of 'Can-Do' Attitude

My column last week was written in response to what has become the typical claim of the political class during election season: Increasing numbers of Americans are helpless victims whose problems can only be solved by government.

Using homelessness as an example, I compared the expensive failures of government in cities like Los Angeles and Austin, Texas, with the success of Community First Village, a privately funded initiative in Austin. Starting small and focusing on the needs of a few, Community First has grown in just three years to the point where it is preparing to house and help 500 people -- nearly 40% of Austin’s chronically homeless population.

This week saw another example of the “can-do” attitude of private citizens. Scott Presler, a young conservative activist from northern Virginia, used his substantial social media following (he has over 300,000 followers on Twitter) to organize a one-day trash cleanup in Baltimore -- a city whose problems have recaptured the nation’s attention since President Trump tweeted about it being “rat and rodent infested” two weeks ago.

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