#103: The Harder the Conflict the More Glorious the Triumph

Thank you for continuing to share these messages with your friends. If you are not already on our mailing list, please click here to be added to our list. You can also follow me on Facebook where you can read and share these messages. The more people we can reach, the more we contribute to this growing movement. We share these posts on our blog, A Path Forward to November 3, 2020, every two weeks, leading up to the Presidential election of 2020, in which our country will select a whole new course.

This is the next to last of a series of 104 missives, filed every two weeks since the calamitous election of November 2016. In this house, we listened to classical music for a week after that election before we could bear to turn on the morning news. Then we decided that writing about the path forward and providing specific action steps every two weeks would help us play our own role in the resistance.

Word of mouth has given this blog nearly 2000 followers! We are a small part of the countless activist efforts around the country, mushrooming from the initial efforts of organizations like Indivisible, Swing Left, and Move On. We are all acquitting ourselves. Early on, many of us turned from despair and each became a part of a gigantic effort to have November 3, 2020 bring a fresh outcome and reclaim the idea of America. We are proud of our relentlessness during what has turned out to be an awful time. 

We are not going to be distracted by predicting an outcome. We feel good about our prospects and are eager to roll up our sleeves to repair this country, which was in need of serious work even before the Trump debacle began.

It is still about keeping our equilibrium. Without getting ahead of ourselves, we can be pleased at the levels of early voting in swing states. High turnout works to our advantage, so it is fair to be happy that Donald Trump, through his voter suppression efforts, has become the inadvertent chair of our Get out the Vote campaign. Given his past lack of verisimilitude, voters aren’t buying any of Trump’s attacks on Joe Biden, and they know we haven’t turned the corner in battling the virus. Thanks to a demonstration of integrity by the Wall Street Journal (who considered and rejected the story) they aren’t buying Trump’s false claim that Joe Biden benefited financially from Hunter Biden’s international contracts. Trump had been counting upon that as an October surprise. 

There are multiple paths for Biden and Harris to get to 270 electoral votes. It’s thought by many that we won’t know the outcome on election night, but that is no certainty. Yes, our key states of Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania will have been delayed in the certification and counting of mail in ballots by their state laws. However, Florida, Arizona and North Carolina all certify their mail in ballots as they arrive, guaranteeing that their election night totals will be meaningful. The Biden/Harris ticket showing well in one or more of those states would be terrific election evening news. And of course we will be keeping an eye on Georgia, Iowa, Ohio, and Texas as well.

Of course, getting the Senate majority is fundamental too, all the more so because of Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation to the Supreme Court (which hopefully will cost Lindsay Graham his Senate seat). Here the important thing to remember is that there will not be 50 Democratic votes in the Senate to expand the size of the Supreme Court, regardless of Biden’s support or opposition.

Where court expansion comes into the picture is in tandem with another Democratic tool. If we gain the majority, Majority Leader Charles Schumer will increase the likelihood that Democrats will select the “nuclear option” which would change the rules to eliminate the 60-vote requirement to close debate. (This requirement was already eliminated by Harry Reid for federal judicial appointments and by Mitch McConnell for Supreme Court). The Democratic majority would start by using both court expansion and the nuclear option as a threat. They are hoping their prospective use of the nuclear option will generate lower resistance by Republican Senators to major legislation on health care and climate change.

On many legal fronts, control by Democrats of the Presidency, the House and the Senate will also enable them to fix any court-identified “defects” in the Affordable Care Act or other laws targeted by the increasingly conservative Supreme Court. Unfortunately, this repair option will be more difficult and complex in response to the Court’s interpretation of equal protection under the law, guaranteed by the 14th Amendment. Protection of the LGBQT community is threatened by the narrow interpretations of “originalist” judges. Whatever unfavorable rulings that emerge may be difficult for Congress to respond to through statutory changes. Eventually, we could end up requiring a stronger (but very difficult to achieve) constitutional amendment to protect previous legal gains. Moreover, as much as Republican Senator Susan Collins stresses otherwise, these justices do not see Roe v Wade as “settled law”.

So, the battles of the future will be intense. The first step is to win back the Presidency and the Senate by doing these three things:

1) Make a Nostalgia Filled Contribution to Theresa Greenfield
	Remember back to the days we you were sending more money than you planned to political candidates? With your help, Act Blue handled $1.5 billion in Democratic donations in the third quarter. If you are interested in revisiting old times with one more click, choose Theresa Greenfield, battling in Iowa against incumbent Joni Ernst. One of our Senatorial candidates is going to win or lose by a few thousand votes, and it would be a horrible thing to have happen to Theresa.
2) Don’t Miss Out on the Last Week’s Campaigning
	There is still campaign work being done around the country, including the all-important “curing” of ballots, which is helping voters correct the errors on their rejected ballots. Here is a full list of things you can be doing from the star activist Bill McClain: Ballot curing is an opportunity to make a difference in close, swing state elections. Click here to volunteer with Swing Left. Faithful America is running a series of textbanking events: join anytime between 2 - 5:30 p.m. Pacific Time on Wednesday (Oct 28) this week. They will likely announce additional shifts later in the week, too. Text young voters with NextGen Share the Vote.org link on social media and with friends in swing states. It makes it easy to find voting info, polling locations, etc. in every state.
3) Take Care of Yourself
	Go for a socially distanced walk. Take stock of your mental health. Lean on friends.

Thomas Paine reminds that “the harder the conflict the more glorious the triumph.” After this is over, if it is over, we can all think about what we have learned and what we can do next for our country. 

David Harrison
Bainbridge Island, Washington

#102: Make the Best Use of These Three Weeks

Thank you for continuing to share these messages with your friends. If you are not already on our mailing list, please click here to be added to our list. You can also follow me on Facebook where you can read and share these messages. The more people we can reach, the more we contribute to this growing movement. We share these posts on our blog, A Path Forward to November 3, 2020, every two weeks, which means there will be a total of 103 missives before the Presidential election of 2020, in which our country will select a whole new course.

We are as one in our refusal to prematurely count upon relief for our wounded souls on November 3. We have worked extremely hard to secure that result. Daily, we consume some positive reports on our progress, but we know this is no time for any airborne heel clicking. We can wait three weeks longer.

There are some voters who still believe that Trump cares about the average Joanne or Jose. The rest of us have watched the situation escalate from the unacceptable to the unimaginable to the surreal. The virus is not the only malady where Donald Trump has been the super spreader.

There are at least major differences between our circumstances today and where we stood in mid-October in 2016:

• We demonstrated our aptitude in generating higher voter turnout levels when we flipped 40 House seats in 2018. That same acumen is paying off in 2020, with enormous increases in requests for mail in ballots and very promising levels of early voting.
• Virtually all polls reveal that there are many fewer undecided voters than there were in 2016. Dislodging voters who are already committed is the goal of Trump's dishonest and virulent attacks on Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. It is unpoetic justice that it is those same attacks that are driving independent voters away from Trump.
• Joe Biden is polling ten points ahead among older Americans, who make up a quarter of the electorate. These Americans know that Trump misrepresenting, mismanaging, contracting and transmitting the virus threatens their lives. Those of us who are most susceptible to the virus are unhappy about that.

With all these forces in play that are enhancing our election chances, we are still not beyond teeth gnashing and pillowcase chewing. We will spend these last three weeks campaigning for candidates, supporting them financially, and increasing voter turnout.

From veteran activist Bill McClain we get a summary of how each of us can contribute to this three week push:

• Write
• It’s not too late to reach voters with postcards. PostcardsToVoters.org is focusing on the Ohio Supreme Court right now.
• https://votefwd.org makes it easy to send letters to voters. Saturday the 17th is the target mail date.
• Call
• FlipTheWest.com offers phone banking and training to get out the vote in key senate states
• SwingLeft offers it too.
• Text
• Texting works especially well with younger voters, and “Zoomers” (18-24) are the ones who lean farthest Left, yet turn out at the lowest rate — in part because of confusion about the voting process. So texting a note of encouragement along with a “how-to” link can be very worthwhile.
• NextGen has a menu of text banking events on their site.
• Email
• The VoteWithMe.us app will sync your phone’s address book with the public voter database to find people you know who may need a nudge. Then you can email, call or text them.
• Post
• Reinforce social norms by posting your own voter activity on social media. (I reviewed my voter guide; I filled out my ballot; I mailed my ballot… or, I put my ballot in the drop box)

And, that's just the start. We can do these three additional consequential things:

1) Be a Part of the Supreme Court Strategy
	Someone talked to Senate Democrats in advance and got them to decide on a well-conceived communication strategy to resist Amy Coney Barrett's Supreme Court nomination. It is perfect that the court is scheduled to hear oral arguments on the Affordable Care Act in November and extraordinary that Barrett is already on record opposing John Roberts' past protection of the ACA. Either the Democratic approach is a way to stop the nomination (much less likely) or a way to exact maximum protection for the ACA or the broader healthcare aspirations of Democrats. Senators Ben Sasse of Nebraska and Mitt Romney of Utah have both seen themselves as capable of principled independent thought in the face of Donald Trump. Write them both to tell them that voting for Supreme Court nominee in the week before the election is contrary to their 2016 promises and will overshadow their other actions during the remainder of their careers.
2) Develop a Method to Stand Up for Science
	You know it is a momentous time when Scientific American endorses a presidential candidate (in this case Joe Biden) for the first time in their 175-year history. This is an underscoring of the danger of the continued Republican attacks on scientific processes and evidence which if unabated will greatly diminish public policy making. This is also the subject of a recent special report and recommendations from thismissive. Please write Laura Helmuth editor of Scientific American to thank her and her staff for displaying their principles.
3) Make a Last Round of Donations
	Joe Biden has a cash advantage on Donald Trump during the last three weeks of the campaign. Virtually all of our targeted Senate candidates they have outraised their opponents. These things have happened because resisters of varied financial means have reached back to provide the financial support our candidates require. We have given early and we had given often. Now there's one last chance to boost our candidates before the final votes are cast. We could give $750 in honor of Trump's tax malfeasance or $75 or $7.50. Whatever the level, we are called to provide one more dollop of candidate support. In the Senate we should add at least a couple more races beyond those that have received the most attention. Two of the best ideas for a last minute boost are: Barbara Bollier of Kansas who has come from a distance and is polling even with her opponent in an open seat and Governor Steve Bullock of Montana who is running even with the incumbent. We should also look in our own regions for hard battling House candidates who are ready to go over the top. In the Northwest those very promising candidates include Alyse Galvin of Alaska and Carolyn Long of Washington both of whom just narrowly missed victory in 2018 and can build upon those past efforts.

We are campaigning, we're donating, and we are dreaming of the possible outcome of this four-year struggle.

David Harrison

Bainbridge Island, Washington

#101: Let’s Keep Our Bearings in Tumultuous Times

At this point, we do know the extent the virus will put the President in danger. For this reason, we are not sending the Path Forward blog that would have gone out today, Friday, October 2. As has been this blog’s practice, it would have included a detailed analysis of our present political situation, and steps to be taken between now and November 3. Instead, we are providing this shorter note. Our next issue of the blog will be on Wednesday, October 14.  If you are not already on our mailing list, please click here to be added to our list. You can also follow me on Facebook where you can read and share these messages. The more people we can reach, the more we contribute to this growing movement. We share these posts on our blog, A Path Forward to November 3, 2020, every two weeks, which means there will be a total of 103 missives before the Presidential election of 2020, in which our country will select a whole new course.

Donald Trump has contracted the virus that has overwhelmed our nation. This is one more disorienting event in a year that has threatened to unravel us. It is a huge and unfortunate threat to him personally, a national security concern for our nation, and a complication in the election process.

Joe Biden, Kamala Harris and other Democratic leaders know how to focus upon Donald Trump’s wellbeing while still attending to the last month of the campaign. It falls to all of us as resistors to keep our own bearings. We want health and safety for the President and for all Americans, and we look for a time in which the virus is under control. We still have so much to learn about how to fight against this pandemic, and we can’t wait to learn it until many more have died.

As of mid-week, we were in a strong campaign position, not only with Biden/Harris polling leads, but in numerous swing district races. The disclosures of Donald Trump’s tax returns was itself of major political significance. There is still no new stimulus deal. Democrats have been warning the Supreme Court appointment is a plan to reverse the Affordable Care Act and remove protection of Americans with pre-existing conditions.

Before the new news, it had also become clear that Donald Trump and other Republicans were carrying out a strategy to discredit the election as a way to suppress the vote. This included Trump saying “the results of the election may never be known”, which was disputed by Marco Rubio and six other Republicans from the Senate Intelligence Committee. Joe Biden has reassured the country that there will be a peaceful transition of power, and the House of Representatives passed a nearly unanimous resolution reaffirming that commitment. Trump’s refusal to pledge a peaceful transition is seen by many as an additional effort to discourage voting and thus depress Biden’s turnout.

There’s just over a month left. The thing to do is just what we have been doing all along. Make certain our candidates are well supported. Do as much door to door campaigning as the virus allows, and use calls, texts, and postcards to establish our one on one connections. We will remember that it will take more than a President to move us all forward after November 3. Let’s make certain that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have the Senators on their side that they need to do the work of a nation.

We are feeling very good about the chances for Democratic candidates John Hickenlooper in Colorado, Mark Kelly in Arizona, Sara Gideon in Maine and Cal Cunningham in North Carolina. There is one thing to do--- go out and get at least another four.

Here are the other races being talked about. In each case, we will either win by a small margin or lose by a small margin. Money matters. Let’s continue to make certain that these candidates have the help they need.

1. In Iowa, Theresa Greenfield has come from behind and is polling ahead of Joni Ernst. 
2. In South Carolina, in every Democrat’s dream, Jaime Harrison is running even with Lindsay Graham. 
3. In Georgia, Jon Ossoff is even or barely trailing David Perdue. 
4. In Montana, we could be doing everything possible for Steve Bullock. 

And, there are other races for which there is a case to be made. 

1. Barbara Bollier has some promising recent polls in Kansas. 
2. Al Gross has been closing in on Dan Sullivan all summer in Alaska. 
3. The second Georgia seat will involve a runoff, which will hopefully feature Democratic candidate Raphael Warnock. 

In the month ahead, we will hope for the recovery and health of Donald Trump and every other world citizen beset by the virus. We plan to win on November 3, and expect to put our shoulder behind the wheel for a new American age.

David Harrison

Bainbridge Island, Washington