# 12: Squelch Trump’s Big Lie

This is the next of a new series of missives on our unfinished work to restore the promise of our country and its government. Each will focus on a single element of the many opportunities and challenges that lie ahead. Each will provide steps we can all take to build upon our huge victories winning back the House in 2018 and the Presidency in 2020. 

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, Our Unfinished Work, every three weeks.

Threats to democracy can be damnably complex, or even intractable. The Big Lie is neither. Donald Trump contends that the election he lost by 7 million votes was stolen. This very simple Big Lie puts democracy at risk in the United States, diminishes the integrity of future elections, and casts a shadow over the peaceful transfer of power that is our hallmark. Internationally, it extinguishes our beacon.

Even from this man, it is reprehensible and contemptible. A similar claim from any past presidential candidate of any party would have been immediately dismissed. We are at this point for two reasons. First the Big Lie has been monetized by Trump, Fox News commentators, and numerous Republican candidates. Second, the retribution visited upon Republicans who refuse to live the lie is swift and sure.

Most Republican elected officials have now gone way beyond ignoring Trump’s impeachable offenses. They know the lie will diminish us all. They know their complicit actions are craven, but they nonetheless consent to this dance with the devil, whose grimy embrace will never be unlocked.

Still, the defeat of the Big Lie will depend largely upon other Republicans who can not abide by it. Since the lie is fed daily and is too dangerous to be ignored, our response must be daily as well. Let’s do these seven things now to defend our country. Please share these steps with your friends so that they will take action too!

1) Yes, You Must Support Liz Cheney
	No one is asking you to select Liz Cheney as your favorite person, or to ignore innumerable past political sins. What is compelling is the answer to this question. What is in it for her politically in taking on Donald Trump over the election lie and the January 6 insurrection? The answer is NOTHING. There is no chance that she will ultimately be granted political rewards for her stand. Still, she is not going to blink. Her principles on this issue are the best thing we have going. There will be no viable Democratic candidate, so she has a chance to save her seat in Wyoming against a Trump-endorse candidate. If she is able to get herself reelected, it will be a huge victory over Trump and over the lie itself. Her ability to do that depends upon her having sufficient campaign resources give to a conservative Republican today.
2) Protect the Truth in Maricopa County
	At this point, the epicenter of the election integrity war is Maricopa County, Arizona. The Republican controlled State Senate is teaming with the “consulting firm” CyberNinjas to do a third recount of ballots sans procedures and with an eagle eye out for bamboo traces. This is to be sure that Southeast Asian operatives did not dump tens of thousands of ballots on unsuspecting Maricopan election officials, a QAnon theory. The Republican controlled Maricopa County Commission is fighting back against this madness, Republican board chair Jack Sellers says the Senate is “making an attempt at legitimatizing a grift disguised as an audit”. Call Jack Sellers’ office at 602-506-1776 and ask his staff to pass on your admiration for his integrity.
3) Keep Posted on the New Republican Movement
	Whether or not you have ever been a Republican, or ever hope to be one, it is useful to understand who is behind the Call for a New American Renewal. These are 150 Republicans including former Governors, members of Congress and Senators. They aren’t forming a third party and instead are trying to start a principled movement. We wish them all the best with that. Send them your email to keep track of them. If you are not thus sated, listen in on their huge June 16 Town Hall.

4) Maintain Your Election Law Grounding
	You can’t keep tabs on the Big Lie and all the associated smaller lies without a reliable source regarding the truth. Following the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University is the very best way of understanding all the ways in which we are pushing back against the voter suppression that the Big Lie is feeding. They provide state by state analysis and are an indispensable litigator. You can give them your financial support or just sign up for their reports.
5) Expect More from John Kasich
	John Kasich has completed his two terms as Governor of Ohio, and he is not ever going to the Republican candidate for President. From this point forward, he will either influence the American agenda with his credibility and his insights, or will fail to do so. It is Kasich who should be speaking out on behalf of Liz Cheney. It is Kasich who should be making it a daily point to call out the Big Lie. Time to email him at info@johnkasich.com and ask him what he is waiting for. Remind him his country is at risk and that he could be doing something about it. He cares about his legacy.
6) Energize the Corporate Community
	Even the modest actions that companies have taken to fight voter suppression laws in Georgia, Texas and Florida have terrified Republican operatives. Some companies have already pledged to withhold financial support from members of Congress who continued their support of the Big Lie on January 6 even as our Capitol was under attack. This movement needs greater traction. Find the email address of the CEO of the largest corporation in your state and write her or him a note asking how they intend to fight the Big Lie induced voter suppression. If a leader of this movement is going to emerge, it will be Kenneth Chenault, the former CEO at American Express. Chenault was behind the best and most important joint corporate letter so far. He is very difficult to reach. Call his venture capital firm General Catalyst in New York at 212-775-4000 and tell him this country needs his continued help.

7) Improvise and Promote Your Own Big Lie Combating Strategies
	Share this post with your friends! Write to this missive on other things you plan to do to fight to Big Lie and we will pass on your ideas. Examine the Lincoln Project and see if they warrant your support, especially for ads that expose the Big Lie. Carefully consider that principled Congressperson Adam Kinzinger has started a PAC to support Republicans who voted to impeach Trump, always remembering that we would prefer to have those seats for Nancy Pelosi.  Also, keep an eye on the Dominion lawsuit, which will expose multiple elements of the lie and force Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell and others to pay damages. Watch the Fox News debacle and look for an opening. If it ever transpires that they are going to have to pay for the lie (even in advertising revenue) they will 1) flee from it, and 2) pretend they never said it.

1)    There are Biden’s policies to be passed, and election campaigns to advance. Val Demings is running to unseat Marco Rubio in Florida! None of these adventures will go as well as we want them to if we let the Big Lie stand out there moldering, sapping our country’s strength.

David Harrison
Bainbridge Island, Washington