We Are Not In This Fight Alone
How to Save Democracy week of 4/18/2022
In Wisconsin, Governor Tony Evers has vetoed a total of 98 bills sent to him by the Republican controlled legislature - the most ever vetoes for a Wisconsin governor. While the Republican legislature has let a $4 billion surplus languish unused, they also tried to force through legislation that would exacerbate the pandemic, make unemployment benefits less accessible and guns more accessible and voting that much harder.
Without Tony Evers in power, Wisconsin would look much different.
It’s easy to get caught up in the many ways elected officials fail us - I do it all the time. My anger at Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema is a renewable resource at this point. I keep a google doc of all the ways Eric Adams is unfit to be NYC’s Mayor because one time Pod Save America host Jon Favreau tweeted about how we as a Democratic Party should figure out why people voted for him.
There have always been people unfit for public office, people who use their positions of power for their own personal gain at our expense. And there always will be. But even more there are people who run for office to make a difference, who fight for their constituents, even when it means they might lose.
Maryland’s state legislature recently passed 12 weeks of paid family leave, overriding the Republican governor’s veto. Colorado is doing the same for its state lawmakers.
In Pennsylvania, lawmakers introduced legislation to make it easier for trans Pennsylvanians to legally change their names. The first Muslim woman to hold any elected office in North Carolina is running for Congress.
With a Supreme Court decision to strike down abortion rights coming soon, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer filed a lawsuit to overturn a dormant Michigan law outlawing abortion in just about all cases.
Candidates in Alabama are vowing to fight for trans kids in their state. And even with a Republican controlled state government hell bent on making life as hard as humanly possible for queer people in Florida, state legislators like Anna Eskamani and Carlos Guillermo are speaking out and fighting back.
In the face of defeat, of long drawn out fights that end in compromises on issues that feel obvious, it can feel like our work doesn’t matter. But it most certainly does. Every person who speaks out against heinous legislation, every candidate who knocks on doors in towns that haven’t elected Democrats in generations, every veto and veto override reminds us that the people we put in power matter. The work we do to shape our politics matters. Our $5 monthly donations, the ten letters we write to voters, the friends we remind to vote and the candidates we show up for in the primaries.
It all matters - we are not alone in this fight, and together we can make a difference.
This week I am going to write letters to voters with Vote Forward and I’m going to sign up for a shift to volunteer with the Brittany Ramos DeBarros campaign. I’m also going to check out this Run for Something report on the reverse coattails effect, or how fighting for strong progressive local representation helps the top of the ticket too.
As always, feedback, ideas and questions are always welcome!