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A NOTE FROM FRED
During this unprecedented time, we have decided to continue our weekly newsletter. We believe it is better to communicate as this epic crisis unfolds than to go silent.
We know we are facing a health crisis and an economic crisis unlike anything we have seen in our lifetimes.
But, we also know that life must go on and we must make sure we do not end up facing a democracy crisis as well.
The presidential, congressional, state, and local elections must take place in November without interruption or interference.
Democracy 21 is working with many other concerned groups and individuals to take all possible steps to ensure that the integrity of our sacred right to vote is maintained in the November elections.
Given the efforts President Trump has already made to rig the 2020 presidential election, for which he was impeached, and given his behavior in the 2016 presidential election, we need to watch him like a hawk. Trump’s penchant for lying, dissembling, disrupting, and cheating must not be allowed to undermine, if not steal, the 2020 presidential election.
H.R. 1, passed by the House last year, would have made voting rights and election results far safer and more secure than they are today. Senate Majority Leader McConnell, however, buried H.R. 1 in the Senate, thereby blocking the voting protections it would have put in place.
In order to provide protection now for the votes that the American people will cast in November, a major effort is underway in Congress to include up to $2 billion in appropriated funds in the $1 trillion economic relief package that is being developed and is expected to pass Congress quickly.
These funds would be used by the states to adapt their voting processes to the potential voting problems caused by COVID-19 and to ensure that the 2020 election results are honest and fair.
Our democracy must continue to function properly as it has during past periods of national crisis. We must prevent this crisis from being used by President Trump to try to rig the November presidential election.
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MUST READS
CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE
Inside The Trump Administration’s Troubled Coronavirus Response, via The Washington Post.
Trump’s Mar-A-Lago Becomes A Gilded Petri Dish For A Global Disease, via Politico.
Pressure Is Growing To Allow Members Of Congress To Vote Remotely Amid Coronavirus Concerns, via Vox.
Trump And McConnell Can’t Self-Quarantine From The Political Fallout, opinion via The Washington Post.
Business Assns Lobby Trump, Congress To Ease Paid Sick Leave Requirements
“Amid the coronavirus pandemic, powerful business associations are lobbying the Trump administration and Congress to influence key components of economic relief bills,” via Open Secrets.
TRUMP & FRIENDS
This Is How Donald Trump Will Be Remembered, via The Atlantic.
McConnell Has a Request for Veteran Federal Judges: Please Quit
“The Senate majority leader has encouraged judges thinking about stepping down to do so soon to ensure that Republicans confirm their replacements this year,” via The New York Times.
The Trump Administration Adds To Its Purge Of Professionals, opinion via The Washington Post.
Justice Dept Abandons Prosecution Of Russian Firm Indicted In Mueller Election Interference Probe, via The Washington Post.
Will This Year’s Census Be the Last?
“All this, though, may be by the bye, because the census, like most other institutions of democratic government, is under threat,” via The New Yorker.
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Former Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) Sentenced To 11 Months In Prison
“According to the indictment, the Hunters relied for years on campaign contributions to pay routine family expenses. … [and] to pay for exotic vacations, private-school tuition, video games and plane tickets.”
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229 DAYS …
5 Takeaways: Joe Biden Closer To Nomination As Coronavirus Changes Everything, via National Public Radio.
How Campaigns Are Adapting To Coronavirus, via The Hill.
400+ Political Scientists: “We Must Urgently Work To Guarantee Free And Fair Democratic Elections In November,” via their letter to Congress.
Is There Time To Make Voting By Mail Work?
“The coronavirus has left states rapidly searching for ways to protect democracy’s most sacred institution,” via The New York Times.
Political Fundraising Goes On, Despite Concern Over Coronavirus, via CBS News.
Super PACs On Both Sides Of The Aisle Are Abusing Campaign Finance Loopholes To Keep Their Donors Secret, Leaving Voters In The Dark, via Open Secrets.
Russian Election Meddling Is Back – Via Ghana And Nigeria – And In Your Feeds, via CNN.
Many Eligible Georgia Voters Were Canceled In Nation’s Largest Purge
“About 87K re-registered, showing they were legitimate voters all along,” via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
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