Here is the gifted article that Robert mentioned as being behind a pay wall: https://wapo.st/3SF5Zvk
That whole piece about not certifying the election would involve the entirety of a ballot is welcome news. It's hard to imagine that Republican candidates would sit still for their election not to be certified.
Still, we must give Marc Elias and his Democracy Docket our support for the work he is doing even now to make sure our election this November is free and fair.
I’ve often wondered how the election deniers who were elected on the same ballot could not include themselves in these denials. And why the Trumpists didn’t complain about the landslides in favor of Grump.
Question is, how do we convince Grump followers of the disgusting, dishonest and disingenuous behavior and outright lies from people like Miller? Ari did a fairly good job of busting his chops, but we need more!
I don’t think these people are the ones we ought to send any time on. They are not interested in anything but having their guys win. The audiences we want to focus on are 1. those that will want to join the history making Harris wave so we have a massive turnout. 2. Those that will never vote for Democrat, but can be convinced that they also cannot vote for a Project 2025 GOP and a traitorous rapist. They should sit this election out. There are many people like that I believe. RINOs in Donald’s mind.
We must prepare for all possible contingencies of GOP dirty tricks. Who would have ever expected Jan 6 to be a violent insurrection led by the President and backed by so many senators and congresspeople? These people are desperate and have no morals.
IMO we cannot only rely on the courts. We’ve seen enough to know they aren’t what we always thought they were, ie honest.
We must prepare for the worst of the worst. They will stop at nothing! They have been working on this for 50 years, and have had a whiff of what they want. We must snuff that whiff out.
It has been pointed out that Trump cannot travel as freely as his VP candidate Juvenile Delinquent Vance, because he is a convicted felon and as such has to report to his parole officer. Of course this is convenient for his handlers because as we have heard from former White House staff under Trump, he is virtually impossible to handle. In fact, he claimed that Trump would not listen during intelligence briefings but talked all the way through and then did not understand anything. But, it highlights how his juvie VP candidate is not getting any crowds to his campaigning. Wonder whether either of them will give up on the other. Juvie because he is gets fed up with carrying the full campaign, and is faced with apathy, and Trump because he is just plain not loyal to anyone. So, it is not surprising to hear so many "Independents" after hearing Kamala and Walz speak in Philadelphia, saying that they are excited to be voting for the Democratic ticket. Also, the groups Republicans for Harris, and Republican Voters Against Trump (RVAT), are showing that American politics can reach across the aisle when it is for the good of the country. Today I read someone saying Harris/Walz is the MAJA Party, MAKE AMERICA JOYFUL AGAIN! I am for the party of freedom, joy and hope.
Would not be surprised to hear he has a disability! Dyslexia, ADHD, Irlen Syndrome or just visual processing disorder all come to mind based on obvious behaviors. He definitely demonstrates unusual behaviors and communications.
We held our monthly meeting of Louisville Dem Volunteers (KY) last night. Usually we have about 10 or so people...last night we had close to 70! The energy was palpable (and audible!) and folks are ready to get out & do the work! We'll be knocking doors, registering & educating voters, offering Rides to the Polls, having community building Postcard writing gatherings at a local pizza/beer venue and so much more. And, while there is a lot of focus on national campaigns, we talked a lot about how vital the local & state races are in the daily lives of Kentuckians and how relational canvassing is such a great strategy to get out the vote.
JP, this is really REALLY great news. Given the excitement and energy we have seen since 7/21 I can imagine similar meetings around the country. To be sure, I was glad to see your group focused on local & state elections.
I used to focus on national politics but began tracking bills in our state legislature about 5 years ago (and putting out calls to action). As you can imagine, I was horrified at the bills being proposed/passed in a Republican supermajority state and the influx of ALEC prebaked bills. In the past several years I began to realize how important the school board, metro council and judicial races are...it ALL matters! I joined our Bluegrass Blue Wave giving circle (The States Project) and know that we can take back our state legislatures one state at a time.
In response to Walz being attacked by Cult45, As a Minnesotan I can tell you that Walz has a very thick skin. None of this trash talk is new to him. He has lived with it thru the entire tea party into maga period. Democratic Public servants receive an unbelievable amount of abuse on every social media post on every platform.
Thick skin is one more thing Governor Walz and VP Harris have in common. One of her friends was talking about how much abuse Kamala has put up with as a biracial women running in and winning elections for the District Attorney of San Francisco, the Attorney General of California and a United States Senator from California. Add to that her run for president and her time in office as our Vice President. She's pretty much seen and heard it all.
By most accounts she is a lovely person with a good heart, but by now she has emotional armor plating against political attacks that's as thick as rhinoceros hide. It seems to be serving her very well whether lightly batting away the attempted insults and non-stop lies coming at her from the former president or addressing pro-Palestinian protestors trying to disrupt one of her rallies. Harris is a force of nature.
Agree, Christine.Cosmic Cheryl 🌠 is a superstar and wealth of info !
I signed up to join VoPro Pros. I’ve found that voters welcome info about “ out how to request (or track) their absentee ballot, whether they can still register to vote, or find out details about in-person early voting.” Sounds like a great way to virtually volunteer! 📲
Despite the bar being pretty high (Bannon, Miller and Stone come to mind) Kevin Roberts is easily one of the creepiest examples of what the MAGA movement has produced so far. Out of cockiness expecting a clear victory or sheer stupidity his Heritage Foundation widely publicized the 920 page script how to take over the country in 2025. His introduction to Project 2925 "A Promise to America" reads more like "A Threat to America." And to follow up on it Roberts wrote the book "Dawn's Early Light, Burning Washington to save America."
Again – cockiness or stupidity. Probably a lethal mix of both. Hilarious to watch as they are desperately trying to walk it back. First the subtitle was changed to "Taking Back Washington to Save America" and then the publishing was moved to Nov 12, a week after the elections.
Thankfully galley copies are out and hopefully will be circulated. Especially JD Vance's foreword should make for interesting reading.
Feelings beat polls and the vibe and energy of the Harris Walz team is contagious and people are responding. We all forget of the millions of eligible voters who did not vote in the last election because they did not like either candidate. Now these same voters have a reason and a team they can get behind with positive programs and ideas. It’s up to us to get out the vote. Only we can do that. What’s interesting is the Republican negative rhetoric is being out gunned by the positive Democratic rhetoric and the voters are feeling it and responding.
This is really important: "We all forget of the millions of eligible voters who did not vote in the last election because they did not like either candidate."
Hi Stephen, there is also still time to register new voters - either in-person in your state (if permitted - some states require you to be certified first) or via Filed Team 6 (www.fieldteam6.org). I write postcards with them, but they also do phonebanking and texting:
Freedom, joy, and hope, as others have already said, is what the Dems have focused on since Pres. Biden stepped down from the campaign and VP Harris took up the reins and chose Walz as her VP. It is hard not to be giddy with celebration and laughter, watching the Rethugs scramble to find fault with the Dems now, but hope grows by leaps and bounds as We the People are rising to the occasion, and others are joining us in our efforts to turn states blue and get Dems elected.
My gratitude and admiration to those like Jess Craven who work tirelessly to provide us with action items, but also including Cheryl Johnson for consistently sharing opportunities across the different Substack comment sections over these many months, and Ellie Kona and many others here. Most of all I am grateful for Robert's work with these newsletters in always being encouraging and positive during some of the darkest and most discouraging times we've endured before Pres. Biden stepped back. Like HCR's LFAA, Today's Edition has helped me stay informed and keep my sanity.
Shame shame shame on Ari Melber for giving Stephen Miller a platform of any kind. He is evil personified (the only other time I have really felt I was in the presence of evil personified was when I saw David Irving at the trial he had with Deborah Lipstadt) and has elevated evil to an art form. Yes I know about free speech h and confronting those we find most desirable etc. but Miller? Really? was this yet another failed attempt by Melber to be "hip?"
How exciting to have a Harris/Walz ticket. Lets spend more time with the good, the positive, the hopeful.. Onward and upward.
Melber kept S Miller on point. The best part was watching how incredibly angry Miller got about everything! And when he started yelling (repeatedly), Melber would just talk over him until Miller calmed down, then he asked his next question. The interview didn't go well for Miller.
I turned on MSNBC at one point this afternoon (Thursday; Melber is on at 3 pm PT) and turned it off immediately when I saw Miller's bald head. Don't need to hear anything from that jerk even if Ari holds his feet to the fire.
I have been writing Field Team 6 (www.fieldteam6.org) postcards to register new voters that the data says will be Democrats or progessive-leaning independents. They also do lots of texting and phone banks - check their schedule here: https://www.mobilize.us/?org_ids=1255.
On the postcard front, they have recently added campaigns with messages about Project 2025 in each of the swing states (as well as targeted districts in FL and NY and rural districts in a few states). Now is a great time to get people registered. It varies by state, but many states cut off voter registration by as many as 30 days before the election.
I’ve been a reader and supporter of your Substack for a while and have been looking forward to your fabulous celestial photos now as much as your commentary. Have you ever thought of putting them together in some sort of collection or binder or something, and offering it for sale or distribution. I’d love to get my hands on something like that, it’s very impressive.
I second Richard's recommendation for publishing a book of photographs, with explanations of each one similar to what is included in each day's newsletter. Although I typically download electronic copies of the books I want (all of my many bookshelves are overflowing with books I cannot bear to part with), this is one book I want to have as an actual printed book. I am thinking a large coffee table–type book to glance through over and over. Please, Robert.
For all of us, the change in mood from anxiety, depression and dread to fun and joy is manna from heaven! I will continue to work hard. At the same time, I feel like a 100 ton burden has evaporated from my shoulders. I get unmitigated joy watching those mendacious and, I daresay now, stupid republicans thinking they can still get away with murder. And the orange criminal does not have a clue as to what do about the wonderful sucker punch to his belly. Given what we've been through with the whole bunch being sickeningly arrogant and getting away with it - getting the comeuppance can only bring joy and happiness.
If you want to be a poll OBSERVER (unpaid volunteer) like I did, I would suggest contacting your local or State party. To be a paid poll WORKER, I would suggest contacting the county or state Board of Elections or Secretary of States office, depending on which handles elections. There is also an opportunity to be a poll GREETER, which is someone who hand out partisan sample ballots and literature. Poll greeters may also be volunteers for specific campaigns.
Thank you Robert. This complements well with Simon Rosenberg's Hopium chat with Subscribers earlier last night. And then a dose of Focus for Democracy post.
I had been thinking that Trump’s lack of campaigning was due to his belief that the fix is in and he doesn’t have to get the votes. He even told one group that he didn’t need any more votes he was sure he had enough already. Now however, I believe that Trump is not out campaigning because he is old, tired and his capacity to put a coherent paragraph together has greatly diminished. Since Harris has entered the race Trump has become very aware that he might lose. He seems to have become paralyzed with fear. He is not as quick and clever as he was in 2016. He only can create meaningless 4th grade insults in response. I don’t see any campaign strategy emerging, nor does he have an organization in the field. He might be depending on Elon Musk’s lies on X. Where is the DOJ in dealing with this false election information.? They should shut X down.
Trump is profoundly unwell. He is blathering. He is posting the ravings of someone who has severe malignant narcissistic personality disorder. His “ handlers” are keeping him off the campaign trail. I am still so disturbed that the press isn’t naming this. Americans are so phobic about mental illness.
Here is the gifted article that Robert mentioned as being behind a pay wall: https://wapo.st/3SF5Zvk
That whole piece about not certifying the election would involve the entirety of a ballot is welcome news. It's hard to imagine that Republican candidates would sit still for their election not to be certified.
Still, we must give Marc Elias and his Democracy Docket our support for the work he is doing even now to make sure our election this November is free and fair.
Good morning, Lynell! Here's the link to support Democracy Docket:
https://www.democracydocket.com/
Morning, Ellie! Thanks for providing the link...I forgot!
I’ve often wondered how the election deniers who were elected on the same ballot could not include themselves in these denials. And why the Trumpists didn’t complain about the landslides in favor of Grump.
You are thinking logically. These folks are not logical. It’s all about winning. We must believe that they will be worse this time.
Question is, how do we convince Grump followers of the disgusting, dishonest and disingenuous behavior and outright lies from people like Miller? Ari did a fairly good job of busting his chops, but we need more!
I don’t think these people are the ones we ought to send any time on. They are not interested in anything but having their guys win. The audiences we want to focus on are 1. those that will want to join the history making Harris wave so we have a massive turnout. 2. Those that will never vote for Democrat, but can be convinced that they also cannot vote for a Project 2025 GOP and a traitorous rapist. They should sit this election out. There are many people like that I believe. RINOs in Donald’s mind.
We must prepare for all possible contingencies of GOP dirty tricks. Who would have ever expected Jan 6 to be a violent insurrection led by the President and backed by so many senators and congresspeople? These people are desperate and have no morals.
IMO we cannot only rely on the courts. We’ve seen enough to know they aren’t what we always thought they were, ie honest.
We must prepare for the worst of the worst. They will stop at nothing! They have been working on this for 50 years, and have had a whiff of what they want. We must snuff that whiff out.
Thank you!
It has been pointed out that Trump cannot travel as freely as his VP candidate Juvenile Delinquent Vance, because he is a convicted felon and as such has to report to his parole officer. Of course this is convenient for his handlers because as we have heard from former White House staff under Trump, he is virtually impossible to handle. In fact, he claimed that Trump would not listen during intelligence briefings but talked all the way through and then did not understand anything. But, it highlights how his juvie VP candidate is not getting any crowds to his campaigning. Wonder whether either of them will give up on the other. Juvie because he is gets fed up with carrying the full campaign, and is faced with apathy, and Trump because he is just plain not loyal to anyone. So, it is not surprising to hear so many "Independents" after hearing Kamala and Walz speak in Philadelphia, saying that they are excited to be voting for the Democratic ticket. Also, the groups Republicans for Harris, and Republican Voters Against Trump (RVAT), are showing that American politics can reach across the aisle when it is for the good of the country. Today I read someone saying Harris/Walz is the MAJA Party, MAKE AMERICA JOYFUL AGAIN! I am for the party of freedom, joy and hope.
Republican Voters Against Trump
https://rvat.org/
I love Juvenile Delinquent Vance. Go, JD, back to you high school.
This was my first belly laugh of the day. Thank you!
Reporting to his parole officer tickled me pink!
I believe he’s actually illiterate
Would not be surprised to hear he has a disability! Dyslexia, ADHD, Irlen Syndrome or just visual processing disorder all come to mind based on obvious behaviors. He definitely demonstrates unusual behaviors and communications.
You can in fact just be illiterate and ignorant.
We held our monthly meeting of Louisville Dem Volunteers (KY) last night. Usually we have about 10 or so people...last night we had close to 70! The energy was palpable (and audible!) and folks are ready to get out & do the work! We'll be knocking doors, registering & educating voters, offering Rides to the Polls, having community building Postcard writing gatherings at a local pizza/beer venue and so much more. And, while there is a lot of focus on national campaigns, we talked a lot about how vital the local & state races are in the daily lives of Kentuckians and how relational canvassing is such a great strategy to get out the vote.
Thanks for sharing this good news. Mobilizing mania in every state!
JP, this is really REALLY great news. Given the excitement and energy we have seen since 7/21 I can imagine similar meetings around the country. To be sure, I was glad to see your group focused on local & state elections.
I used to focus on national politics but began tracking bills in our state legislature about 5 years ago (and putting out calls to action). As you can imagine, I was horrified at the bills being proposed/passed in a Republican supermajority state and the influx of ALEC prebaked bills. In the past several years I began to realize how important the school board, metro council and judicial races are...it ALL matters! I joined our Bluegrass Blue Wave giving circle (The States Project) and know that we can take back our state legislatures one state at a time.
And we must do just that!! Thanks.
In response to Walz being attacked by Cult45, As a Minnesotan I can tell you that Walz has a very thick skin. None of this trash talk is new to him. He has lived with it thru the entire tea party into maga period. Democratic Public servants receive an unbelievable amount of abuse on every social media post on every platform.
Great insight! Thanks for sharing!
Did he not take a high school football team with a history of losing to the state championships? I see some foreshadowing there!
Thick skin is one more thing Governor Walz and VP Harris have in common. One of her friends was talking about how much abuse Kamala has put up with as a biracial women running in and winning elections for the District Attorney of San Francisco, the Attorney General of California and a United States Senator from California. Add to that her run for president and her time in office as our Vice President. She's pretty much seen and heard it all.
By most accounts she is a lovely person with a good heart, but by now she has emotional armor plating against political attacks that's as thick as rhinoceros hide. It seems to be serving her very well whether lightly batting away the attempted insults and non-stop lies coming at her from the former president or addressing pro-Palestinian protestors trying to disrupt one of her rallies. Harris is a force of nature.
Cheryl Johnson you ARE a superstar and might show up in one of Robert's nebula photos! Be like Cheryl everyone! 🤩🔥⭐
Agree, Christine.Cosmic Cheryl 🌠 is a superstar and wealth of info !
I signed up to join VoPro Pros. I’ve found that voters welcome info about “ out how to request (or track) their absentee ballot, whether they can still register to vote, or find out details about in-person early voting.” Sounds like a great way to virtually volunteer! 📲
💙💙💙
💙💙💙
Despite the bar being pretty high (Bannon, Miller and Stone come to mind) Kevin Roberts is easily one of the creepiest examples of what the MAGA movement has produced so far. Out of cockiness expecting a clear victory or sheer stupidity his Heritage Foundation widely publicized the 920 page script how to take over the country in 2025. His introduction to Project 2925 "A Promise to America" reads more like "A Threat to America." And to follow up on it Roberts wrote the book "Dawn's Early Light, Burning Washington to save America."
Again – cockiness or stupidity. Probably a lethal mix of both. Hilarious to watch as they are desperately trying to walk it back. First the subtitle was changed to "Taking Back Washington to Save America" and then the publishing was moved to Nov 12, a week after the elections.
Thankfully galley copies are out and hopefully will be circulated. Especially JD Vance's foreword should make for interesting reading.
I call it flailing.
...and wildly so, as they are realizing they are failing.
Elon Musk gets my vote for creepy snake in the grass: https://www.democracydocket.com/analysis/judicial-watchs-dangerous-influence-behind-their-assault-on-voting-rights-and-election-integrity/
Feelings beat polls and the vibe and energy of the Harris Walz team is contagious and people are responding. We all forget of the millions of eligible voters who did not vote in the last election because they did not like either candidate. Now these same voters have a reason and a team they can get behind with positive programs and ideas. It’s up to us to get out the vote. Only we can do that. What’s interesting is the Republican negative rhetoric is being out gunned by the positive Democratic rhetoric and the voters are feeling it and responding.
This is really important: "We all forget of the millions of eligible voters who did not vote in the last election because they did not like either candidate."
Hi Stephen, there is also still time to register new voters - either in-person in your state (if permitted - some states require you to be certified first) or via Filed Team 6 (www.fieldteam6.org). I write postcards with them, but they also do phonebanking and texting:
https://www.mobilize.us/?org_ids=1255
Your right thank you formthe reminder
Freedom, joy, and hope, as others have already said, is what the Dems have focused on since Pres. Biden stepped down from the campaign and VP Harris took up the reins and chose Walz as her VP. It is hard not to be giddy with celebration and laughter, watching the Rethugs scramble to find fault with the Dems now, but hope grows by leaps and bounds as We the People are rising to the occasion, and others are joining us in our efforts to turn states blue and get Dems elected.
My gratitude and admiration to those like Jess Craven who work tirelessly to provide us with action items, but also including Cheryl Johnson for consistently sharing opportunities across the different Substack comment sections over these many months, and Ellie Kona and many others here. Most of all I am grateful for Robert's work with these newsletters in always being encouraging and positive during some of the darkest and most discouraging times we've endured before Pres. Biden stepped back. Like HCR's LFAA, Today's Edition has helped me stay informed and keep my sanity.
Shame shame shame on Ari Melber for giving Stephen Miller a platform of any kind. He is evil personified (the only other time I have really felt I was in the presence of evil personified was when I saw David Irving at the trial he had with Deborah Lipstadt) and has elevated evil to an art form. Yes I know about free speech h and confronting those we find most desirable etc. but Miller? Really? was this yet another failed attempt by Melber to be "hip?"
How exciting to have a Harris/Walz ticket. Lets spend more time with the good, the positive, the hopeful.. Onward and upward.
I agree with you about platforming Miller. But, for once, Melber challenged him at every point. A mixed performance, at best.
Melber kept S Miller on point. The best part was watching how incredibly angry Miller got about everything! And when he started yelling (repeatedly), Melber would just talk over him until Miller calmed down, then he asked his next question. The interview didn't go well for Miller.
Know your enemy. Ignoring him can allow the enemy’s ideas to fester unimpeded.
My sentiments about Melber as well!
I turned on MSNBC at one point this afternoon (Thursday; Melber is on at 3 pm PT) and turned it off immediately when I saw Miller's bald head. Don't need to hear anything from that jerk even if Ari holds his feet to the fire.
Doesn't matter if DJT knew about it. Project 2025 is now THE GOP PLATFORM for the next several elections.
I have been writing Field Team 6 (www.fieldteam6.org) postcards to register new voters that the data says will be Democrats or progessive-leaning independents. They also do lots of texting and phone banks - check their schedule here: https://www.mobilize.us/?org_ids=1255.
On the postcard front, they have recently added campaigns with messages about Project 2025 in each of the swing states (as well as targeted districts in FL and NY and rural districts in a few states). Now is a great time to get people registered. It varies by state, but many states cut off voter registration by as many as 30 days before the election.
Hey Robert,
I’ve been a reader and supporter of your Substack for a while and have been looking forward to your fabulous celestial photos now as much as your commentary. Have you ever thought of putting them together in some sort of collection or binder or something, and offering it for sale or distribution. I’d love to get my hands on something like that, it’s very impressive.
Nice job…,
I am happy to make them freely available, without charge. I will start setting up a site to do that. It will be easy. thanks for the suggestion.
I second Richard's recommendation for publishing a book of photographs, with explanations of each one similar to what is included in each day's newsletter. Although I typically download electronic copies of the books I want (all of my many bookshelves are overflowing with books I cannot bear to part with), this is one book I want to have as an actual printed book. I am thinking a large coffee table–type book to glance through over and over. Please, Robert.
I’ve been saving Robert’s photos to my iPad, along with the photos HCR posts on Saturdays.
I concur.
For all of us, the change in mood from anxiety, depression and dread to fun and joy is manna from heaven! I will continue to work hard. At the same time, I feel like a 100 ton burden has evaporated from my shoulders. I get unmitigated joy watching those mendacious and, I daresay now, stupid republicans thinking they can still get away with murder. And the orange criminal does not have a clue as to what do about the wonderful sucker punch to his belly. Given what we've been through with the whole bunch being sickeningly arrogant and getting away with it - getting the comeuppance can only bring joy and happiness.
Thank you, Cheryl Johnson, for doing election work in North Carolina!
I don't know a central source for other states, so I'll start with posting where I do election work in Los Angeles County:
https://www.lavote.gov/home/voting-elections/pollworker-information/become-an-election-worker/community-election-workers
If you work for the county, you get paid differently:
https://www.lavote.gov/home/voting-elections/pollworker-information/county-employee-election-worker-program/county-employee-election-worker-program
Pile it on! Where do people sign up in your state or county?
If you want to be a poll OBSERVER (unpaid volunteer) like I did, I would suggest contacting your local or State party. To be a paid poll WORKER, I would suggest contacting the county or state Board of Elections or Secretary of States office, depending on which handles elections. There is also an opportunity to be a poll GREETER, which is someone who hand out partisan sample ballots and literature. Poll greeters may also be volunteers for specific campaigns.
Thank you Robert. This complements well with Simon Rosenberg's Hopium chat with Subscribers earlier last night. And then a dose of Focus for Democracy post.
Perfect. Keep up the great analysis!
I had been thinking that Trump’s lack of campaigning was due to his belief that the fix is in and he doesn’t have to get the votes. He even told one group that he didn’t need any more votes he was sure he had enough already. Now however, I believe that Trump is not out campaigning because he is old, tired and his capacity to put a coherent paragraph together has greatly diminished. Since Harris has entered the race Trump has become very aware that he might lose. He seems to have become paralyzed with fear. He is not as quick and clever as he was in 2016. He only can create meaningless 4th grade insults in response. I don’t see any campaign strategy emerging, nor does he have an organization in the field. He might be depending on Elon Musk’s lies on X. Where is the DOJ in dealing with this false election information.? They should shut X down.
Trump is profoundly unwell. He is blathering. He is posting the ravings of someone who has severe malignant narcissistic personality disorder. His “ handlers” are keeping him off the campaign trail. I am still so disturbed that the press isn’t naming this. Americans are so phobic about mental illness.
100% correct! He has posted 22 times on Thursday morning, alone.