Fluvia K. Robert you said it A plain spoken man, A decent , honest human being whom we needed right than, he appeared at the right moment . We were blessed with good luck , Lets appreciate him , Thank him .and follow his lead.
While I whole heartedly agree with all your points about the need to defend democracy, I would like to suggest that we NOT call Trump and his right-wing reactionaries "fascists."
Why not? Because the word "fascism" gets caught up in historical analogs and definitional confusion. People don't know what it means... BUT we DO know what "dictatorship" means. The meaning is right there in the word. Trump and his followers are looking to install a one-man rule dictatorship. We ought to start calling it that. The meaning would be clear, and written in plain English.
In using the word "dictatorship," we side step any arguments about "is or isn't it "the same" or "as bad" as Nazi Germany?", etc. Dictatorship is clearly NOT democracy -- and we don't want it. So let's use that word and make our meaning clear. Thanks for considering this suggestion.
TAKE ONE OR MORE OF THESE SUGGESTED ACTIONS TO PROTECT YOUR RIGHT TO VOTE and keep our democracy alive!.
Thomas Watson of IBM said this: 'When Benjamin Franklin was asked after a session of the Constitutional Convention, ""What kind of a government have you given us?"" he replied, ""A democracy, if you can keep it."" Our republic is founded on the principle that it will continue only as long as the people keep democracy alive...'https://www.forbes.com/quotes/9010/
The Supreme Court may make it even harder to vote unless the U.S. Senate acts now.
THE PROBLEM: The United States Supreme Court (1) gutted the 1965 Voting Rights Act (Shelby v Holder, 2013), (2) ruled political gerrymandering by state legislatures is legal, unless Congress bans it (Rucho v Common Cause, 2019), and (3) will decide next Term if State Legislatures should have nearly unlimited power to set times, places and manners of elections even when their own State Supreme Court says their actions are unconstitutional under State law. (Moore v Harper) See How the Supreme Court Could Blow Up Election Law, Atlantic Monthly, July 2022.
The Senate should be worried about losing control of federal elections but instead has used the filibuster to avoid debating voting rights legislation. Time is running out. Will Congress pass H.R. 5746: standardizing the times, places, and manner of federal elections before the Supreme Court issues its decisions?
Voters and employers may want to consider state voting laws when making relocation decisions – a new experience for non-minorities. Voter registration forms, interstate highway and railroad standards are uniform – why not the rules for voting in federal elections?
Please share this call to action with your friends and contacts ASAP. The examples below are yours to modify and use; our only request is that you take some action.
“Action is the antidote to despair.” Joan Baez
1: Open letter to my U.S. Senators
I should not gain or lose voting privileges because I or my employer moves across state lines. Vote for H.R. 5746 and set federal election standards under Article 1.4 of our Constitution. Stand Up for My Voting Rights. I need YOU to Act. The Country Needs You to Vote for Voting Rights.
2: Letter to Newspaper editors or similar
The USA has a uniform federal National Voter Registration Act so every potential voter provides the same answers. H.R. 5746, passed by the House of Representatives, provides for a similarly uniform federal election system so that each State applies the same rules for the times, places and manner of federal elections.
The Senate has filibustered H.R. 5746. This needs to stop. Voting rights need to be an exception to the filibuster -- just like Supreme Court and top Federal government appointments, federal funding, and filibustering in person.
Let your Senators know you want H.R. 5746 to be debated, accepted, or amended.
3: Social Media Post
Text now -- or hope you live in “the right state.” Urge your Senators to debate, accept or amend H.R. 5746. The Supreme Court ruled Congress must act or state legislatures make the rules.
I talked with a past client today, a former Republican who has changed to an Independent. Big in the banking world. He reassured me that no one in his broad circle supports Trump and MAGA Republicans any longer. He’s not a liberal but he said climate change is the biggest issue by far for our economy and the world ‘s. Hopefully he is who Biden referred to in his speech tonight. He compared Biden to Lyndon B Johnson, FAVORABLY!
That said, I was actually disappointed in the speech as if heard by a younger crowd who we really need to vote. Too many references to soul, and democracy, and pride, etc., that I understand, but it lacked the power of persuasion for the generation that likes “‘sound bites” better. Had Biden mentioned abortion rights more clearly, greed more clearly, disparity in income more clearly, the right to unionize, and education, he would catch their attention. I believe we will win the midterms on those issues. And then, find a younger Biden to lead the party in 2024 that can beat whoever the fools throw at us for President.
Sep 2, 2022·edited Sep 2, 2022Liked by Robert B. Hubbell
It may be semi-fascism now, but if the GOP prevails in 2022 and 2024 it will be full blown fascism. I have been donating money to Democratic candidates in the close races that will make the difference in who controls Congress after this November. I have also been sending out my letters to registered Democrats in some of those races thanks to Vote Forward! It definitely feels empowering to do.
This from the American Heritage Dictionary (1976 edition):
Fascism -- A system of government that exercises a dictatorship of the extreme right, typically through the merging of state and business leadership, together with a belligerent nationalism.
Thursday evening, President Biden delivered a forceful speech brilliantly defending the continuation of American democracy. Still, when he said he would not stand by and watch as elections were stolen nor watch as people’s voting rights were taken, I was perplexed by what he meant, seeing these rights, as we speak, are being taken.
Nationwide, GOP controlled state legislatures unilaterally are undermining our elections, passing provisions making it difficult for voters to be able to cast their ballots and have those ballots counted. Moreover, county election officials (largely black) are being removed from their offices and replaced with state and local personnel who don’t believe in free and fair elections.
Simultaneously, this past January, two Senate Democrats (Manchin and Sinema) refused, without support from Republicans, to pass legislation (the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act) that would have ensured that all eligible votes were cast, counted correctly, and certified without interference and without their being diluted either through partisan gerrymandering or through using false allegations of fraud as a pretext not to include all the ballots in the certified results.
Presuming we agree that democracy is not static but a dynamic process, it then follows, at least in my view, that words alone are insufficient unless we engage now in the necessary actions to protect our democracy.
Biden gave us the language last night. Let's memorize it and use it often. MAGA-Republicans are destroying our nation. Trump lied and cheated on his wives, his taxes, his lenders, and his donors. He has committed crimes. He is not above the law.
Regarding his "declassification" of TOP SECRET documents: if declassified, they would become "public documents" and subject to the Freedom of Information Act. If that were true, then anyone, (including Trump's propaganda arm--FOX Entertainment), could request copies of the formerly TOP SECRET/SCI and SAP documents that detail our spy agents, methods, and networks. If the U.S. did that, our allies would no longer work with us to fight international terrorism. Does anyone think we should do that? Does anyone think Trump--even while President--had the power unilaterally declassify TOP SECRET documents and hand them over to our enemies? AND when will DOJ begin asking how Trump got the TOP SECRET documents into his control and out of the White House in the first place?
Included in the June 3 Certificate that his lawyer (Christina Bobb) signed, was a carefully-worded statement that "No copy, written notation, or reproduction of any kind was retained as to any responsive document." It doesn't say that copies weren't made and shared, it only says that the copies weren't "retained." And "responsive document" suggests some copies were made. How many of you believe that no copies were ever made? How many of you would be surprised if Trump had shared/sold copies?
And if you knew the FBI was not going to search the rooms in the hotel that are rented to guests, would you have been tempted to "relocate" some documents to those "off-limits" locations?
NOTE: The Search Warrant defines areas to be searched and explicitly excludes "areas currently (i.c., at the time of the search) being occupied, rented. or used by third parties (such as Mar-a-Largo Members) and not otherwise used or available to be used by FPOTUS and his staff, such as private guest suites."
I thought President Biden’s speech was timely and one of the best speeches he has given since he was elected President. I hope that voters take away from the speech the simple fact that what is on the ballot in November is a party who is defending and supporting Democracy vs a party taken over by Republicans who want to destroy our country and over turn the constitution. It’s not about party policy and platform anymore it’s about how this country will be governed and by whom. Democrats must focus on non MAGA Republicans and Independents with a simple message “ it’s not about party this election it’s about either you support the constitution and rule of law and the governing principles of Democracy or you support extremism and the overthrow of the constitution and individual freedoms.the choice is yours.
By all means, take and enjoy a marvelous holiday weekend. I may very well be "off the grid" myself, at a mountain camp in Colorado.
Some thoughts on Sept. 1: Biden's speaking style has its flaws. So did Lincoln's. Words, however, do not depend solely on form and style; they rely on substance, in order to take their place in posterity. The distraught voices of Reaction will howl, as they ever have done when time marches on. I still hear from people who claim that Katie Hobbs ran an inept, dirty election, in 2020. (She most certainly did NOT!) Donald Trump does not deserve another chance to run for President. Ron DeSantis, technically, does, but after having visited his Florida last Spring, I say God help us if he does run and wins.
Today is my 77th birthday, and I'm celebrating all weekend! But there is one "work" responsibility that I'm honoring; reading, summarizing and posting on FB and Twitter Robert and Heather's newsletters. I am so proud to be part of these communities - I am so much better informed and inspired to action than I have ever been in all my decades. So thank you for that!
PS. I'm still LOL (ok, laughing out loud!) at this brilliant line in the "Declassification" section: "Suffice it to say that no part of Executive Order 13526 authorizes 'declassification by telepathy.'" Thanks, Robert, enjoy the weekend!
Thank you for the very clearly emumerated "when MAGA Republicans do the following" list, Robert. Yes, then President Biden and others can stop calling out their fascist policies.
I watched Kevin McCarthy's "prebuttal" on CSPAN last night before the President's address. I must tell you it made me sick to my stomach. The man didn't even seem real. His utterances of fear re the Democrats' policies certainly are not. Such an actor . . . and not a very good one.
President Biden’s speech was one of the most important speeches in U.S. history, and I believe it is the most important speech in my lifetime by a U.S. president. Yet, the major broadcast networks DID NOT carry the president’s speech, according to an Associated Press article buried in the back pages of The Miami Herald’s “Bonus e-edition.”
Republicans characterize the speech as political, divisive and demonizing political opponents. I view the president’s speech, not as partisan and political, but as a call to unify the country against a national security threat, the likes of which I have never seen in my lifetime.
All the years President Biden spent in the Senate; all in preparation for the most momentous period in my lifetime. The statesman we needed, when we needed him. He has accomplished so much in such a short time precisely because he is a politician. It is a noble profession when the right people are elected.
I love and am proud of our president and I am not ashamed to write it and shout it from the rooftops!
Fluvia K. Robert you said it A plain spoken man, A decent , honest human being whom we needed right than, he appeared at the right moment . We were blessed with good luck , Lets appreciate him , Thank him .and follow his lead.
While I whole heartedly agree with all your points about the need to defend democracy, I would like to suggest that we NOT call Trump and his right-wing reactionaries "fascists."
Why not? Because the word "fascism" gets caught up in historical analogs and definitional confusion. People don't know what it means... BUT we DO know what "dictatorship" means. The meaning is right there in the word. Trump and his followers are looking to install a one-man rule dictatorship. We ought to start calling it that. The meaning would be clear, and written in plain English.
In using the word "dictatorship," we side step any arguments about "is or isn't it "the same" or "as bad" as Nazi Germany?", etc. Dictatorship is clearly NOT democracy -- and we don't want it. So let's use that word and make our meaning clear. Thanks for considering this suggestion.
Let Every Citizen Vote!
TAKE ONE OR MORE OF THESE SUGGESTED ACTIONS TO PROTECT YOUR RIGHT TO VOTE and keep our democracy alive!.
Thomas Watson of IBM said this: 'When Benjamin Franklin was asked after a session of the Constitutional Convention, ""What kind of a government have you given us?"" he replied, ""A democracy, if you can keep it."" Our republic is founded on the principle that it will continue only as long as the people keep democracy alive...'https://www.forbes.com/quotes/9010/
The Supreme Court may make it even harder to vote unless the U.S. Senate acts now.
THE PROBLEM: The United States Supreme Court (1) gutted the 1965 Voting Rights Act (Shelby v Holder, 2013), (2) ruled political gerrymandering by state legislatures is legal, unless Congress bans it (Rucho v Common Cause, 2019), and (3) will decide next Term if State Legislatures should have nearly unlimited power to set times, places and manners of elections even when their own State Supreme Court says their actions are unconstitutional under State law. (Moore v Harper) See How the Supreme Court Could Blow Up Election Law, Atlantic Monthly, July 2022.
The Senate should be worried about losing control of federal elections but instead has used the filibuster to avoid debating voting rights legislation. Time is running out. Will Congress pass H.R. 5746: standardizing the times, places, and manner of federal elections before the Supreme Court issues its decisions?
Voters and employers may want to consider state voting laws when making relocation decisions – a new experience for non-minorities. Voter registration forms, interstate highway and railroad standards are uniform – why not the rules for voting in federal elections?
Please share this call to action with your friends and contacts ASAP. The examples below are yours to modify and use; our only request is that you take some action.
“Action is the antidote to despair.” Joan Baez
1: Open letter to my U.S. Senators
I should not gain or lose voting privileges because I or my employer moves across state lines. Vote for H.R. 5746 and set federal election standards under Article 1.4 of our Constitution. Stand Up for My Voting Rights. I need YOU to Act. The Country Needs You to Vote for Voting Rights.
2: Letter to Newspaper editors or similar
The USA has a uniform federal National Voter Registration Act so every potential voter provides the same answers. H.R. 5746, passed by the House of Representatives, provides for a similarly uniform federal election system so that each State applies the same rules for the times, places and manner of federal elections.
The Senate has filibustered H.R. 5746. This needs to stop. Voting rights need to be an exception to the filibuster -- just like Supreme Court and top Federal government appointments, federal funding, and filibustering in person.
Let your Senators know you want H.R. 5746 to be debated, accepted, or amended.
3: Social Media Post
Text now -- or hope you live in “the right state.” Urge your Senators to debate, accept or amend H.R. 5746. The Supreme Court ruled Congress must act or state legislatures make the rules.
Alice Smith
Executive Director
National Voter Corps
nvcsteeringcommittee@gmail.com
A President who acts presidentially. Imagine that!
I talked with a past client today, a former Republican who has changed to an Independent. Big in the banking world. He reassured me that no one in his broad circle supports Trump and MAGA Republicans any longer. He’s not a liberal but he said climate change is the biggest issue by far for our economy and the world ‘s. Hopefully he is who Biden referred to in his speech tonight. He compared Biden to Lyndon B Johnson, FAVORABLY!
That said, I was actually disappointed in the speech as if heard by a younger crowd who we really need to vote. Too many references to soul, and democracy, and pride, etc., that I understand, but it lacked the power of persuasion for the generation that likes “‘sound bites” better. Had Biden mentioned abortion rights more clearly, greed more clearly, disparity in income more clearly, the right to unionize, and education, he would catch their attention. I believe we will win the midterms on those issues. And then, find a younger Biden to lead the party in 2024 that can beat whoever the fools throw at us for President.
It may be semi-fascism now, but if the GOP prevails in 2022 and 2024 it will be full blown fascism. I have been donating money to Democratic candidates in the close races that will make the difference in who controls Congress after this November. I have also been sending out my letters to registered Democrats in some of those races thanks to Vote Forward! It definitely feels empowering to do.
This from the American Heritage Dictionary (1976 edition):
Fascism -- A system of government that exercises a dictatorship of the extreme right, typically through the merging of state and business leadership, together with a belligerent nationalism.
Thursday evening, President Biden delivered a forceful speech brilliantly defending the continuation of American democracy. Still, when he said he would not stand by and watch as elections were stolen nor watch as people’s voting rights were taken, I was perplexed by what he meant, seeing these rights, as we speak, are being taken.
Nationwide, GOP controlled state legislatures unilaterally are undermining our elections, passing provisions making it difficult for voters to be able to cast their ballots and have those ballots counted. Moreover, county election officials (largely black) are being removed from their offices and replaced with state and local personnel who don’t believe in free and fair elections.
Simultaneously, this past January, two Senate Democrats (Manchin and Sinema) refused, without support from Republicans, to pass legislation (the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act) that would have ensured that all eligible votes were cast, counted correctly, and certified without interference and without their being diluted either through partisan gerrymandering or through using false allegations of fraud as a pretext not to include all the ballots in the certified results.
Presuming we agree that democracy is not static but a dynamic process, it then follows, at least in my view, that words alone are insufficient unless we engage now in the necessary actions to protect our democracy.
Biden gave us the language last night. Let's memorize it and use it often. MAGA-Republicans are destroying our nation. Trump lied and cheated on his wives, his taxes, his lenders, and his donors. He has committed crimes. He is not above the law.
Regarding his "declassification" of TOP SECRET documents: if declassified, they would become "public documents" and subject to the Freedom of Information Act. If that were true, then anyone, (including Trump's propaganda arm--FOX Entertainment), could request copies of the formerly TOP SECRET/SCI and SAP documents that detail our spy agents, methods, and networks. If the U.S. did that, our allies would no longer work with us to fight international terrorism. Does anyone think we should do that? Does anyone think Trump--even while President--had the power unilaterally declassify TOP SECRET documents and hand them over to our enemies? AND when will DOJ begin asking how Trump got the TOP SECRET documents into his control and out of the White House in the first place?
Included in the June 3 Certificate that his lawyer (Christina Bobb) signed, was a carefully-worded statement that "No copy, written notation, or reproduction of any kind was retained as to any responsive document." It doesn't say that copies weren't made and shared, it only says that the copies weren't "retained." And "responsive document" suggests some copies were made. How many of you believe that no copies were ever made? How many of you would be surprised if Trump had shared/sold copies?
And if you knew the FBI was not going to search the rooms in the hotel that are rented to guests, would you have been tempted to "relocate" some documents to those "off-limits" locations?
NOTE: The Search Warrant defines areas to be searched and explicitly excludes "areas currently (i.c., at the time of the search) being occupied, rented. or used by third parties (such as Mar-a-Largo Members) and not otherwise used or available to be used by FPOTUS and his staff, such as private guest suites."
I thought President Biden’s speech was timely and one of the best speeches he has given since he was elected President. I hope that voters take away from the speech the simple fact that what is on the ballot in November is a party who is defending and supporting Democracy vs a party taken over by Republicans who want to destroy our country and over turn the constitution. It’s not about party policy and platform anymore it’s about how this country will be governed and by whom. Democrats must focus on non MAGA Republicans and Independents with a simple message “ it’s not about party this election it’s about either you support the constitution and rule of law and the governing principles of Democracy or you support extremism and the overthrow of the constitution and individual freedoms.the choice is yours.
By all means, take and enjoy a marvelous holiday weekend. I may very well be "off the grid" myself, at a mountain camp in Colorado.
Some thoughts on Sept. 1: Biden's speaking style has its flaws. So did Lincoln's. Words, however, do not depend solely on form and style; they rely on substance, in order to take their place in posterity. The distraught voices of Reaction will howl, as they ever have done when time marches on. I still hear from people who claim that Katie Hobbs ran an inept, dirty election, in 2020. (She most certainly did NOT!) Donald Trump does not deserve another chance to run for President. Ron DeSantis, technically, does, but after having visited his Florida last Spring, I say God help us if he does run and wins.
I just want President Biden to read this column. Thank you.
Today is my 77th birthday, and I'm celebrating all weekend! But there is one "work" responsibility that I'm honoring; reading, summarizing and posting on FB and Twitter Robert and Heather's newsletters. I am so proud to be part of these communities - I am so much better informed and inspired to action than I have ever been in all my decades. So thank you for that!
PS. I'm still LOL (ok, laughing out loud!) at this brilliant line in the "Declassification" section: "Suffice it to say that no part of Executive Order 13526 authorizes 'declassification by telepathy.'" Thanks, Robert, enjoy the weekend!
Thank you for the very clearly emumerated "when MAGA Republicans do the following" list, Robert. Yes, then President Biden and others can stop calling out their fascist policies.
I watched Kevin McCarthy's "prebuttal" on CSPAN last night before the President's address. I must tell you it made me sick to my stomach. The man didn't even seem real. His utterances of fear re the Democrats' policies certainly are not. Such an actor . . . and not a very good one.
Indeed, he is the right man at the right time. Our country is very fortunate to have him as President during these trying times.
Thank you Robert. Have a lovely Labor Day.
President Biden’s speech was one of the most important speeches in U.S. history, and I believe it is the most important speech in my lifetime by a U.S. president. Yet, the major broadcast networks DID NOT carry the president’s speech, according to an Associated Press article buried in the back pages of The Miami Herald’s “Bonus e-edition.”
Republicans characterize the speech as political, divisive and demonizing political opponents. I view the president’s speech, not as partisan and political, but as a call to unify the country against a national security threat, the likes of which I have never seen in my lifetime.
All the years President Biden spent in the Senate; all in preparation for the most momentous period in my lifetime. The statesman we needed, when we needed him. He has accomplished so much in such a short time precisely because he is a politician. It is a noble profession when the right people are elected.
I love and am proud of our president and I am not ashamed to write it and shout it from the rooftops!