Today’s Edition (June 1, 2021)

“The work of our time.”

         Over a holiday weekend intended to honor Americans who died protecting democracy, Republican legislators in Texas were doing their best to ensure those brave soldiers died in vain. Texas Republicans will fail. They will be remembered as opponents of freedom who promoted the lies of an aspiring autocrat so they could cling to power. As with Republican legislators across America, the Texas GOP claims that the Democratic victory in 2020 is irrefutable proof of fraud in need of remedy. The GOP “remedy” is to disenfranchise Democratic voters. Fortunately, Texas Democrats staged a last-minute boycott of the 2021 legislative session that prevented the nation’s most draconian voter suppression bill from becoming law. For now.  NYTimes, “After Dramatic Walkout, a New Fight Looms Over Voting Rights in Texas.”

          As with the wave of voter suppression bills sweeping the nation, Texas Republicans claim that the legislation is intended to “restore confidence” in the integrity of elections. Of course, it is Republicans themselves who are undermining confidence in our elections by amplifying Trump’s lies about the 2020 election. On their face, the provisions betray a racist intent, restricting voting hours on Sunday when Black churches traditionally hold voter drives. The bill prohibits anyone from driving more than three people to the polls (other than family) unless they have filed a form with the Secretary of State explaining the need to do so—another swipe at Black churches that use buses to transport members to the polls. Registrars in heavily Democratic counties risk criminal prosecution if they send absentee ballot applications or allow voters to use ‘drive-through” voting. Partisan poll watchers are allowed closer than ever to observe citizens attempting to vote in private—a clear effort to intimidate voters. See Democracy Docket,  “S.B. 7 Text.” See also, op-ed by Dean Obeidallah in CNN, “The most ominous part of Texas' voter suppression move.”

          By staging their boycott of the legislative session, Texas Democrats have created additional time and space for Democrats to exert pressure on Texas Republicans and Governor Greg Abbott. Many provisions of the Texas legislation are plainly unconstitutional—such as prohibiting citizens from providing transportation to polling locations. The nation’s businesses—and especially those headquartered in Texas—have clearly failed to exert sufficient moral or political suasion to deter the anti-democratic efforts of Texas Republicans. Those companies include AT&T, Dell, American Airlines, and ExxonMobil, and Fed Ex.  See The Center Square, “50 companies headquartered in Texas made Fortune 500 list.” Texas is also a thriving hub of academia, science, entertainment, and tourism. Any group that is considering Texas as a destination for conferences or events should be asking itself whether it wants to reward a state that is (at the moment) insistent on suppressing democracy.

          In a bizarre move, Texas Governor Greg Abbott threatened to veto the meager salary of Texas legislators ($600 per month) in retribution for their failure to pass S.B. 7. See Axios, “Texas governor threatens to hit lawmakers' pay after Dems' voting bill walkout.” Governor Abbott’s threat was equal parts tantrum and thuggery, demonstrating that he is a petty man who aspires to be an autocrat. Of course, in order to veto the pay of the legislators, Abbott should consider that the legislators can override his veto of their salaries—which seems like a 100% certainty. In his pique, Abbott does not appear to have devoted much thought to his veto threat. Abbott has future political aspirations that include a potential presidential run. His shameful conduct regarding S.B.7 is a clear signal of what we should expect from Greg Abbott in the future.

          Biden touched on the Texas legislative efforts in his speech commemorating Memorial Day. See WhiteHouse.gov,  “Remarks by President Biden at the 153rd National Memorial Day Observance.” The headline from Biden’s remarks was that he declared that “Democracy is in peril” because of the attacks on voting rights—an accurate soundbite, but misleading overall. See ABCNews, “Biden says democracy 'in peril' in speech honoring fallen troops.” When I first heard descriptions of Biden’s speech in the media, I thought, “Ugh.That phrase was a mistake—because democracy is always in peril and every generation must defend it.” But upon reading Biden’s speech (which I recommend to you), I realized that he made that point precisely and eloquently. He said, in part,

          Democracy itself is in peril, here at home and around the world.

         We were built on an idea: the idea of liberty and opportunity for all.  We have never fully realized that aspiration of our founding, but every generation has opened the door a little wider, and every generation has opened it wider and wider to be more inclusive, to include those who have been excluded before.  It’s a mission handed down generation to generation: the work of perfecting our union.

          To this battle, may we now dedicate our souls, that our work may prove worthy of the blood of our fallen.  For this work — the work of democracy — is the work of our time, and for all time.  And if we do our duty, then ages still to come will look back on us and say that we too kept the faith.

          So, yes, democracy is in peril—it always is. I do not mean to minimize the anti-democratic threat sweeping the nation, but neither should we minimize the threats faced by prior generations—which they overcame through sacrifice and hard work. As Biden noted, for some, the “work of democracy” called on them to make the ultimate sacrifice. The proposed Texas legislation is noxious and racist and burdensome. But, at worst, it calls on us to ensure that Democrats show up to vote on Election Day with a government ID in hand and the willingness to stand in long lines—for the privilege of exercising a right that hundreds of thousands of Americans died to protect. That is the “work of our time.” We can rise to that challenge.

Biden releases first budget—and signals an expanded role for the federal government.

          Amidst the recent rash of shootings and voter suppression bills, Joe Biden released his first budget, which signaled an ambitious role for the federal government. See Vox, “Biden’s $6 trillion budget proposal would rebuild America’s infrastructure and social safety net.” As with almost everything about Biden’s administration to date, it was surprising in its sweep and ambition. As noted in Vox,

            It also represents the most substantial expansion of the federal government’s spending powers since World War II and a direct rebuttal of the small-government principles of his Republican, and even many Democratic, predecessors.  

          Whether and how much of the proposed budget will make it past the “moderate” (read: conservative) members of the Democratic Party in the Senate remains to be seen, but as an opening offer, it set the parameters for an expansive discussion. Biden is making the most of his tenure with Democratic control of Congress. Let’s hope that congressional Democrats do the same.

Biden’s statement on the Tulsa race massacre.

Monday marked 100 years since the Tulsa race massacre. Approximately 300 Black Americans were killed and 10,000 were left destitute and homeless after white mobs burnt Black neighborhoods and businesses in the Greenwood area of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Greenwood was a thriving Black community that had grown into an economic and cultural hub that included a commercial district referred to as the Black Wall Street. Joe Biden issued a proclamation calling on Americans to

          [C]elebrate the bravery and resilience of those who survived [the massacre] and sought to rebuild their lives again, and commit together to eradicate systemic racism and help to rebuild communities and lives that have been destroyed by it.

See WhiteHouse.gov, “A Proclamation on Day Of Remembrance: 100 Years After The 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.”

          The racial animus that incited the Tulsa massacre lurks in the Republican legislation that seeks to suppress the voting rights of Black Americans. A hundred years ago, Oklahomans could not abide the prosperity and success of Black residents in Tulsa. Today, Republicans cannot abide the political success of Black voters in making their voices heard in the 2020 election. Though much has changed in 100 years, much remains the same. That is why we must fight every effort by the GOP to reverse the gains of the last 70 years of the Civil Rights Movement. As Joe Biden said over the weekend, this is “our mission handed down generation to generation: the work of perfecting our union.”

Concluding Thoughts.

          My Managing Editor and I traveled to our mountain cabin over the weekend. Opening the cabin on Memorial Day weekend is an annual tradition after the winter snows have melted and the road has been cleared of rocks and trees. As we made our way through California’s Central Valley, up through the Sierra foothills, and into an alpine valley, we were heartened to see many signs of a return to normalcy—mixed with caution. In a “big box” store in Bakersfield, California, 100% of the customers wore masks, a notable fact in an area where support for the former president remains high. But we also participated in a maskless “open-air” meeting of our small community, sitting under towering pines and cedar trees. Attendees did not worry about the coronavirus but instead fought the profuse yellow pollen from pine trees that covered everything in sight. After the meeting was completed, we had returned to our cabin and noted how strange it felt to be with a group of people who were not wearing masks. It was a small blessing on the road to normalcy.

          We face many challenges, just like generations before us. But we should take heart from the fact that despite the politicized and fractious response to the pandemic, America has made tremendous progress in containing the virus and putting our nation on the road to recovery. It could have been otherwise—as it is in many other nations in the world. In the daily work of democracy, we will never achieve unanimity. We don’t need to; we need only have enough of us come together to protect all of us. We can do that.

          Talk to you tomorrow!