John --



The voluminous evidence laid out against Trump in this week's 37 count criminal indictment is disturbing - full stop.



But even more concerning to us are the methods by which the political and media apparatuses of the Republican Party are defending him.



If you listen closely, most of these leaders and personalities aren't claiming he's innocent; they're saying the Democrats have done bad things, too. "And, you know, that should cancel everything out, right?"



But if we follow the what-about-ist logic to its natural conclusion, we find ourselves in a hellscape where any unethical or immoral behavior can be excused by someone else's bad behavior... and running for office cocoons you from criminal prosecution because accountability would be "election interference" or "weaponizing justice."



Who wants to live in that kind of world?  None of us -- including, we suspect, many of the folks screaming these dangerous talking points.



But the way our primaries work now, you don't score any points for telling your supporters uncomfortable truths; for LEADING when the party says follow; for putting your country first. This is why our politics get worse year after year and why reasonable leaders and voters retreat in apathy or despair. And this is why we have to change things if we want to hand our kids and grandkids a better America than the one we inherited. <[link removed]>



Our solution is identifying, recruiting, and training reasonable, ethical people to run for and win elected office, all while working overtime to change our leaders' incentives so that good people, regardless of party, can survive and thrive.



Country First has a solid, battle-tested plan to do just that -- and its impact and scalability are game-changing <[link removed]>. But it will take good, reasonable people helping us to grow the movement through conversations with friends and family, through service, and, yes, through investments in the future.



Dwelling on things as they are today can be discouraging, it can be paralyzing; but focusing on things as they can be, as they should be, can propel the Reasonable Majority to its rightful place in our politics.



That's you, me, and all of us. And we can do it --



Together,



Country First Team



PS: Check out our weekly Movement Memo below, prepared just for your by Country First volunteers and staff!











<[link removed]>







See something of interest? All are welcome! Click on the event to register.



Upcoming Events



June 19 at 8pm ET 



- Faith in Peace - A Concert for the Human Family [Partner Event] <[link removed]>







MEET AUSTEN MUSIL



Austen Musil, hailing from the great state of North Carolina, has been a volunteer with Country First since 2022. Since joining, Austen has played a key role in our Mending Divisions Team and our Facebook community. 



"Country First has been what keeps me optimistic about our future as a country -- that I’m not alone, I’m not 'the crazy one,' and that we haven’t lost the battle for our country because there are so many of us who refuse to let that happen.



"This organization has made it possible for us to no longer feel like individuals up against an impossible fight. We have strength in our numbers as well and the battle no longer feels impossible. If I could tell someone who isn’t a volunteer yet, but is thinking about it: Get involved! I decided to just jump in and have been welcomed by other volunteers.” 



Thank you, Austen, for your leadership in service to our movement and dedication to promoting and preserving democracy! If you have an idea for someone who should be featured in a future Memo, reach out to [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>.







ELECTION REFORM 



AZ Mirror <[link removed]>: Hobbs vetoes bills to bar ranked-choice voting, criminalize immigrant aid groups



Republican proposals to ban ranked-choice voting and criminalize immigrant aid organizations were blocked on Wednesday by Gov. Katie Hobbs, who wielded her veto stamp to add five more vetoes to her growing tally. House Bill 2552 sought to outlaw ranked-choice voting in Arizona, despite the fact that it isn’t used anywhere in the Grand Canyon State. The measure was a priority for the legislature’s far-right Arizona Freedom Caucus, whose members vehemently oppose an effort by voter organizations to put the voting style on the 2024 ballot. 



Denver 7 <[link removed]>: Denver’s runoff election could be its last, as ranked choice voting gains support



As Denver's runoff elections come to an end, many candidates and voters hope this runoff could be the last. On the campaign trail, both candidates for mayor – Mike Johnston and Kelly Brough – said they want to eliminate the process of holding separate general and runoff elections. Instead, they’re supporting a switch to ranked choice voting. Most of the candidates running for Denver City Council agree with that proposal.



Washington Informer <[link removed]>: D.C. Democrats Oppose Ranked-Choice Voting in City Elections



The D.C. Democratic Party has rejected the implementation of ranked-choice voting, saying the method of prioritizing candidates on ballots is not in the city’s best interest. Party leaders said in a statement Wednesday that they came to that conclusion after an eight-month deliberation process.



The News-Herald <[link removed]>: Presidential primaries would benefit from ranked-choice voting



The 2024 Republican primaries are underway — six candidates, including former President Donald Trump, have already announced, and more than a dozen other Republicans have their eyes on the nomination. The simple truth is that we’d have a better chance of capturing the presidency if we selected our nominee using ranked-choice voting (RCV). And a new Citizen Data poll shows that voters are on board — 61% of Republicans are interested in ranking candidates in such a crowded field.



ELECTION DISINFORMATION



CNN <[link removed]>: Fulton County DA seeking information from 2 firms that Trump hired to look at 2020 voter fraud claims – and debunked them



The Fulton County district attorney’s office is seeking information from two firms that were hired by the Trump campaign with investigating claims of voter fraud after the 2020 election, according to sources familiar with the matter. Investigators in Georgia, who have been probing Donald Trump and his allies’ efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election there, have sought information from Berkeley Research Group and Simpatico Software Systems about their work for the Trump campaign, the sources said.



NPR <[link removed]>: How the Far Right tore apart one of the best tools to fight voter fraud



On a night in January 2022, Louisiana Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin stepped on stage in a former airbase in Houma, La. With American flags draped from the stage, the topic of the night was democracy. The state's chief voting official joked that he was competing with a former LSU Tiger-great playing in the NFL playoffs the same night. "I want to thank you all for coming out, competing with Joe Burrow is pretty tough!" Ardoin laughed. But these were election die-hards. The group hosting the event — We The People, Bayou Chapter — is one of hundreds of so-called election integrity groups that have popped up across the country since 2020, motivated by former President Donald Trump's lies about voting.



2024 ELECTION



KJZZ <[link removed].>: Arizona Supreme Court rejects Republican push to make early voting illegal



Arizonans will be able to continue to vote early despite efforts by the Arizona Republican Party to have the practice declared illegal. The Arizona Supreme Court on Friday rejected arguments by state Rep. Alexander Kolodin (R-Scottsdale) that allowing people to fill out their ballots at their kitchen tables — or anywhere else — runs afoul of a constitutional provision that requires “secrecy in voting shall be preserved.”



CIVICS EDUCATION



KUNC <[link removed]>: Kids are losing ground in civics. A first-ever Colorado civics bee hopes to turn that around.



Even at 12 years old, Sriram Yalavarthy sees the unbreakable thread between history and the current moment, something he’s long loved learning about in social studies classes going back to the founding of the United States. “Learning that the past actually happened” is what Sriram said fascinates him the most. “It’s not just a story we tell every single day, and it affects us today still.” 



Governing <[link removed]>: Boosting Civics Education in Indiana for Democracy’s Sake



Public trust in government is declining. The reasons are many, but it doesn’t help that only a shrinking minority of Americans know how American government works. Less than half of respondents to the 2022 Annenberg Constitution Day survey could identify the three branches of government, the first drop in six years. More than two-thirds of U.S. residents who answered the American Bar Association’s 2023 civic literacy survey said that the general public is either “not very informed” or “not informed at all” about how government works. Filling this gap could begin in our schools, but that’s been neglected for decades. <[link removed]>







Actions you can take right now to help make a difference!



WATCH <[link removed]>our latest advertisement, highlighting all the ways #DefaultDon has defaulted! Share it with your friends!



SIGN <[link removed]>the petition demanding that Congressman Santos resigns in shame!



SHOP <[link removed]> our Limited Edition Stand for Truth cap, signed by Adam Kinzinger!



BRING a friend to one of our events! Your unique recruiter link: [link removed]



Check out our Volunteer Working Groups!



As a grassroots coalition, Country First is dedicated to providing each member with the opportunity to contribute to the success of the movement. National Volunteer Working Groups are separated by interest and are aligned with one of Country First’s key pillars.



- Election Reform <[link removed]>

- Political Research <[link removed]>

- Finding Solutions <[link removed]>

- Communications <[link removed]>

- Mending Divisions <[link removed]>

- Inspiring Speakers Series <[link removed]>



<[link removed]>Get Involved <[link removed]>



<[link removed]>Support the Mission <[link removed]>



<[link removed]>Wear the Cause <[link removed]>







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