A House held hostage

Almost nothing validates the importance and urgency of our mission more than the shocking results of a University of Virginia Center for Politics poll released this week. The survey found that our political mistrust of one another runs so deep in the U.S. that a significant share of us are open to abandoning democracy altogether in favor of some alternative form of government. Even more alarming, many Americans from across the ideological spectrum now believe it is acceptable to use violence against political opponents. This is frightening stuff, and we believe it reflects directly on a degradation of leadership in our nation. Instead of acting as servant-leaders for the public good, self-serving extremists have exploited people’s most base fears and prejudices for power. And they won’t stop. That’s exactly why Mission: Democracy was founded—to fight back. Our mission is two-fold: to educate Americans about the historical dangers of where we are heading, and to support pro-democracy leaders who are working to reverse this dangerous trajectory and restore functional government. If you believe as we do in American democracy and share these goals, please consider supporting our efforts with a contribution today. Thank you! —The Mission: Democracy Team

Another one bites the dust

It’s been well over two weeks, and the U.S. House is still without a Speaker. MAGA Rep. Jim Jordan’s dream of winning the coveted leadership role died this week. He lost one round of voting, then another, then momentarily dropped out, and then tried one more time, until Republicans voted to drop his nomination, ending his bid permanently. Not even former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Fox News host Sean Hannity, or Donald Trump himself could save Jordan, which is a hopeful sign, given that Jordan is an insurrection-apologist and election-denier who would further legitimize and embolden the MAGA faction of the GOP. He’s also not an effective lawmaker. In 16 years in Congress, he’s never passed a bill signed into law, so there’s that too. Until and unless House Republicans can get their act together, the business of the lower chamber remains paralyzed (thanks a lot, Matt Gaetz). The next Speaker vote will happen no sooner than Tuesday morning.

• Terrifying voicemail left for GOP lawmaker’s wife over Jim Jordan vote —CNN

• The threat to democracy is coming from inside the U.S. House —The Atlantic

• Mitt Romney criticizes Fox News and right-wing media for warping Republican Party —CNN Business

The Kraken cracks

Attorney Sidney Powell, who infamously vowed to “release the Kraken” to prove that Donald Trump didn’t lose the 2020 election, has struck a deal with Georgia prosecutors, admitting that she conspired to interfere in the state’s election results. Powell, known for pursuing baseless and frankly wacky conspiracy theories in the weeks between the election and the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, now becomes a potential witness against Trump. As part of her guilty plea, Powell is acknowledging her role in the January 2021 breach of election systems in Coffee County, Georgia, in which local GOP officials helped a group of Trump supporters access and copy information from the county’s election systems.

Also striking a deal with Georgia prosecutors on Friday is attorney Kenneth Chesebro. Chesebro pleaded guilty to illegally conspiring to overturn Trump’s 2020 election loss in the state. He agreed to provide evidence that could implicate other defendants, including Trump himself, in order to avoid jail time. Chesebro’s 2020 emails appear to be his Achilles heel. Rather than considering just the law and the facts of Trump’s election claims, Chesebro made clear he was considering politics and was well aware of how the Trump campaign’s legal filings could be used as ammunition for Republicans’ efforts to overturn the results when Congress met to certify the Electoral College outcome on Jan. 6, 2021.

• Trump ‘does not have the right to say and do exactly what he pleases,’ Judge Chutkan says, issuing gag order —CNN

• Trump immediately trashes D.C. judge after she issued gag order —The Daily Beast

• Trump fined $5,000 for violating gag order in NY fraud trial —The New York Times

Here’s what else happened this week:

• Israel says two Americans held hostage by Hamas, a mother and daughter, have been released —Associated Press

• Threats in U.S. rising after Hamas attack on Israel, says FBI Director Christopher Wray —CBS News

• Belgian justice minister resigns after deadly Brussels attack —Barron’s

• Poland gives pro-European liberals a big win —The Economist

• Washington County (Md.) Circuit Court Judge Andrew Wilkinson dies in fatal shooting —Herald Mail Media

One more thing…

Who’s really rigging elections? Donald Trump wants you to believe it’s everyone else. But as they say, he has a penchant for accusing others of what he or his allies are guilty of doing. In this case, it’s his own Republican presidential opponents—namely, Nikki Haley, Mike Pence, and Tim Scott—saying, “It’s rigged.” Well, sort of. All three candidates are bypassing the Feb. 8 Nevada caucuses, and GOP operatives monitoring the race explain why: Trump loyalists in the Nevada Republican Party are rigging the contest to assure he wins. “To participate in the caucus, you have to pay $55,000 [in entry fees] to a state party in the bag for Trump,” a GOP operative supportive of Haley said. A second Republican operative advising another GOP presidential contender was more blunt. “What is the point of participating in one of Donald Trump’s rigged elections?” —The Dispatch

‘American leadership is what holds the world together’

President Biden delivered a primetime Oval Office speech on Thursday that has been described as “Reaganesque.” Addressing the conflicts in both Israel and Ukraine, he expressed the U.S.’s commitment to both nations, and made a compelling case for why the terrorist group Hamas and Russian leader Vladimir Putin represent the same kind of illiberal, anti-democratic threat. He explained why it’s in America’s interests to support our international allies, drawing a contrast with the “America First” policies of his likely 2024 Republican competitor. Biden also appealed to Americans’ better angels, championing the rule of law, human rights, and the importance of American unity, even amid our differences. On Friday, the president followed up his words with a $105 billion set of proposals to bolster Israel and Ukraine, invest in domestic defense manufacturing, provide humanitarian aid, and manage the influx of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border.

• Biden visits Israel, vows staunch support in meeting with Netanyahu —USA Today

• U.S. says Israel didn’t cause hospital blast, as Biden promises aid to Gaza —The New York Times

It’s nice to get reminders that, at its best, government can still work for the public interest. Share a story of hope from your community for a future issue of Democracy Defender. Please include your name and state with your submission. Thank you!

Looking for something to listen to this weekend? Our own Marcus Flowers talks about the House Speaker debacle and more on “The Daily Beans” with Allison Gill and Dana Goldberg:

Looking for something else to listen to this weekend? Our own Joe Walsh talks about MD’s mission to educate Americans about the dangers posed by MAGA fascism on “The Lincoln Project” podcast with Reed Galen:

Donald Trump Handpicks Another Loser with Joe Walsh The Lincoln Project 42:44

The fight for democracy can be disheartening…but we can’t quit

“I know the opinions I express in this column about finding common ground and strengthening democracy seem optimistic, bordering on delusion. But it doesn’t come from blissful naivete. My faith in a form of government reliant on compromise comes from a constant, hard-fought personal battle to resist giving in to hate, keep an open mind, and hope enough people will choose to do the same. 

Common ground is hard to find, and listening is not easy. It’s swallowing your deepest hurts and choosing not to scream. It’s keeping your ass in that seat at the table when all you want to do is shout, “you f*ing hypocrites!” while running out the door. It’s trying to feel someone else’s pain when every cell in your body wants to reject it. 

Because there’s something bigger at stake. And we can’t quit. Even when we really, really want to.” —Former Hawaii Rep. Beth Fukumoto, the first elected Republican to switch parties after Donald Trump’s election, in Honolulu Civil Beat, October 20, 2023

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