Dear John,
On a day like today, it’s easy to succumb to doubt. Coronavirus is spreading. Declining oil prices are inching our economy toward collapse. Yesterday’s election didn’t secure Bernie the delegates we hoped it would.
But remember our mission: The Green New Deal. Combat the climate crisis and create millions of good jobs in the process. Whether Bernie knocks Biden out in the one-on-one debate this Sunday and makes a huge comeback or he decides he’s out for the count, our mission doesn’t change.
This election cycle has never been about deciding whether we could make a Green New Deal happen -- we will -- it’s always been about how hard we’d have to work to get there.
If we’re forced to accept Joe Biden as a nominee, it’ll be harder. But the current state of the country, as unsettling as it may be, puts us in a stronger position than ever to highlight just how inadequate our system -- and Biden’s plan for that system -- is.
It’s hard to imagine a more compelling case for a Green New Deal, the only economic stimulus package that meets the urgency of this moment. Instead of responding the same way they did in 2008, with corporate bailouts that left millions unemployed and homeless, the government should be investing massively in public health infrastructure, guaranteeing federal jobs to all workers displaced, and employing millions to transform our energy, transportation, and food systems toward renewable energies that stabilize both our economy and our climate.
With a spreading illness looming over us, it's tempting to worry about our own safety, to insulate and isolate, but at this time it's even more critical to make sure we are taking care of each other. Reach out to family and friends through phone, texts, social media, or however else you connect digitally. Ask them to do the same with their friends and coworkers.
Spread the message that no matter how scary this gets, we are in this together. Not me, us. Those three words must live on in our hearts and in our actions, whether Bernie’s campaign ends during the primary or in the White House.
The lines have been drawn. The Democratic establishment can repeat the mistakes of the past and make us all suffer for it, or they can answer the call for a Green New Deal to solve our current crises and establish a system that won’t buckle so easily under the strain of future challenges.
It’s time for the Democratic establishment to choose what’s more important: bailing out oil CEOs, or securing a liveable future for each and every one of us. Which side are they on?
Together, we can make them pick the only right choice. Though physical gatherings currently pose new challenges, we have an entire digital realm to take advantage of in new and exciting ways, and phonebanks are the next best thing to knocking on doors.
While we’re adjusting our strategy given the latest challenges we face, we are so appreciative of your support and patience.
More soon,
Mattias Lehman, Digital Director
