John,

Jon Stewart just launched a new podcast, and I was a guest on the very first episode! The new show, called The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart, is focused on threats to our democracy—but we didn’t just talk about Donald Trump.

Our conversation went way beyond individual bad actors like corrupt politicians or judges, and zeroed in on what’s wrong with the systems that they exploit and what can be done about it. We discussed the pervasive role of money in American politics and government, the notoriously ineffective Federal Election Commission, how the Supreme Court has made bribery laws nearly meaningless and a whole lot more.

I was honored to join the show along with New Yorker reporter and author Jane Mayer, who is known for shining a light on the role the Koch brothers have played in the exploding role of money in politics.

It’s safe to say I’m a huge fan of both Jon and Jane—they both have great ideas about how we can make our democracy work better for regular people. You can listen to the interview here!

I left the conversation feeling optimistic, because there really is bipartisan consensus about many ethics reforms, from banning congressional stock trading to creating an investigative body for the Supreme Court to increasing transparency for federal agencies.

We just need help spreading the word about what needs to be done and help pressuring elected officials to take action. That’s where you come in.

Listen to the podcast, and then please consider sharing this email with your friends and family.

Now is not the time to become disillusioned, it’s the time to stand up for our democracy by fighting for transparency, ethics and a government that truly represents the people.

Thank you for joining us in this work,

Noah Bookbinder
President
CREW