Donald Trump is a clear and present danger to our democracy, to the future of
our planet and civilization itself, to a just society, and to human decency. He
must be defeated.

Public Citizen is a nonpartisan organization. We very rarely weigh in on
elections. But we can’t — and no one should — remain silent about the threat
posed by Donald Trump.

If you’ve been getting our emails, you know that Public Citizen is constantly
fighting the regressive policies and fascistic tendencies of Trump himself as
well as those of other Trumpist politicians and corporate kingpins.

Here are some thoughts on just a few of the ways that Donald Trump is beyond
unfit for office.

PROTECTING DEMOCRACY

Trump poses a fundamental peril to democracy. Defeated in his effort for
re-election, he organized a failed coup and an insurrection.

In this election season, when too much of his outrageous conduct has been
normalized or ignored, Trump has repeatedly talked about “the enemy within” —
classic fascistic language.

He has proposed weaponizing government against his so-called enemies, including
by deploying the military.

He has announced that he will claim fraud if he is defeated again.

And he proudly announced that he’d like to be dictator for a day.

If we believe in democracy — as a defining value of who we are and aspire to be
as a nation, and as a system best designed to deliver fairness, justice, and
prosperity — Donald Trump must be defeated.

AVERTING CLIMATE CATASTROPHE

The world is now in a race to avert climate catastrophe by undertaking a rapid
and complete transition to clean, renewable energy.

The consequences of failure are almost too terrible to contemplate. They involve
massive loss of life, food shortages, mass displacement, submersion of huge
swaths of land, incalculable suffering especially for low-income people in poor
and rich countries, and much, much more.

Against this earth science and public health reality, Trump mocks the very idea
of climate change. He has promised to “terminate” the path-breaking clean energy
investments of the Inflation Reduction Act.

Trump asked oil executives to give him $1 billion for his campaign, which he
said would be a “deal” because of all the favors he would deliver to Big Oil in
exchange.

At a time when protecting humanity demands intensifying the transition to clean
energy, Trump promises to reverse course.

In defense of humanity and planetary well-being, Donald Trump must be defeated.

SAVAGE INEQUALITY

We are living through a period of savage wealth and income inequality, on par
with the Gilded Age and the worst inequality in American history.

The richest country in the history of the world tolerates unconscionable
poverty, economic stress, unequal health care, and much more.

As a nation, we make choices to tolerate poverty. By itself, the Expanded Child
Tax Credit included in the COVID-era American Rescue Plan cut child poverty in
America by half. When it expired after a year, the rate shot back up.

Donald Trump not only has no interest in investing to reduce inequality, he
explicitly wants to increase it.

Having widened inequality with his tax cuts for corporations and the super-rich
in his first term, Trump is planning still more tax giveaways to the super-rich.

Meanwhile, Trump’s Project 2025 proposes slashing programs that help the poor
and working class — and Trump’s new-found buddy Elon Musk recommends even more
severe measures.

Trump is — literally — of, by, and for the billionaire class.

If we care about even a modicum of economic justice, Donald Trump must be defeated.

THE CORPORATE AGENDA

The first Trump term featured the most extraordinary handover of the levers of
government power to corporations in recent memory and probably all of American
history.

A coal lobbyist ran the EPA. A pharma exec was in charge of the Department of
Health and Human Services. A military contractor executive headed the Pentagon.
A management lawyer ran the Labor Department.

And on and on.

These corporate-reps-in-government delivered for their patrons.

They rolled back regulations, stopped enforcing the law, gutted regulatory
agencies, handed out giveaways and benefits to their corporate friends, and
more.

The result was more pollution, more rip-offs and scams, more dangerous
workplaces, and a lower quality of life for regular people.

Trump’s Project 2025 promises more of the same — only worse.

In the interest of health, safety, and justice, Donald Trump must be defeated.

THE CONFLICTED-IN-CHIEF

The only thing Trump really cares about is Trump.

We’ve never seen a president who sought to use the presidency as his own
personal grift to the extent of Donald Trump.

We’ve never seen anyone so subject to undue foreign and corporate influence
because of his personal business interests.

If we care about honesty and integrity, Donald Trump must be defeated.

STOKING HATRED

At no time in modern American history have we had a president who so overtly
bases his appeal on stoking hate as Donald Trump does.

Trump’s first term was marked by gratuitous cruelty against immigrants. His
campaign this time has been defined by a deranged xenophobia — and his
second-term anti-immigrant plans are inhumane.

Trump does not conceal his racism, and his misogyny is deeply ingrained.

The problem goes beyond these disqualifying attitudes — they profoundly and
systematically inform his policy instincts. They are reflected in everything
from his anti-abortion policies to his proposal to give the police “one rough
hour.”

All this hate creates a climate where ethnic, racial, and political violence is
far more likely.

Trump doesn’t mind, because the violence stokes more fear and furthers his
authoritarian agenda.

To advance love and decency — and to defeat hate and bigotry — Donald Trump must
be defeated.

We could go on and on. At a time when warfare dominates the headlines and peace
can feel out of reach, a second Trump term would be a foreign policy nightmare.
There’s reproductive freedom. Trans rights. Health care. The preservation of
Medicare and Social Security. Religious liberty for all who aren’t Christian
nationalists. A science-based public health system not undermined by
conspiratorial fantasies. And more, more, more.

EYES WIDE OPEN

Public Citizen has been fighting Trump for almost a decade now.

In his first term, we helped drive three cabinet secretaries from office.

We generated a major focus on Trump’s personal conflicts of interests and the
corporate capture of his administration.

We won multiple lawsuits against the administration, including to force
disclosure of the White House visitor log and to preserve a teen pregnancy
prevention program.

We sued and forced the U.S. Postal Service to deliver ballots in a timely way.

And we helped lead massive mobilizations to hold Trump accountable, including to
support both Trump impeachments. During the Trump administration, we built the Not Above the Law coalition and a network that ended up with more than a half a million people
signed up to take to the streets in more than 1,500 cities — in a broad
coalition that spanned labor, environmental, civil rights, women’s, LGBTQ, and
many other organizations.

After Trump lost the 2020 election, we used our coalition to mobilize support
for the prosecutions to hold him accountable for January 6 and his other
criminal actions.

If the worst happens and Trump is reelected, we can promise you — we’ll be
ready.

FOR JUSTICE

Over the next few days, we hope everyone will do whatever they can to work
against Trump’s reelection.

Of course, defeating Donald Trump will not magically cure our nation’s problems
or quash the neo-fascist forces he has unleashed.

But it is an absolute prerequisite to moving our nation forward to address its
great challenges and make us the nation we should be.

It is, simply, imperative to defeat Donald Trump.
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With just days to go before the most consequential election in our lifetimes,
add your name if you agree that Donald Trump must not be president again.
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Thanks for taking action.

For the future of our country,

- Robert Weissman & Lisa Gilbert, Co-Presidents of Public Citizen


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