President Trump is taking his frightening and baseless crusade against vote-by-mail to a level approaching disaster.
You won’t believe what we’ve just learned, Friend...
Right now, states are figuring out how they’ll protect voters’ rights AND their wellbeing during the November elections -- and Common Cause is pushing for a popular, proven solution: expanding vote-by-mail programs.
This could help millions of voters -- in red, blue, and purple states -- cast their ballot safely from home. But Donald Trump has launched a senseless vendetta against vote-by-mail.
For months, he’s been spreading widely-debunked lies on TV and Twitter -- and he’s even threatened state officials who are just trying to do right by voters in their state.
BUT NOW... Trump has desperately escalated his war on our right to vote by mail: his re-election campaign has bought a flood of Facebook ads aimed solely at spreading harmful disinformation about voting. [1]
That’s right -- these advertisements are up and running as I write, putting vicious and long-disproven lies about voter fraud in front of Facebook users nationwide. And even though Facebook claims to remove content that discourages people from voting, Mark Zuckerberg and his team won’t pull Trump’s dangerous ads as they continue making money off of them.
Friend, Common Cause refuses to let Trump use Facebook to deceive voters and attack vote-by-mail. Common Cause’s mission is protecting democracy from any threat -- and if Facebook wants to profit from ads that suppress our right to vote, then it’s up to us to take them on.
That means mobilizing our 1.2 million members to demand Congress investigate Facebook’s conduct and get these blatantly false ads removed -- while training our volunteers to identify, expose, and push back on online disinformation in real time.
Make no mistake. This will be a long battle... one we’ll likely need to keep fighting right up to and beyond Election Day. That’s why today, I’m asking you to join a special group of Common Cause supporters -- Guardians of Democracy -- who’ve made a monthly commitment to step up with the funds we need to plan, budget and win this battle.
With just $10, $15, or even $25 a month, you can immediately make a major impact on our fight to protect vote-by-mail from Trump’s onslaught -- and hold vote suppressors like Donald Trump, as well as the companies that profit off their lies, accountable.
Please become a Guardian for Democracy today, and to thank you for your commitment I’ll send you a copy of former Common Cause Board Chair Robert Reich’s newest book, “The System: Who Rigged It And How We Fix It.”
Sorry, I can't become a sustaining member at this time, but I’d still like to make a one-time gift to help where it’s needed most.
Facebook has clearly learned nothing from its shameful 2016 debacle -- when the presidential election was deeply polluted by foreign disinformation spewed through its platform.
Instead of stepping up for our democracy this time around, Facebook is catering to Donald Trump’s anti-vote-by-mail distortions -- potentially at the expense of voters’ right to be heard.
Meanwhile, this week's major Twitter security breach has put our team on high alert -- and we're calling on social media companies to increase transparency and implement safeguards against similar hacks that could interfere with the 2020 election. [2]
I regret to inform you that this new, digitized form of voter suppression is far from the only threat we voters will face this year. We’re also looking at many of the same barriers voters have faced year after year -- like long lines at the polls or vote-suppressing restrictions on the ballot.
Even more dangerous -- the Republican National Committee has announced a $20 million budget for voting lawsuits. This means we may have to defend the voting reforms we’ll win the next few months against further legal challenges.
Common Cause is ready to fight back. We don’t have $20 million to spend in states like Georgia, Wisconsin, or Pennsylvania, or dozens of lawyers to fight it out in court.
Fortunately, we do have YOU -- and 1.2 million other concerned Americans nationwide -- willing to fight for what they believe in. And in just the past few months, we’ve seen Common Cause members like you find new ways to engage in civic life -- texting voters in Georgia to make sure they know their rights, joining Zoom action and organizing calls, contacting officials by phone or online, and strengthening the community bonds that are even more vital in this time of social isolation.
Our work to protect voters in 2020 grows more urgent by the day -- and we’ve made a sustained commitment to see this battle through to Election Day. Our democracy demands nothing less.
That’s why we’re counting on you -- if you’re able -- to step up with the resources to make it possible, by becoming a Guardian for Democracy with a monthly contribution of $10, $15, or even $25 today >>
Sorry, I can't become a sustaining member at this time, but I’d still like to make a one time gift to help where it’s needed most.
This is a principle that everyone who loves democracy should be able to agree on: every eligible American deserves to cast their vote freely, do so safely and securely, and know it was counted accurately.
I know that with your help, we will see that vision through and pass a stronger, better democracy to the next generation.
With sincere gratitude,
Jesse Littlewood, Vice President for Campaigns
and the team at Common Cause
[1] https://www.mediamatters.org/facebook/facebook-letting-trump-campaign-publish-least-529-ads-false-claims-voter-fraud
[2] https://www.commoncause.org/press-release/twitter-hack-reveals-again-social-media-vulnerabilities-and-dire-need-for-oversight/
