I know that a lot of times folks see what is going on in the news — the recklessness, the violations of the rule of law, the corruption — and they go, “how on earth can you talk about affordability? Democracy is crumbling around us, and our government and our constitution are at stake. Why are you talking about the price of groceries?”
But one of the things I know, and I see, and I hear, is that for the vast majority of people who can't make ends meet every single day, they don't have the luxury of caring about everything else.
We owe it to them to solve their problems. One, because that is the responsibility of elected officials, and two, because if we care about the survival of our democracy, we have to understand that economic opportunity is the foundation upon which freedom flourishes.
When I gave my first speech on the floor of the House of Representatives, I thought long and hard about what I wanted to say. And I kept coming back to a speech that had been delivered in that same well in 1944 by Franklin Roosevelt.
As World War II raged, Franklin Roosevelt talked about how necessitous people are not free people. When you are hungry and out of a job, those are the things that dictatorships are made of.
That’s why all of us who believe in democracy in this moment, who recognize that this American experiment that started 250 years ago is at risk in this moment, need to recognize that the only way to save the American experiment is to make the American dream affordable and accessible for everyone.
That's why I will continue to focus on it—because my constituents demand it, they need it, but also because the future of our country requires it.
But I’m going to need your support along the way. If you’re with me in the fight to make life affordable and defend our democracy, and if you’re in a position to give, I need you to pitch in $5 — or whatever amount works for you — to support my campaign today.
In solidarity,
Sarah McBride
