Friend,

Today is one of those days when I had to stop and ask, how did we get here? We are just days away from emergency unemployment benefits expiring for millions of Americans who have lost their jobs due to COVID-19. How did we end up in the middle of a pandemic, with the Senate seemingly incapable of helping our fellow Americans who are struggling to deal with the economic consequences of the virus?

It's been 123 days since the Senate passed the last coronavirus relief bill, the CARES Act, and it doesn't appear we're any closer to the next steps in the coronavirus response. I wish I could provide inside knowledge or some hope that things will come together at the last minute. Unfortunately, it appears my Republican colleagues have wasted those 123 days — unable to find agreement among themselves, let alone with the President, or with the Democrats whose votes they'll need to pass any bill.

Let me be clear about something: this is not just the usual Washington dysfunction. I've never had a problem owning up when I thought my party was in the wrong. But my Democratic colleagues and I have been working these past 123 days, putting forward policy proposals, like my Paycheck Security Act, which would guarantee paychecks for laid-off workers — or my Neighborhood Jobs Act, which would make sure communities of color don't get left behind in the eventual economic recovery. Unfortunately, every single good idea we've had runs into a brick wall when it gets to the Republican Senate, which is predisposed to obstruction and paralyzed by a lack of leadership from the President.

The reason I'm telling you all this is because I want to convey to you that it is as bad as it seems. Or, to put it another way, we aren't exaggerating just how high the stakes are this November as we try to flip the Senate and send this President packing. You may have seen some polls recently that give us some reason for hope. Hope is good, but it's not an excuse to become complacent. We were all burned by overly optimistic poll-reading in 2016. I'm also thinking back to my 2014 Senate race, when all the polls said I was fine, but the race came down to a razor-thin margin on election night.

With the stakes so high this November, I want you to think about what you're willing to do to elect Democrats up and down the ballot. I've had six years since my last re-election and three and a half years since Donald Trump's election to think about this. My campaign is taking nothing for granted. We are working hard to reach every voter, in every part of the Commonwealth, and to build a turnout operation that will keep Virginia blue.

In order to flip the Senate and send Joe Biden to the White House we've got to put in the work, and I'm asking you for your help to make sure it happens. We have under 100 days to go until Election Day, and any drop-off in fundraising will jeopardize our campaign plan to educate and mobilize voters.

So I am personally asking you today for your help in hitting our end-of-month fundraising goal. If you've been thinking about whether or not to make that first contribution, now is the time. Please, friend, will you make your first contribution to help us hit this can't-miss fundraising goal?

Joe Biden has rightly said that this election is a battle for the soul of our nation. And I think I've conveyed in this note that it is also a battle for the health of our people and our economy. We cannot forget what we are fighting for: an end to the nightmare caused by this virus, and an economy that comes back stronger and more equitable. That's what I'm fighting for in the Senate and on the campaign trail. Please give whatever you can to make sure we can keep up that fight and win this November.

Sincerely,
Mark Warner