John, it’s been a year since we launched our Fire Elon Musk campaign – the first major battle and our first major win of the second Trump administration.

I’m writing because we couldn’t have shown up the way we did without you.

Common Cause mobilized quickly because Elon Musk’s influence threatened our way of life – shutting down entire agencies, firing federal employees, and freezing federal aid spending without congressional approval.

Musk had been given free rein after donating heavily to Trump’s campaign, and he faced no real oversight despite his staggering conflicts of interest.

And because you stepped up, Common Cause was able to drive over 25,000 calls to lawmakers, take on the Washington Post when they refused to print our ad demanding Musk’s firing [1], and even put a billboard in the center of Times Square to make our message loud and clear: Elon Musk has to go. [2]

It’s an important lesson for this moment, John. When we were up against seemingly insurmountable odds, and all seemed lost, organized people were able to move the needle, shift public opinion, and defend our communities, our values, and our way of life.

Though we’re still cleaning up the mess he left, Musk went from arguably the second most powerful man in the world, to a pariah, then a punchline.

Now he is no longer able to wreak havoc on our public services without any accountability. We saw firsthand that our work – your work – matters.

This administration is full of people like Musk who care about delivering for billionaires or partisan extremists rather than ordinary people.

But with your help, we’ll take them on too: Stephen Miller, Brendan Carr, and Pam Bondi, and anyone else who doesn’t understand that public service is about serving the public – all of us.

Think back to how you felt when Musk launched his takeover. How it felt like he could do anything he wanted, and like it was over for the rest of us.

Then, think about how it felt when you joined with your fellow Common Cause members – and millions of your fellow Americans – to stop him from turning everything we hold dear about this country to saw dust.

John, our problems weren’t solved when Elon Musk left the building. But if we can keep empowering each other and taking on the biggest democracy threats of the day, I’m confident we will pave a path forward together.

In the coming weeks, you’ll continue to hear about our work filing lawsuits, organizing in the streets and in the halls of Congress, and delivering real, impactful wins from coast to coast.

Thank you for your continued support,

The team at Common Cause

P.S. Common Cause is your voice in Washington, D.C. and across the country to STOP this administration's hostile takeover of our country. If you’re able, please chip in $5 to help us win fights like this >>

[1] https://www.commoncause.org/articles/jeff-bezos-doesnt-want-you-to-see-this/
[2] https://www.commoncause.org/articles/lighting-up-times-square-our-new-firemusk-billboard/