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Dear Progressive Reader,

August 18 marks the one hundredth anniversary of the ratification of the 19^th Amendment that prohibits the states and the federal government from denying to citizens of the United States the right to vote on the basis of sex. It was a long-fought battle in which Wisconsin and The Progressive magazine (then called La Follette’s) played an important role. As I wrote in the introduction to our “Blast From the Past” in this month’s issue ([link removed][UNIQID]) of The Progressive, “More than one hundred years ago, this magazine argued for women's right to vote and hold office. The Progressive started out as a suffragist magazine, under the guidance of Belle Case La Follette, wife of founder Fighting Bob La Follette.” The “Blast” reprints portions of an article ([link removed][UNIQID]) from February 1920, where Belle Case La Follette writes about the struggle in the legislatures and in the streets to gain recognition of that right. As she
said one hundred years ago, “For women to assume a direct share of the responsibility in government, at this great crisis in the world's history, will give tremendous impetus to the patriotism and fervor of all the people in the solution of problems now confronting us.”

U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin spoke on the floor of the Senate last June, saying ([link removed][UNIQID]) : “Almost 100 years ago, after decades and decades of struggle by brave women and men, our nation finally extended to women the most fundamental right of our democracy—the right to vote.” But, she continued, “With just 131 women currently serving in Congress, we are well short of equal representation in government. Government works best when legislatures reflect the people we work for, when they look like America. That’s why it’s important to increase the number of women who serve in public office. Women are half the population, we should be half of our nation’s government, too. . . . Women get stuff done.”

This past week, we heard the President of the United States attacking the character of the first-ever African American woman nominated by a major political party to run as Vice President. Trump even questioned her eligibility to run based on his interpretation of citizenship (familiar territory for the prevaricator-in-chief ([link removed][UNIQID]) ). In 1964, the campaign of Lyndon Johnson questioned the eligibility of his opponent to run since he was born in Arizona before it achieved statehood (1912). The fact was true, but it did not limit Barry Goldwater’s eligibility. His campaign returned fire, arguing that Johnson was “so old” (he was born in August, 1908, just 128 days before Goldwater) that he had been born in Texas before it was a state! Texas had achieved statehood on December 29, 1845, and both campaigns continued.

As Ruth Conniff writes ([link removed][UNIQID]) this week, “With the choice of [Kamala] Harris, Democrats are saying: bring it on,” noting that, “no matter who Biden chose, this election was going to be largely about the culture wars Trump has so effectively stoked.” Reese Erlich takes a thoughtful look at Harris’s foreign policy record with the question ([link removed][UNIQID]) , “Is Kamala Harris a hawk?” And Edward Hardy reminds ([link removed][UNIQID]) the Biden campaign that they need to embrace progressive policies or risk losing to Trump in the fall. “With record turnout even amid a global pandemic, and the ongoing demonstrations for racial justice that have swept across America, voters are sending a message to a Congress that has repeatedly failed to listen to their demands for change,” he says.

Meanwhile, Trump is doing all he can to make voting more difficult—this time by attacking the Post Office. According to news reports ([link removed][UNIQID]) , the Post Office is now officially warning states not to count on on-time delivery of mail-in ballots in November. The Post Office, as I wrote ([link removed][UNIQID]) earlier this year, was founded in May 1775 (before the Constitution was even written!) to “offer a universal service for all Americans.” As a former Postmaster General wrote in 2006, “For centuries [the Post Office] has strengthened the bonds of friendship, family, and community. Our system has encouraged civil discourse, disseminated information, and bolstered our national economy.” Trump, and his newly appointed Postmaster General (also a Trump campaign donor), are seeking to dismantle that system and that history. Jim Hightower urges us, in his column
([link removed][UNIQID]) for our June/July issue, “To help stop Trump’s power play to set himself up as America’s postal potentate and privatizer-in-chief, get information and campaign resources from the American Postal Workers Union and the National Association of Letter Carriers, at USMailNotForSale.org ([link removed][UNIQID]) .”

Keep reading, and we will keep bringing you important articles on these and other issues of our time.

By the way, over the last several days you may have received our fundraising emails. We don’t do this often, but we do need to do it regularly. Your donations, of any size, help keep us going. Day-in and day-out, our staff works tirelessly to gather, assemble, and edit news stories for our website and magazine. We do it for you, because we know that you want and deserve the best progressive news possible. But we can only do it with you, stepping up regularly with your support to help keep this project afloat. Please, if you have not done so recently, consider making a donation ([link removed][UNIQID]) today to support all the great work of the dedicated journalists and staff here at The Progressive. Thank you.

Sincerely,
Norman Stockwell
Publisher

P.S. – If you don’t already subscribe to The Progressive in print or digital form, please consider doing so today ([link removed][UNIQID]) . Also, if you have a friend or relative that you feel should hear from the many voices for progressive change with our pages, please consider giving a gift subscription ([link removed][UNIQID]) . A great new August/September issue will be in the mail early next, full of thoughtful and thought-proving content.

P.P.S. – We need you now more than ever. Please take a moment to support hard-hitting, independent reporting on issues that matter to you. Your donation today will keep us on solid ground and will help us continue to grow in the coming years. You can use the wallet envelope in the current issue of the magazine, or click on the “Donate” button below to join your fellow progressives in sustaining The Progressive as a voice for peace, social justice, and the common good.

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