A grim week in Afghanistan

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This was a very difficult week, with the turbulent withdrawal in Afghanistan rightly capturing the world's attention and distress. But here at home, the fight to shore up our democracy went on, with both hits and misses. In the positive column, the House passed the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which now heads to the Senate. Far less promising was the news that Republicans in Pennsylvania are pursuing an Arizona-style "forensic audit" of the 2020 presidential election. Though Joe Biden won the critical swing state by 80,000 votes, the goal of the audit is to sow further doubts about the veracity of that result in the minds of those who wanted a different outcome—and to help Republicans burnish their MAGA credentials ahead of the 2022 midterms in the process. And like the progenitor of the "big lie," some of them are already fundraising off it. We saw the dangerous consequences of this destabilizing scam last January. As the political grift goes on, we all pay the price. —Miles
Taylor

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** Miniter: In the wake of Afghanistan, democracy still matters
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"As we've seen, democracy is rarely perfect, but structured properly it has a way of tempering the passions of the public and pushing society toward morally defensible positions over the long run. At the very least, it offers a release valve to public pressure. Regular elections create a peaceful means for pushing for the changes to society that people desire. But this isn't the only way the antidote works. Supporting democracy also serves our national interests because it gives people who reside in other countries a reason to stand with us against extreme and repressive ideologies. Building a democracy gave us a joint project to work on with the peaceful people of Afghanistan, and that democracy itself became a firewall against the extremists who would otherwise direct violence toward the United States." —Brendan Miniter in ([link removed]) The Dallas Morning News
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Brendan Miniter is the editor of
The Dallas Morning News editorial page.

MORE: 'We will hunt you down and make you pay': Biden vows retribution for deadly attack on U.S. forces in Kabul —Politico ([link removed])


** WaPo Ed Board: The danger to democracy
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"The 2020 presidential race stress-tested the nation's democracy, and it held. But what about the next time? Given the persistence and proliferation of the 'big lie' that President Biden won the 2020 election through fraud—and the alarming number of Republican office-seekers running on the conspiracy theories being flogged by former president Donald Trump—the country's institutions may be weaker in coming election cycles, even as the pressure mounts on GOP officials involved in counting or certifying votes to find 'fraud.'" —The Washington Post ([link removed])

MORE: What is the Voting Rights Act? —NPR ([link removed])


** Sepkowitz: Fighting Covid on all fronts
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"Given our current predicament of rising cases and political nonsense, it is time to re-introduce another effective strategy for pandemic control: rapid diagnostic tests. Research and funding were largely focused on the miracle jab, and the initial results were so successful that other crucial parts of the scientific response were seemingly abandoned. … More accessible and accurate tests could help tamp down the spread of COVID-19 and act as a useful stopgap before booster shots are rolled out." —Kent Sepkowitz on ([link removed]) CNN ([link removed])

Kent Sepkowitz is a physician and infection control expert at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

MORE: DeSantis' school mask mandate ban is unlawful, Florida judge rules —NBC News ([link removed])


** Nowlin: How we can stop the infodemic
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"Failure to speak to our friends, family members, and neighbors about the dangerous falsehoods they've shared or succumbed to is an essential part of reversing the dangerous course the United States is on, says Aaron Delwiche, a communications professor at San Antonio's Trinity University. 'If we give up on that attempt to persuade, to talk, to dialogue, we're giving up on democracy.'" —Sanford Nowlin in ([link removed]) San Antonio Current ([link removed])

Sanford Nowlin is the editor-in-chief at
San Antonio Current.

MORE: Rejecting COVID-19 inquiry, China peddles conspiracy theories blaming U.S. —The New York Times ([link removed])
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** Li: Don't gerrymander our diversity away
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"The Census numbers make clear that our country's future is multiracial and deeply coalitional. Without gerrymandering, political parties would be forced by necessity to figure out ways to build diverse, multiracial coalitions or face being condemned to being regional or sectional curiosities. But gerrymandering gives states a way to kick the can down the road. For the sake of all of us, Congress must take the power to cheat voters off the table." —Michael Li in ([link removed]) The Boston Globe ([link removed])

Michael Li is a senior counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice, where he works on redistricting, voting rights, and elections.

MORE: Here comes the New York gerrymander —The Wall Street Journal ([link removed])


** Sargent: A glimpse at the Jan 6 panel's plans
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"On Wednesday, the House select committee examining the Jan. 6 insurrection issued a massive demand for documents from multiple government agencies. It shows that the committee is casting a very wide investigative net—and a big target is the months of efforts to steal the election that came well in advance of President Donald Trump's incitement of mob violence. That's critical, because it suggests the committee sees the effort to overturn the election via legal manipulation and illicit plotting as central to explaining the outbreak of violence itself." —Greg Sargent in ([link removed]) The Washington Post ([link removed])

Greg Sargent is a columnist at The Washington Post and the author of "An Uncivil War: Taking Back Our Democracy in an Age of Trumpian Disinformation and Thunderdome Politics."

MORE: Police officer who killed Capitol rioter says he fired gun to 'save countless lives' —The Guardian ([link removed])


** Lachelier & Morrow: The value of democracy learning communities
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"Democracy demands informed, skilled, and caring citizens. Good citizens are neither born nor made through the status quo of episodic democracy. Democracy can and should be a lifestyle as much as a governance system. Municipal and regional DLCs can cultivate more good citizens and help Americans overcome political dysfunction. There is no better place to start than in your own town, city, or region." —Paul Lachelier & Mike Morrow in ([link removed]) The Fulcrum ([link removed])

Paul Lachelier is the founder of Learning Life, a nonprofit lab devoted to innovating education and citizen engagement. Mike Morrow is a former U.S. diplomat and current senior democracy strategist with Learning Life.

MORE: Brian Klaas: America should support democracy—but we have to be smarter about it —The Washington Post ([link removed])


** Team America to the rescue
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On Aug. 15, as the world learned that Kabul had been overrun by the Taliban, Worth Parker, a retired Marine lieutenant colonel, got a call. One of the interpreters he had worked with in Afghanistan, who had since become a Marine reservist, needed his help. Parker started making calls, but his voicemail was soon inundated with similar requests from other people who needed help. He is now part of a fledgling, veteran-led effort called Task Force Dunkirk to evacuate Afghans who have worked with the U.S. Parker quickly realized he needed help with scale. So he reached out to Joe Saboe, a workforce development consultant, whose team is finding and coordinating veterans who can help identify potential evacuees and get them out. "We basically started recruiting our friends who had combat experience," Saboe says. There are about 150 volunteers, mostly—like Parker—veterans of the infantry, Special Forces, or other special operations units. They work in shifts of three or four, 24 hours a day. Saboe
calls the effort Team America. The group has safely evacuated about 116 people so far. "We have [communications] with 800 individuals right now. They've all passed through vetting and evaluation process so we can get them out," Saboe says. Once a candidate is identified, the group establishes an evacuation plan for them and possibly their family. The group then provides the evacuees with a secure communication feed, remaining in touch throughout the process, sometimes with extended family elsewhere in the world as well. Parker says Saboe and his team were essential in helping him and other veterans to coordinate and scale up their efforts. "I would tell you they're an absolutely key part of that," he said. "We're a bunch of old guys that know how to network and gain access to assets. These guys are making it happen." Well done, Task Force Dunkirk. —Defense One ([link removed])

Unlike almost all presidents in U.S. history who accepted the will of the voters, Donald Trump embarked on a non-stop campaign to overturn a democratic election. Never accepting the peaceful transfer of power, Trump worked single-mindedly between November 2020 and January 2021 to find a way to install himself as a dictator. He never conceded.

Take your pick of the crimes Trump committed: solicitation of election fraud, conspiracy, obstruction of an official proceeding (Electoral College certification), violation of the Hatch Act, and inciting insurrection jump out. Failure to prosecute likely guarantees a repeat performance in the future by Trump or a Trump clone. You don't have to be a cynic to wonder if our legal system is up to the task.

With Trump we have a cult leader who incited a violent and deadly insurrection. He presents himself as some kind of national savior to his followers. He has promoted a culture of hatred and dehumanization against immigrants and an utter disregard for the rule of law. Believing himself above the law, he has no hesitation in trying to steamroll any obstacles in his path to power. This behavior is far more consistent with the fascist strongman tradition than any kind of conservatism.

Nobody should be reassured that we barely escaped this time. —Jonathan B., New Hampshire
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** The views expressed in "What's Your Take?" are submitted by readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff or the Stand Up Republic Foundation.
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