Hi, John—
Robert Fox here, MoveOn's chief operating officer.
I've been overwhelmed by the response from MoveOn members like you to my
message over the weekend about our budget shortfall. It is just one more
reminder of how dedicated, passionate, and giving our movement is, and how
willing MoveOn members are to step up and join the fight.
I need to ask you to step up once again, John.
Although MoveOn members gave generously after my last message, it was not
quite enough to close our budget gap, and we are approaching a critical
end-of-quarter reporting deadline on Thursday.
It's my job to make the tough choices about what programs we can and
cannot afford to run during next year's critical midterm elections, and I
don't want a budget shortfall to force my hand.
So I am asking once again: Will you dig deep and chip in $5
a month to make sure we have the resources to run the biggest and most
effective campaign to stop a GOP takeover of Congress in 2022?
[ [link removed] ]Yes, I'll chip in monthly.
[ [link removed] ]No, I'm sorry, I can't make a monthly donation.
You can read my message from last weekend below for more details.
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Dear MoveOn member,
I'm Robert Fox, MoveOn's chief operating officer. I'm responsible for
managing MoveOn's budget and making decisions about what campaigns we are
able to fund. I don't usually send emails to MoveOn members, but I'm
writing you today because I'm getting worried.
Donations to MoveOn—and our other progressive partners—have dropped
sharply in 2021, and with fewer than 100 days before we enter the crucial
midterm election year—in which Republicans are heavily favored to win
control of Congress—we need to close our budget gaps, or we won't be able
to run the election campaign we'll need to stop the GOP from retaking
control of Congress.
While MoveOn and other progressive groups are struggling, Donald Trump and
Republicans on the far right have been silently building war chests worth
hundreds of millions of dollars while passing laws to suppress Democratic
votes, especially from voters of color, low-income voters, and young
voters. That means that if we don't start taking action right now, we
could be in for a shellacking in 2022
I don't mean to scare you, John, but I need this to be your
wake-up call.
Please, if you are able, will you chip in $5 a month to
help ensure we have the ongoing resources we need so that I can approve
all of the big plans on deck for the 2022 midterms and put MoveOn in the
best position to fight back against the GOP?
[ [link removed] ]Yes, I'll chip in monthly.
[ [link removed] ]No, I'm sorry, I can't make a monthly donation.
It's not unusual for energy to go down from Democrats and progressives
when a Democrat is in the White House—and the four years under Donald
Trump were more exhausting than anything I've ever experienced—but we
cannot let our guard down and give Republicans the opportunity they need
to strike.
It's happened before. When Barack Obama was elected in 2008 and Democrats
took control of Congress, Republicans got together to come up with a
scheme to take back control. Donors funneled tens of millions of dollars
into a program called REDMAP, a plan to take over state legislatures and
use partisan gerrymandering to redraw blue districts in swing states like
Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.^1 It resulted in Republicans' winning back the
House, even though they received a million fewer votes than Democrats, and
it has created lasting effects that give Republicans an unfair advantage
even today.^2
And we all see what's happening now: GOP-controlled state legislatures are
passing blatantly racist voter suppression laws to try and steal the next
election.^3 And unless we can kick our work into high gear, they may just
get away with it.
2022 is less than 100 days away, which means we're starting to budget for
next year's election, and the work to win the midterm elections is already
well underway. We need your help, John. Will you chip
in $5 a month?
[ [link removed] ]Yes, I'll chip in monthly.
[ [link removed] ]No, I'm sorry, I can't make a monthly donation.
Here's the good news: MoveOn has never needed to match Republican spending
dollar for dollar. Our expertise is in creating innovative strategies that
are more effective for less money and using our grassroots supporters
(that's you!) to implement them at scale.
For example, in 2020 we built out a friend-to-friend voter turnout
strategy that studies have shown was five times more effective than
traditional strategies like phone-banking and door-to-door canvassing. At
the same time, we also built out a highly trained team to identify, track,
and take down online disinformation aimed at voters and rushed to adapt
all of our work to be safe and effective during the pandemic.
That's what MoveOn does: We work quickly, efficiently, and with a singular
focus on building a better world for every single one of us.
The work is far from done, and I can't stand the idea that our inability
to fund our election program to the fullest could contribute to
Republicans' regaining power in Congress and putting a stop to President
Biden's agenda.
So I'm asking: Will you please chip in $5 a month?
[ [link removed] ]Yes, I'll chip in monthly.
[ [link removed] ]No, I'm sorry, I can't make a monthly donation.
Thanks for all you do.
–Robert Fox
Sources:
1. "Inside the Republican Plot for Permanent Minority Rule," The New
Republic, October 15, 2020
[ [link removed] ][link removed]
2. Ibid.
3. "Voting Laws Roundup: July 2021," Brennan Center for Justice, July 22,
2021
[link removed]
Want to support MoveOn's work? The GOP is launching an all-out campaign to
take down the Democratic majority in Congress and reinstall Mitch
McConnell as Senate majority leader in 2022. To defeat the GOP, MoveOn is
going all-in with TV ads, a nationwide grassroots organizing campaign, and
more.
Will you chip in to power our effort to defeat McConnell and the GOP in
2022?
[ [link removed] ]Click here to chip in $3, or whatever you can afford.
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