Former WH staffers talking to Jan. 6 committee

[link removed]
Last week, Senate Republicans filibustered the Freedom to Vote Act, a compromise bill aimed at getting Republican support. Unfortunately, the plan did not work. By filibustering the voting rights bill, Republicans didn't block it from passing; they blocked the Senate from beginning debate about it. In doing so, Republicans even blocked their opportunity to introduce amendments to the bill. It is frustrating that Republicans in Congress refuse to get behind these important and common-sense updates to our elections. One of the key issues is that Republicans continue to paint bills that would make access to the polls easier as a Democratic Party scheme to win elections. In the wake of the 2020 election, instead of reshaping their message in a bid to expand outreach and attract new voters, Republicans are doubling down on the Big Lie that the 2020 election was stolen and are working to restrict the right to vote. We're seeing this happen across the country. That means Democrats have an
important choice to make. Do they attempt to carve up these bills into much smaller bills and try to pass individual pieces of legislation tackling just one or two issues? Or do they amend or get rid of the filibuster entirely so that they can pass these priority bills through Congress? There is little evidence to suggest that Republicans in the Senate are willing to pass any legislation that would protect the right to vote. So, they may force the Democrats' hand in amending the filibuster. Time is running out. If the Democrats hope to pass voting rights legislation, they will need to execute a strategy soon. —Mike Brand, Advocacy Director, Stand Up Republic

NEW TO THE TOPLINE? SUBSCRIBE NOW ([link removed])
Love THE TOPLINE? Help us spread the word and earn TOPLINE rewards here ([link removed]) .
[link removed] Share ([link removed])
[link removed]: https%3A%2F%2Fmailchi.mp%2Fstanduprepublic.com%2Fthetopline102621 Tweet ([link removed]: https%3A%2F%2Fmailchi.mp%2Fstanduprepublic.com%2Fthetopline102621)
[link removed] Forward ([link removed])


** No subpoena required
------------------------------------------------------------

At least five former Trump Administration staffers have voluntarily spoken with the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Lawyers working for the committee have reached out to a range of Trump aides, from junior-level staffers to more seasoned officials, to request their voluntary participation in the investigation. The outreach isn't necessarily an indication that the committee suspects the staffers were directly involved in the insurrection. The investigative staff is simply seeking more context on what was happening inside the West Wing before, during, and after the attack. —CNN ([link removed])
* — President Biden has once again refused to assert executive privilege over more documents that the former president has sought to keep out of the hands of the committee. The White House had informed the National Archives earlier this month that it would not assert executive privilege on an initial batch of documents requested by the panel due to the nature of the "extraordinary events" on Jan. 6. ([link removed])
*
* — "President Biden has determined that an assertion of executive privilege is not in the best interests of the United States, and therefore is not justified, as to the documents provided to the White House on September 16, 2021, and September 23, 2021," a letter from White House counsel Dana Remus to National Archivist David Ferriero states. "Accordingly, President Biden does not uphold the former president's assertion of privilege." ([link removed])
*
* — The former president has already filed a lawsuit to stop the National Archives, the custodian of his administration's White House records, from giving documents to Congress that he believes are privileged, and the latest documents will likely become part of that lawsuit. The National Archives is set to begin turning over records to the House on Nov. 12, unless he gets a court order. —CNN ([link removed])

MORE: Rep. Mo Brooks admits staff may have helped plan Jan. 6 events, says he'd be 'proud' of them if they did —Rolling Stone ([link removed])


** WaPo Ed Board: Don't fan flames of voter suspicion
------------------------------------------------------------

"In the Virginia gubernatorial race, Glenn Youngkin, the Republican nominee, has indulged [election] falsehoods while seeking not to embrace them so wholeheartedly as to alienate suburban voters who don't buy them. Mr. Youngkin, a fresh face in politics, had the opportunity to tell voters frankly that the system worked in 2020. He chose not to. That made it all the more disappointing to hear Mr. Youngkin's Democratic opponent, Terry McAuliffe, fanning the flames of suspicion over the weekend among his supporters. Campaigning with Stacey Abrams, who lost a race for governor of Georgia in 2018, Mr. McAuliffe said Ms. Abrams 'would be the governor of Georgia today' had not the state 'disenfranchised 1.4 million Georgia voters before the election.' … Mr. McAuliffe would do well to…avoid unprovable allegations that will contribute to the corrosion of trust." —The Washington Post ([link removed])

MORE: Biden Administration expected to name GOP official who challenged Trump's lies to key election security role —CNN ([link removed])


** Democracy deferred in Sudan
------------------------------------------------------------

Violent strikes and civil disobedience have broken out across Sudan after the country's military arrested Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and members of his cabinet yesterday. Sudan has worked to end its international isolation since long-time ruler Omar al-Bashir was overthrown in 2019, moving to normalize ties with Israel and repair relations with the U.S., which rescinded its three-decade listing of the country as a sponsor of terrorism. However, yesterday's events put its international relations at risk. Hours after the coup, the U.S. put a $700 million emergency assistance package on hold. Hamdok is currently being detained, and what happens next could further derail the country's path to democracy after decades of dictatorship. Stay tuned. —Bloomberg ([link removed])

MORE: Failed state? Why Nigeria's fragile democracy is facing an uncertain future —The Guardian ([link removed])


** LaFrance: History will not judge Facebook kindly
------------------------------------------------------------

"When the most powerful company in the world possesses an instrument for manipulating billions of people—an instrument that only it can control, and that its own employees say is badly broken and dangerous—we should take notice. The lesson for individuals is this: You must be vigilant about the informational streams you swim in, deliberate about how you spend your precious attention, unforgiving of those who weaponize your emotions and cognition for their own profit, and deeply untrusting of any scenario in which you're surrounded by a mob of people who agree with everything you're saying. And the lesson for Facebook is that the public is beginning to recognize that it deserves much greater insight into how the platform's machinery is designed and deployed. Indeed, that's the only way to avoid further catastrophe. Without seeing how Facebook works at a finer resolution, in real time, we won't be able to understand how to make the social web compatible with democracy." —Adrienne LaFrance in
([link removed]) The Atlantic ([link removed])

Adrienne LaFrance is the executive editor of
The Atlantic.

MORE: Frances Haugen, Facebook whistleblower, testifies to British Parliament —The New York Times ([link removed])
[link removed]'s%20amazing!%20Check%20it%20out: [link removed] EARN TOPLINE REWARDS ON TWITTER ([link removed]'s%20amazing!%20Check%20it%20out: [link removed])


** Richie: Gerrymandering calls for a national solution
------------------------------------------------------------

"As our Framers anticipated and as our leaders have acted upon since our nation's founding, there are times when federal election rules are needed for all Americans, typically drawing from election laws in our state 'laboratories of democracy.' Now is certainly one of those times when federal action is necessary. State legislatures are incentivized to gerrymander their congressional districts in increasingly outlandish ways. Politicians choose their voters, representation is distorted, and nearly all districts are lopsided for one party. Without a national solution, individual state reforms can equate to disarming unilaterally, and too often state reforms are falling short." —Rob Richie in The Fulcrum ([link removed])

Rob Richie is the president and CEO of FairVote. He is the co-author of "Every Vote Equal" and "Whose Votes Count?"

MORE: Texas governor signs congressional redistricting plan to entrench GOP control —New York Daily News ([link removed])


** Focus on new political movements
------------------------------------------------------------

With the announcement of former presidential candidate Andrew Yang's new Forward political party, attention is again turning to the viability of new parties running candidates that serve as more than just spoilers in big races. Another new party that's hoping to make a difference in 2022 and beyond is the Serve America Movement or SAM, a political party started in 2016 by attorney Eric Grossman, and now led by former Republican Rep. David Jolly. ([link removed])
* — SAM shuns ideology in favor of problem solving. It supports electoral reform, particularly ranked-choice voting, to open the political system beyond just two parties. And it fields members from all parties, be they left, right, or center. SAM says it seeks independent-minded candidates who are focused on fixing issues and not partisan politics. ([link removed])
*
* — SAM has filed party paperwork in four states. In Connecticut, its filed the initial party formation paperwork, "and we're working toward ballot access on a number of different lines," Jolly said. "We do expect to have a line for the [Connecticut] governor's race in 2022. We are beginning to recruit and now elect municipal officials, which will create ballot lines there," Jolly said. "Our movement is about candidates. Without candidates there is no new party movement." ([link removed])
*
* — "SAM is open to bringing any party or unaffiliated voter into its big tent. So how would it form a party platform with so many voices? "The issues rest with our candidates, which is very different from other parties," Jolly said. "The structure of SAM is to bring together people who say, 'I'm here on these issues and want to work with people like-minded on issues but also people who see the world differently.'" —The Day ([link removed])


** Attiah: Time to get serious about voting rights
------------------------------------------------------------

"We shouldn't have to choose between infrastructure and unfettered access to the ballot. And we shouldn't be subject to a Congress that cares more about protecting a Jim Crow-era procedural rule than the American people. Voting rights are the foundation of the United States' political infrastructure, and our very lives depend on them. Biden may have asked Republicans if they have any shame, but as voting rights continue to be decimated, it seems apparent that Democrats don't have much of a spine." —Karen Attiah in ([link removed]) The Washington Post ([link removed])

Karen Attiah is the global opinions editor at
The Washington Post, writing on international affairs and social issues.

MORE: The 'profound power' of vote by mail: Evolving a new ritual of democracy —The Christian Science Monitor ([link removed])

In response to what President Biden should focus on, he should push the Senate to pass voting protection at all costs before 2022! —Gregory G., New Jersey

I would like more focus on the success of President Biden. I want the filibuster gone! I want heavy pressure put on Joe Manchin. —Ricki I., California

End gerrymandering. —Kate M., Minnesota

President Biden and the Democrats HAVE TO GET RID OF THE FILIBUSTER to get their agenda through. —Andrea, Georgia

Reduce spending to control the national debt! —David W., Utah
TELL US WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT TODAY'S STORIES ([link removed])


** 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.
------------------------------------------------------------
Got feedback about THE TOPLINE? Send it to Melissa Amour, Managing Editor, at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) .
CARE ABOUT DEMOCRACY? SHARE SOME DEMOCRACY.
If you love THE TOPLINE, share it with your friends and reap the rewards—from a shoutout in an issue of TL, to exclusive swag, to a call with Evan and Mindy.
[link removed]
Your Dashboard has everything you need to easily share THE TOPLINE
and track your progress.
VISIT YOUR DASHBOARD NOW TO GET STARTED ([link removed])

============================================================
** ([link removed])
The Topline is a project of the Stand Up Republic Foundation.

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])
.

700 Pennsylvania Ave SE · Washington, DC 20003-2493 · USA