Dear fellow MoveOn member,

Three weeks ago, the FBI searched Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate after he refused to turn over more than 300 classified documents, including nuclear secrets, in potential violation of the Espionage Act.¹

And we've now learned exactly why that raid occurred. Let me just quote the affidavit so I get it right: "Based upon the following facts, there is probable cause to believe that the locations to be searched at the PREMISES contain evidence, contraband, fruits of crime, or other items illegally possessed in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 793(e), 1519, or 2071."²In a new court filing this week, the Justice Department also confirmed that they had video evidence that documents had been "concealed and removed" by Trump's team in an apparent attempt to thwart the ongoing investigation.³

The same week the raid occurred, Trump pleaded the Fifth Amendment 440 times during a deposition with the New York attorney general over allegations of fraudulent business practices and tax evasion.⁴

Meanwhile, Trump cronies, including Rudy Giuliani and Lindsey Graham, are facing subpoenas as part of a criminal investigation into Trump's election interference in the state of Georgia.⁵

So how is all this playing with Republicans? Turns out, Donald Trump is now more popular with the GOP base than ever.

Nearly 60% of Republican voters now say they'll support him in the 2024 GOP primary, and he's seeing a huge surge in donations, with one Republican digital operative calling his fundraising windfall "manna from Mar-a-Lago."^6,7

The frightening truth is that the Republican Party has become nothing more than a neofascist authoritarian cult. They don't believe in anything except loyalty to Donald Trump. And they cannot be allowed back in power.

My friends at MoveOn have launched the biggest midterm election campaign in their 23-year history, and I'm incredibly impressed by how sophisticated and well organized their plan is. So today I'm asking if you will help keep the Republicans out of power by starting a $3 weekly donation to MoveOn. (MoveOn will bill your weekly donation to your credit card once a month starting today and will contact you shortly after the election to see if you want to modify or cancel your weekly donation.)

Count me in.

No, I'm sorry, I can't chip in weekly.

Since the Mar-a-Lago raid, Republican candidates and officeholders have fallen all over themselves racing to the cameras to attack the FBI and repeat Trump's lies. The few Republicans with the integrity to stand up to Trump have been almost entirely drummed out of the party. In fact, since the FBI raid, Trump has made 30 endorsements in Republican primary races, and not a single one has lost.⁸

But, after sharing all this doom and gloom with you, I want to share some good news.

Polls show Democrats pulling ahead in the race for control of the Senate as Trump-backed candidates like Dr. Oz and Herschel Walker flop with voters.⁹ President Biden's approval ratings are trending up following passage of the Inflation Reduction Act and a series of other impressive legislative achievements.¹⁰

And we got the strongest positive signal for the midterms yet recently, as Democrats won a special election in a New York district that Donald Trump won in 2016 and Biden barely carried in 2020, and defeated Sarah Palin in a special election in Alaska.¹¹ MoveOn has shared their plans with me for the final stretch of the midterm election, and I truly believe their campaign will make a difference, if they can raise enough money to fully implement it. Here's what they have planned:

An innovative get-out-the-vote strategy that MoveOn honed in 2020 that involves organizing millions of voters to text their friends reminding them to vote on Election Day. This strategy has proven to be significantly more effective than traditional strategies like phone banking and played a key role in helping defeat Trump and win control of the Senate in 2020.
Major, million-dollar digital and TV ad buys to make sure voters know how much Democrats have accomplished, including passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, and calling out Republicans by name for banning abortion and supporting Trump's Big Lie.
Using advanced analytics including demographic data and complex algorithms to identify surge voters—those who voted for the first time in the high-turnout 2018 and 2020 elections—and then using the most effective voter contact strategies to mobilize them and ensure that they turn out to the polls again this year.

I know you're getting a lot of emails right now asking you for donations before the midterm elections, but no one is better positioned to stop the Trump Republicans than MoveOn. Will you chip in $3 a week? (MoveOn will bill your weekly donation to your credit card once a month starting today and will contact you shortly after the election to see if you want to modify or cancel your weekly donation.)

Count me in.

No, I'm sorry, I can't chip in weekly.

Thanks for all you do.

–Robert Reich

Sources:

1. "Trump Had More Than 300 Classified Documents at Mar-a-Lago," The New York Times, August 23, 2022
https://act.moveon.org/go/166247?t=6&akid=331616%2E40999114%2EWjJxY0

2. "Read the FBI's redacted Mar-a-Lago search affidavit," Axios, August 26, 2022
https://act.moveon.org/go/166369?t=8&akid=331616%2E40999114%2EWjJxY0

3. "Documents at Mar-a-Lago Were Moved and Hidden as U.S. Sought Them, Filing Suggests," The New York Times, August 31, 2022
https://act.moveon.org/go/166628?t=10&akid=331616%2E40999114%2EWjJxY0

4. "Trump Takes the Fifth Amendment in New York Deposition," The New York Times, August 10, 2022
https://act.moveon.org/go/166370?t=12&akid=331616%2E40999114%2EWjJxY0

5. "The Georgia criminal investigation into Trump and his allies, explained," The Washington Post, August 18, 2022
https://act.moveon.org/go/165484?t=14&akid=331616%2E40999114%2EWjJxY0

6. "Trump’s 2024 Primary Support Reaches New Heights After FBI Raid," Morning Consult, August 11, 2022
https://act.moveon.org/go/165733?t=16&akid=331616%2E40999114%2EWjJxY0

7. "FBI's Mar-a-Lago search juices GOP fundraising," Axios, August 9, 2022
https://act.moveon.org/go/166371?t=18&akid=331616%2E40999114%2EWjJxY0

8. "Trump made 30 endorsements in recent primaries. Here's who won.," Politico, August 24, 2022
https://act.moveon.org/go/166372?t=20&akid=331616%2E40999114%2EWjJxY0

9. "Democrats are slightly favored to win the Senate," FiveThirtyEight, accessed August 30, 2022
https://act.moveon.org/go/165500?t=22&akid=331616%2E40999114%2EWjJxY0

10. "President Biden Job Approval," RealClearPolitics, accessed August 30, 2022
https://act.moveon.org/go/166373?t=24&akid=331616%2E40999114%2EWjJxY0

11. "Democrats gain momentum: 5 takeaways from the last big primary night of 2022," Politico, August 24, 2022
https://act.moveon.org/go/166374?t=26&akid=331616%2E40999114%2EWjJxY0

Want to support MoveOn's work? Donald Trump and his allies are methodically enacting a plan to place some of Trump's most ardent supporters in key election offices that oversee vote counting, have the power to certify—or decertify—election results, and declare election winners and losers. We've launched a powerful, multimillion-dollar campaign to stop Trump. But we need your help to power our effort.

Will you chip in $3 a week to power our work to stop Trump's coup?

Count me in.

No, I'm sorry, I can't chip in weekly.

PAID FOR BY MOVEON.ORG POLITICAL ACTION, https://pol.moveon.org/. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.

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