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Simon, any thoughts on how to write a convincing note to my senators regarding the administration picks? They are McConnell and Rand Paul. I’ve written them both on other issues and got very predictable non responses. I’d rather contact all 100 senators in blanket communications. Would be cool if hopium community bombarded all the senators at once. 😎

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I would encourage you to call during business hours, and try to speak to one of the aides. I always feel that even if it won't make a difference to the Senator, those young men and women in the office answering the phone have to listen to what I have to say. Make sure to give your zip code, too. And they do count those calls. Sometimes if there is only an answering machine in DC, I'll call a local office just to get a real person.

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I am adding Pam Bondi to my list. She is better than Gaetz, but that isn't saying much.

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Hi Folks, apropos of getting much smarter about things like media outreach:

I am a mathematician (specializing in apologetics for undergraduates and holding a certificate in technical writing) with a circle of friends in the broader science community — all of whom are tearing our hair out over the dangerous quacks being put forth over public health, climate change, et al.

I am calling us together to brainstorm about putting together a Science Platform to begin to offer readable fact-based material particularly focused on important points at the intersection of politics and science.

If anyone is experienced in media and would like to offer helpful suggestions of any sort, please leave a reply.

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Hi Shaun, you are so on-target when you say we need to listen to people and meet them where they are vs…. My fb page contains a quote from Daniel Kahneman that numbers are so poorly understood, they say nothing. Somewhere in the discussion about Democrats needing to tell better stories about our successes lies the observation that we stop dumping piles of statistics and thinking we’ve said anything. My aim has stopped being to get people to like the power and subtlety of data and its analysis unless I’m speaking to number-lovers. My aim, here, is to sort science from pseudo garbage, sometimes by following the money and other times by picturing the killing off of giraffes…. Thank you for your ratification of my instinct.

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Hello Emily, here's my take, for what it's worth. With science, I think you have to get at something more fundamental. You can't just recite facts or even studies, no matter how good your technological outreach is. The bigger problem is a decline in the trust in instutitions. Science is just one of the casualties. Some of the mistrust in institutions, frankly, is understandable; corporate media, Big Pharma, etc,. I get where it comes from.

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But, when it comes to scientific fact, I think you have to attack conspiracy theories in general. In other words, attack these conspiracies kinda like South Park attacked the Bush did 9/11 conspiracy in "Mystery of the Urinal Deuce" (look it up if you don't know it).

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In other words, what I really want to get at here is that conspiracy theories of the sort that RFK Jr. (including an ambiguous stance on who did 9/11) embraces alll assume that everyone (government, private sector, etc.) is much more competent than they really are.

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The same Democratic Party that can't stop infighting or tearing each other to pieces or whining or panicking or complaining is somehow able to pull off a major election rigging in 2020.

Here's an article of my own where I did a bit of that, albeit with a different conspiracy (https://davidsalzillo.substack.com/p/fraud-kinda).

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Thank you.

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Happy to (try to) help.

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I highly recommend Professor Sam Wang, a neuroscientist at Princeton. Amongst other things, he and his Electoral Innovation Lab have done amazing work on gerrymandering, and on optimizing our investments of time and money in specific races. Here is his latest substack article:

https://samwang.substack.com/p/a-long-view-for-us-democracy

Bluesky and Xitter:

https://bsky.app/profile/samwang.bsky.social

https://nitter.poast.org/SamWangPhD

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This is fascinating stuff! Thanks.

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On a humorous note, here is what I tell conspiracy-minded people:

"All conspiracy theories are actually invented by the Deep State – to prevent you from realizing what is *really* going on."

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That's basically what South Park did with the 9/11 conspiracies, funny enough. Check out the plot description on Wiki of "Mystery of the Urinal Deuce." It is a very effective strategy.

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I actually would ask that anyone who tells you it's the Deep State, to ask the person to tell you just who are the Deep State! I doubt many have been challenged.

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As an ex "deep state" denizen (according to MAGA and the Federalist Society) and as a lapsed lawyer, once a prosecutor and a federal judge of sort for 30 years, to any resonable degree of probability, there is no doubt that Russia, its agents and willing idiots, attacked this country via psy ops, and thats why we lost.

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The extensive contact between Trump and Elon Musk with Vlad Putin were (and are) deeply concerning. In fact, that constitutes a national security threat that should have received far more attention from the NSA and DOJ than it apparently did.

Certainly the Russian-sourced and fully-domestic disinformation played a major role in the election – regardless of whether it was *the* reason we lost. My impression is that the true picture of what happened is nuanced and highly complex.

That said, we would be wise to bear in mind that psyops were Putin’s specialty when he worked for the KGB. Judging from the results of the 2016 and 2020 US Presidential Elections, Vlad Putin is clearly a master at psyops – whereas the continuing Russo-Ukrainian war strongly suggests that Vlad’s skills as a military strategist are of nowhere near the same caliber.

After the election, Trump and Musk and Putin form a New Triumvirate that threatens not only American democracy, but NATO, the European Union and all Western powers.

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IMHO a national emergency. DOJ documented it September 4.

Mueller, who was probably senile, had the goods on them in 2019. He was a Republican, an institutionalist, who failed to follow through, although he convicted Trump's campaign manager and national security advisor.

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That critique of Mueller seems a tad unfair.

Robert Mueller was hobbled by policies defined by the DOJ. Moreover, as I understand it, his mandate did NOT include a counter-intelligence investigation of Trump. As a matter of fact, I don’t believe any full-fledged counter-intel investigation of Trump has ever been completed.

The Mueller Report contained more than enough ammunition for Congress and (later) Biden’s DOJ to go after Trump. Barr intentionally misconstrued and misrepresented Mueller’s findings, delaying justice. And, as we well know, McConnell and his Republicans largely lacked the spine to convict Trump of the impeachment charges. Only seven Republican senators rose to the occasion.

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He didn't even get Trump or most of the witnesses on the record.

The DOJ "guidance" was pure bullshit.

I

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Creating an easily accessible source of relevant fact-based info can/should! have 2 target audiences. The first might be the likely few curious folks who are fact checking to self-educate. The second would be for the advocates we "all" must become. There is simply too much at stake to not try to meet folks where they are. Name-calling and blaming will only further polarize. The most effective communication happens between people with existing relationship. It's time to try to have those difficult conversations with friends and family who have been influenced by disinformation. Start slow and listen carefully!

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Thank you. Science for hungry imaginations!

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Emily, I am a lifelong environmentalist- worked on wilderness protection and then the climate for more than 40 years. Also, my degrees are in journalism. When it comes to scientific disinformation, the oil industry has been masterful and quite adept. Read Science historian Naomi Oreskes’ book, Merchants of Doubt as a starting point. Will help you understand the radical right’s tactics. Sadly, lots of Americans want a ‘lifestyle’ rather than a life. Tough to cut through the advertising and industry lies.

Still working against disinformation every day. Good luck. Will be watching for this effort

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@Emily. I'm not current, but check out the National Science Foundation. Once upon a time, they had projects to do just that.

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Hello Simon,

Sent that message to the Biden Administration on FBI background checks. Do you have any sense that they would go through with it, if there was enough pressure?

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"Trump Names El Chapo Ambassador to Mexico"

. PALM BEACH (The Borowitz Report) — Donald J. Trump raised eyebrows in diplomatic circles on Saturday by naming the former drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman U.S. ambassador to Mexico.

Trump told reporters that the appointment of El Chapo was consistent with his policy of surrounding himself with “only the best people.”

When asked about El Chapo’s ten felony convictions, Trump said, “I wish he had more, but I still think he’s qualified.”

Trump’s plan hit a snag, however, when El Chapo turned down the post, stating that it would be “embarrassing to serve in the same administration as Dr. Oz.”

https://www.borowitzreport.com/p/trump-names-el-chapo-ambassador-to

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I love Andy Borowitz, but I’ve learned not to share his articles because my friends don’t always get right away that it’s satirical.

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In these days, it can be really hard to tell the difference.

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I know, right? The Gaetz thing certainly sounded like an Onion headline when it first came out.

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Yes! Wow that seemed like ages ago. Good Lord and he isn't even president yet - (I will never give him a capital "p" by the way).

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I just commented something similar.

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You had me at the headline. So funny. Also horrific because it could very well be true with Trump. You kiss his behind and suddenly, he appoints you. Honestly, I think, of all the picks, RFK is the worst. Then, I think, no the worst pick is Hegseth, no worst pick is fill in the blank.

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I think Gabbard is the most dangerous, but the combination is horrifying.

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Maybe it’s just me, but if we do all of the things we can do to make sure none of these unqualified people

get the job, won’t Trump just find another unqualified person to take their place?

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Andy Borowitz on Boston Public Radio (of course with humor:)about why people are tuning out of corp media….”My whole deal is I should be making stuff up,not fact-checking.”

https://open.spotify.com/episode/5bnVpaJ9OADo4ggcZex416

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El Chapo is too competent for this administration.

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I'm pretty gullible and the nominees have been so similar to this that I believed it for a minute or so. Then I had a rueful laugh.

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I implore all here to be as loud as possible on all platforms which reach outside the “safe community” that is here.

Regurgitate Simon’s points. Add points of your own. Let folks know that this was an extraordinarily close election in which Russian and Fox News propaganda ultimately won it for Trump.

Remind folks Trump is a rapist. A 34X convicted felon. A 6X bankrupt business failure. A guy who steals from charities. Etc. Etc.

Now is not the time to be quiet. We can’t go quiet now. Just can’t.

BE LOUD!

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Acknowledgeme to Hogan who posted it in the previous comme ts thread...

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I agree. What's the point in preaching to the choir? Instead of retreating from X to Bluesky we should stay and battle it out. Being loud with people who already agree with us is a bit of a waste. We need to be loud in enemy territory.

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Frank, 2 points here: 1) didn't we lose Dems from 2020? Meaning we weren't preaching to the choir hard enough? We had Dem performance issues, not just loss of votes to Rs. 2) A lot of your comments are very critical of Dems, and often sound like things Republicans say. Need you to try a bit harder here to frame your engagement in more constructive ways. Thank you - S

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And that he is filling his cabinet and appointments with the same ilk.

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I call my CA Senators and my Democrat Congressman but wonder how to reach out to Republican Senators, right now, in regards to the scary Four for Cabinet positions. Any suggestions?

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Here’s a great suggestion for how to reach out to GOP Senators about Tulsi Gabbard.Click on the first link for the latest post from Len’s Political Notes yesterday. Substack wouldn’t allow me to copy/paste the action which has been happening a lot lately..🤔

https://lenspoliticalnotes.com/

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My Va. senators and congressmen are Dems, so I often email or call GOP legislators in other states. On their website, some won't accept messages from non-constituents, so I enter a fake address that's in their state/district.

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I'd appreciate your take, Simon, on the DNC. Are there really less than 500 active members that decide on a new leader? That can't include all the folks who send in $ for membership, can it? Is the DNC really the only viable national organizing group for pro-democracy and fairness voters? Is there a way for the new leader to change the episodic approach to campaigns? Trump losses a lot but never goes away and gets back in the White House. It feels like when Dems lose no matter how close the race, they throw everything out and start over from scratch.

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I wonder the same thing. It still makes me angry that whoever they were essentially anointed Joe Biden to be our candidate instead of promoting an open primary. I think many of them knew he was too old but groupthink must have taken over. I felt completely deprived of a choice as to who would be our candidate. The only elected democrat who had the guts to say out loud what many were thinking was Dean Phillips and he was treated terribly by the party establishment. Hopefully the new leadership will have more faith in all of us.

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Please don't discount that NJ has a governor's race too in 2025 and it is not an assured win for Democrats. We've had Republican governors before and it can happen again. We were within three points of losing last time. There is a big Democratic and Republican primary going on already. I'm not telling anyone who to support. However, this community needs to support whoever the Democratic candidate is. Please don't forget us.

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Agree! It will be a dogfight in the governor’s race. Once the Democratic candidate is selected, we are going to need all hands on deck.

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Agreed. As a NJ resident I am sounding the alarm every chance I get. It is a nearly impossible state to govern, with huge budget problems, very high taxes and a public transportation system (NJ Transit) that is an absolute hot mess. Don’t even get me started on the corruption….

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I sent a message to the White House asking for FBI background checks now.

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I support Martin O'Malley for DNC Chair. He will be an excellent spokesperson -- very tested in that role.

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O'Malley was my governor and a pretty good one, but people were tired of him at the end of his term. He went nowhere when he ran for president. He hasn't been in a campaign for a long time, so I don't think he is the right person. We need someone who really knows what we need on the ground, so my choice now is Ben Wickler, a real organizer, not a politician who hasn't been that engaged the last couple of cycles.

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Twice elected Gov and Mayor of Baltimore, never indicted! I like Ben Winkler too and he has really made a difference in Wisconsin. I believe the DNC job is primarily to be a spokesperson. Martin is more prepared for that role. O'Malley too cannot be pegged as in the Bernie or Hillary camp.

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Maryland is a very Democratic state. While we have lots of conservative rural areas, it's pretty easy to win as a Democrat in Maryland, but it's been a while since Martin ran for anything. We need a good spokesperson and he would probably be pretty good at that, but we need someone who can really drive organizing down to the state parties. Maybe O'Malley is that, but Wikler is certainly that.

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Either would be good. They bring different strengths to the table. Ben has really built the party up in Wisconsin.

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In my view, as someone who was born and lived a long time in the more conservative parts of MD, O’Malley and the state Democratic Party didn’t do much to build the party outside of its strongholds. We need someone at the DNC who is committed to doing that.

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Former MD resident here. I lived there during O'Malley's tenure as mayor and governor. I believe that O'Malley is a traditional Dem politician, not a change agent. We'd just get more of the same from him, although very well articulated. I think Ben Wikler is more what the party needs now - a successful organizer, not someone who's been out of politics ever since he faded early in the 2016 primaries. Wikler's got a plan and he's also almost 20 years younger. I want my party to unite, fight and win!

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Thank you, Simon. This arrived in my inbox just as my Hopium reserves were feeling depleted. Here in NC, where the MAGAts are trying to take away everything we worked for and rightfully earned through more votes, it's easy to feel even more hopeless. Your encouragement, support and calls to action make a real difference.

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This morning, based on earlier reading of today's substack newsletter by Joyce Vance (rec'd by Robert Hubbell), I sent the following message to my NY Senators Schumer and Gillibrand. Please feel free to copy and modify as you see fit. (Links provided at the end of this post; substack posts strip out boldface and indents, so please add them as needed if you re-use this material.) Please copy freely!

Subject:

Kash Patel, FBI Director? A disaster for the FBI and for the country

Body:

Dear Chuck,

This morning I carefully read through Joyce Vance's profile of Kash Patel on substack. She makes many telling points. Here's one:

Kash Patel is a former public defender who worked in DOJ’s National Security Division for a time. That means he’s in the category of people who should know better and who understand how the rule of law works. But last year, Patel told Steve Bannon, who has been one of his big supporters, that they could get “rolling on prosecutions” by putting in “all American patriots top to bottom” and find conspirators in government and the media who he says helped President Biden rig elections. He talked about both criminal prosecutions and civil actions against folks he apparently considers enemies.

This is downright scary. I am an ordinary retired citizen, interested in how our country, and state (NY), county (Saratoga), all the way down to my Village, are governed. I rely on the honesty and care with which law enforcement carry out their jobs. If the good people of the FBI are forced to fight off vicious falsehoods -- or bend the knee in loyalty to the incoming President, the truth be damned -- then what are the state police, the county sheriff, and local police going to do?

If every decision is warped by the need to "serve" a dictatorial President, we ordinary citizens will be hard pressed to trust the rule of law and the justice system.

Kash Patel owes no allegiance to the Constitution or the rule of law.

Please oppose this nomination vigorously. As outlined in Joyce Vance's substack, there's plenty of bad news in Kash Patel's past. Please do your utmost to expose him for the fawning loyalist he is. (I recall the striking statements of Jamie Raskin, Dan Goldman, and others in the impeachments of Donald Trump, as bright spots in our nation's history.)

I recently watched "The Lives of Others," a German film that portrays life in East Germany in 1984 (streaming on YouTube and Apple TV; trailer here). In the film, a skilled Stasi operative, Captain Wiesler, who is loyal to the State and believes in its ideals, begins to recognize that the apparatus of the State (intense surveillance) is being used to harm a citizen, a loyal and respected playwright, so that a higher-up can "have" the playwright's beautiful girlfriend. The Stasi knew everything about the citizens of East Germany. Everything!

The film was set in 1984. Now, 40 years later, electronic communications permeate our lives. Our cell phones, equipped with microphones and cameras, are tracked by huge corporations. How could we protect ourselves from out-of-bounds, lawless, bad-faith actors who think of us as "enemies"?

Our freedoms depend on the way law enforcement conducts themselves in accordance with the rule of law and established practice (prosecutorial discretion).

Please push back hard against the nomination of Kash Patel as FBI Director. We won against Matt Gaetz, showing that Trump is not invincible.

Let's win again.

Respectfully submitted,

Bob Stromberg

Round Lake, NY

Cell: (518) 791-9708

@rlsnys on BlueSky

BTW, Here are the links (links don't survive pasting into substack comments):

Joyce Vance's profile of Kash Patel on substack:

https://joycevance.substack.com/p/the-new-matt-gaetz

Trailer for the film "The Lives of Others:"

https://youtu.be/n3_iLOp6IhM

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According to the Florida Bar, no longer eligible to practice law in Florida.

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Yeah, and as Trump’s FBI Director, he would neither be practicing nor following the law. Kash Patel should be nowhere near a position of power!

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Thank you for the video about Ben Wikler. I will ask our two state members of the DNC to vote for him. That's former Mayor Marty Chavez and Trish Ruiz.

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To paraphrase some pundits, Democracy is a luxury - because of inflation.

The party demographics are changing per the median voter. Here is an accessible academic take from a “Game Theoretic” modeler: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhaNiF5aCCY&list=TLPQMjkxMTIwMjSyU-K9qzH2PA&index=4 . So, a low turnout by Democrats was consequential for the VP: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/11/30/2289316/-The-Swing-States-2024-Split-Tickets-and-the-Disappearing-Biden-Voters?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=community_spotlight&pm_medium=web.

We should remember that Republicans are not only in with Right-wing media. They are on the ground with the evangelical churches and other social groups, i.e. lodges, chambers of commerce, and veterans groups. Unfortunately, the Democratic brand has also been trashed over the last few decades - successfully. So, TFG’s extreme negatives were not an issue - especially for the late deciders. With his own information infrastructure from FOX to X-Twitter, he was only a victim of the “Deep State”. This fact is amazing. Listen to some voters: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13LuGOq3k-Q.

If there is going to be forward movement, we may wish to start immediately talking to the 90 million who did not vote: https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/2024-11-15/how-many-people-didnt-vote-in-the-2024-election#google_vignette. In their absence, they may tell us something useful about civics. This is just a suggestion.

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