More than 1 million people attended Musikfest in Bethlehem[, PA] last year. Now in its 42nd year, the festival runs Thursday [Aug. 7] through [Sunday] Aug. 10, with more than 400 free performances, along with ticketed headline shows, comedy, kids activities, and more.
Good morning, all. Yesterday I made phone calls for our Dem coordinated here in New Jersey, which is candidates up and down the ballot. I then went and did some door knocking for our state assembly candidates. I have a long list and I will continue doing door knocking today as well. I am fortunate because one of the candidates actually lives in my neighborhood, and she is fantastic.
The weather is also beautiful here and as the tourists start to leave, this is the time of year when people at the Jersey Shore really start to enjoy living here , aka Locals Summer. 😎
I will work on some postcards this evening and also participate in a national MoveOn call as well as listen to Dr. Ben-Ghiat, who does a Sunday evening chat once a month.
Can you speak more about the draconian gerrymandering in Texas and being fostered in other states by GOP? This pushes voters aside. I read HCR latest on this and I was not encouraged.
It’s a gamble. These red states are already heavily gerrymandered so they have to make assumptions about the composition of the electorate and actually make some districts more competitive in order to pull something off. Maybe it’ll work and maybe it won’t. I’m glad to see Dem states fighting back, but the long term strategy is to win in red areas. If we can shrink the number of people voting Republican no amount of gerrymandering will save them. Most important, none of this changes what we do now so press on with your donating and volunteering. They want us to feel helpless and demobilized; don’t give them what they want.
Also, I admire HCR and am a paid subscriber to her substack, but I don’t read it anymore because it started giving me panic attacks. Her work is critical for history but in my opinion you don’t need to follow the day to day atrocities to be informed and valuable to the cause.
I like HCR but can see your point. I don’t know much about gerrymandering but it does seem complex. I worried about Democrats who stay with a just fight back idea. That said, governors have a certain degree of power and it seems blue state governors are prepared to gerrymander. Some of this will probably end up in the courts. And some voters will be frustrated to have the power of their vote diluted. In Missouri, we have a MAGA governor who wants to carve up blue Kansas City. I imagine there will be ferocious pushback but they’ll probably do the gerrymander. I’ve wondered whether it may be risky for the GOP.
Wishful thinking moment: If red states do gerrymander further and those changes uphold legal challenges, the BEST possible outcome for the country then would be that most DEMS still win state and US seats despite these shenanigans because ALL voters are fed up with Republicans' cruel policies and their despicable behaviors in governing.
and he also talks about how diluting districts by moving republican voters to other districts puts those diluted areas into play for Democrats.
Simon on Bluesky "One of the more interesting questions about the new Texas maps is whether Ds can mount serious campaigns in these newly competitive districts and begin to revive the Dem Party in Texas. Long term we have to learn how to make FL or TX competitive. This overreach could jumpstart that process in TX."
I have formerly Republican family members living in the Houston area who are furious and terrified. They didn't like Trump but voted for him for a variety of reasons, but are now rabid in their hatred of him. I have to assume this is playing out in many Spanish-speaking households. (My family members are Cuban and Venezuelan.)
I know the word 'king' is being 'symbolically' used for trump as though it echoes through the Ages from when America gained independence. However, I think there is a much more realistic way to deal with this.
1. As a bit of a side-bar. America's independence from Britain (from my understanding and correct me if I'm not accurate) was because the TEA Corporation tied at the hip to the British Government raised taxes on Tea ... not the British Government. This is NOT a subtle difference and if I'm inaccurate please let me know. Fighting against a 'government' is one thing, fighting against a Corporation backed by government is an entirely different Thing.
2. This leads to trump (not a king). Trump is a Mob Boss. Stop and get your head around what this means. OUr government cannot fight against a 'king'. However, our laws can deal with a Mob Boss. What are the ways that trump is a Mob Boss? He attacks, threatens, extorts, punishes, replaces his minions and believes he should control everything. He's a simple Mob Boss and if we all begin to treat him and his minions as being complicate in the Mob, we will get further. We cannot elevate those in the admin as part of a kingdom/kingship/royalty.
I really would like Simon to talk about this and think about it. Reality is vitally important. It is NOT real that he is a 'king' and he is not 'pretending' to be a 'king. The Reality is that he's a corrupt mob boss who has always been one throughout his life and those who work with him and for him are working for a mob family.
I deeply believe that the Reality of his being a Mob Boss will resonate with many, many, many more people ... on all sides. 'King' is just too squishy.
Hi Jenny ... I fully understand that. Personally, for me, hyping is not how we live and how we deal with Reality. for me, it's about educating people. We can march because of the 'punchy' but ZERO policies can be put in place to deal with 'punchy' so, just for me, it's better to march to get rid of corruption in politics by a mob boss and I believe a term could be developed that brought people out and then there were avenues for follow-up. To me, there is ZERO avenue to follow up on 'no kings' and then it just gets dismissed as 'hype'. Mob Boss is who he is, what he does and policies can be put in place to stop this. That's just me. Please discuss this with your friends and others and get back to me. Iin other words, I believe we need to be dealing with Reality and not in a REality TV Show.
Erica Chenoweth claims that authoritarian regimes fail when 3.5% of the populations begins to resist peacefully and regularly. She also claims that it is usually corruption that wakes up the other 96.5% of the public. So highlighting the corruption of the mob boss is vitally important.
I had heard that. I'm definitely involved with Indivisible, Rev Wm Barber, Hopium and others and when I hear 'no kings' I find I feel agitated. I'm a firm believer in Name It.
I really find your emails so insightful and very clear…I read an article in the Sunday New York Times by Michelle Goldberg in the Sunday Opinion “ THE TERROR TACTICS OF ICE
INSPIRE A NEW TRUMP RESISTANCE” very inspiring…do you think she would meet with us?
Thank you Simon, this is all incredible info! Truly love our selection of candidates. My Uncle who is recently retired, worked for a pivotal non profit organization connected to the pharmaceutical industry and played an instrumental role in getting out the vaccine necessarily, to nursing homes across the country (particularly the east coast region) during COVID.
Unfortunately for him, Buddy Carter was their only source on Capitol Hill to help sponsor good bills related to the field cuz he was the only pharmacist on necessary panels his company needed to reach through. Now that my Uncle is retired of course, he’s personally donating to Ossoff and proud of it.
I don’t consider ourselves the underdogs. We are not just the opposition, we are the future and we have sharp candidates to back it and a deep bench to help push us forward against seeming odds these days and against what now is thankfully appearing to be the flailing rise of Trump and his authoritarian movement (hence, Epstein isn’t going away nor are the looming effects of the BBB also starting to be felt in real time, nor is the backlash to ICE) within our country that we know one, is NOT irreversible (as professed by a number of astute historian HCR included) and two, is truly unsustainable in our 21st century modern society, arguably the most culturally diverse in the world. One can’t fight off the inevitable in such a societal landscape…..birth rates!!! Thank you again for all you do. I’m going to post a second question/comment because I didn’t want to link it with this or else it would have likely gotten lost in the shuffle so to speak.
Simon, second comment/question I wanted to pose if I may? Would you be willing to offer your take on Kamala’s ‘comeback’ appearance on Colbert? Some have criticized it as too contrived, staged, or a further shadow of what seems to be wrong about the Democratic Party. While we all here are not afraid to admit our faults and are not cultists…I also take issue with the criticism she’s receiving.
People can crap on just about anything if they want to which normally is a further projection of their own self frustration. Personally, I felt her appearance was sharp, candid, refreshing, and in fact, optimistic. I had predicted some time back with my family and friends that she would ultimately NOT run for Governor of CA. Do I feel she would have won and have been effective? Yes! But it’s clear her heart wasn’t in that particular race and I personally feel she is meant for bigger moments.
How can we expect a career excellent prosecutor to fold and reenter the system, forcing herself to likely have to ‘dance with devil’ so to speak? Yes, whomever does win the race (hopefully a Democrat) will be in a complicated position concerning Trump. But for Kamala’ core, she doesn’t ’work or deal with crooks,’ she prosecutes them! Such a move I feel would have been both counterproductive and counterintuitive in spite of the fact it would have re juiced her political career. That’s not to discredit the position because I feel Governor Newsome (who I’ve had mixed feelings about for some time) is in a complex position but is meeting the moment, necessarily fighting fire with fire!
That said, there are other things that can re juice Kamala’s career and I believe she is methodical and sees the bigger picture through a lens of longevity better than many these days. She remains in my view, one of the most underestimated figures in our time.
Of course, she had a hard working team with her during this past election. However, she was the face and the brand! Not to mention, as a prosecutor, she was undoubtedly highly involved with much of the decision making process. For her to have amounted such a vigorous campaign in such short time, and to have amounted the following she did, the endorsements she did, the tone she did, the money she did, was all surreal and rather miraculous even in spite of the loss. Just imagine how much further she can actually go!
So, will she run in 2028? Maybe, maybe not. Would the party be foolish not to embrace her should she choose to? Absolutely! I do have a sneaky feeling she is setting herself up behind the scenes to be offered/appointed the next AG should we win the Presidency God willing. Going back to her roots but in a position of utmost significance would be rather just and karmic and perhaps, would enable her to be even more powerful in a way than whomever the President would be. Nevertheless, she is a leader on many levels and is far from ‘done’ certainly in my view.
For those who feel she’s ‘over’ or is a burden to the party are naive and antithetical to what we’re striving for here at Hopium. Especially, given the energy we expended towards her campaign.
Anyway, we are very aware of the close relationship you shared with Kamala and I for one, have always admired and identified with your assessment of the X Factor she possessed (for me, since noticing her from her days in the senate, for you, longer of course). I know we have future races to fight for and other topics to keep engaged with, especially as Kamala’ trajectory is currently unclear (however smart in that she will utilize this time to truly progress as a more genuine retail politician if you will, traveling the nation).
However, would you be able to shed any light, feedback, thoughts on where she stands now and where you feel she may be headed. I feel in my gut she will be an instrumental figure for us for some time to come. I understand if you also can’t give too much away out of respect for her privacy. Thank you again for all you do and for your incredible leadership of this community. We can’t stress that enough!
Self report: Spent 3 hours tabling beside our Farmer's Market yesterday. This is the third time my Indivisible group has done this and I've been there every time. It was a very different experience. TWICE as many people signed our mailing list to receive our weekly newsletter this time. So many people would approach US, begin a conversation with US, then take our literature. And half a dozen people commented on our recent Front Porch Forum (our online community "message board") post inviting people to join us in creating a wall of resistance. It was very heartening, to see more and more people getting braver, paying attention, and choosing to engage.
I haven't slowed down this summer - yet. (My daughter is moving in a couple of weeks so I'm front-loading my activism before I spend my "summer vacation" packing and lugging boxes.)
Saturday I joined our weekly Defend Democracy (aka Stop the Billionaires, previously known as Tesla Takedown) in Mt. Kisco, NY with my sign: "MAGA Mike is a Liar" on one side and G.O.P R.I.P gravestone on the other side. As Simon says, the 2026 midterms have begun, and we will defeat MAGA Mike Lawler, and flip NY CD-17 back to blue!
I am new member to the chat here. I’ve enjoyed your overall view of things and in particular your view of the Democratic Party at this point. I think I consider myself an independent and that doesn’t mean that I’m more Republican certainly, but it means that my ideals do not align with the Democratic Party either. This has primarily to do with the fact that the Democratic Party, it seems to me, as a whole has not dealt with the issue of money and politics. For instance, your list of candidates here, the first thing you’re asking for is money. I know very little about these people and already we’re asking for money. Senator Elizabeth Warren, whom I really like, almost never sends something out without asking for money. This is continuing the dynamic where the person who raises the most money is going to win and that’s a game that the Republicans or MAGA, have rigged because they are basically pandering to the ultra rich. The ultra rich will always be able to contribute more than us with less effort expended. So, if it’s a contest of money we’re gonna lose. But that is not really the heart of the issue which is I don’t want people who’s primary skill is fundraising running our country. This selects for the wrong people. The skill set of governing and the skill set of fundraising in my opinion do not over lap. In my view they may even be opposite. Also, I don’t want my government spending more than half of its time fundraising for the next election cycle. I want them high-lighting their policy positions and their success in governance as the reasons why they should be re elected. I want them working more consistently and not taking a break to fundraise. I don’t want their chief of staff to be a money guy. I don't want our elections to be a media circus. I want them to be serious.
I personally would vote for a candidate who said on the Internet, having raised no money at all, exactly what he was about including elections that don’t require money, candidacy that doesn’t require money, elections that are structured and consistent; not a circus. People in general may think this is too idealistic and not practical and yet it is done in lots of other countries. It would take some time and effort to establish your here, but I swear if a candidate just said, I am going to campaign for structured elections that are funded through tax dollars only, I’d vote for that guy if he had nothing else to say; if he didn’t ask me for money. I’ve talked to a lot of people about this. I know that I am not the only person who feels that this is essential to maintain our democracy. I’m not the only one who feels that this is second in importance only to defeating MAGA and P-2025. First in importance if we/when we do get to the other side and we are having to reinvent ourselves in the wake of this disaster.
I sure would like it if this became a topic of discussion. Everywhere I look the whole topic of money and elections revolves around Citizens United as if repealing that would fix the problem. I don’t think it would and in fact, with out other structural changes, I think we would have Citizens United V2 in short order. I know these chats don’t really engender discussion but I wish it would happen somehow. I believe it would be of interest to many.
He also talks about fraudulent people asking for money via text (and email) and speculates that Democrats have lots millions of dollars this way. It's why I delete every text I get and only donate through Hopium or other trusted sources.
From COURIER https://open.substack.com/pub/simonwdc/p/courier-at-6-winning-the-info-wars?r=27is3y&utm_medium=ios Newsroom
The Keystone (PA) Newsroom
Musikfest 2025 is here: What to know before you go
https://shorturl.at/KqhI5
By Patrick Berkery
July 28, 2025
More than 1 million people attended Musikfest in Bethlehem[, PA] last year. Now in its 42nd year, the festival runs Thursday [Aug. 7] through [Sunday] Aug. 10, with more than 400 free performances, along with ticketed headline shows, comedy, kids activities, and more.
Happy August, Simon. I suspect this is going to be a terrible month for a lot of people..
Good morning, all. Yesterday I made phone calls for our Dem coordinated here in New Jersey, which is candidates up and down the ballot. I then went and did some door knocking for our state assembly candidates. I have a long list and I will continue doing door knocking today as well. I am fortunate because one of the candidates actually lives in my neighborhood, and she is fantastic.
The weather is also beautiful here and as the tourists start to leave, this is the time of year when people at the Jersey Shore really start to enjoy living here , aka Locals Summer. 😎
I will work on some postcards this evening and also participate in a national MoveOn call as well as listen to Dr. Ben-Ghiat, who does a Sunday evening chat once a month.
Here is the link for the call in case anyone would like to join: https://www.mobilize.us/moveon/event/816253/
Keep going!
Thank you for all you do!
Can you speak more about the draconian gerrymandering in Texas and being fostered in other states by GOP? This pushes voters aside. I read HCR latest on this and I was not encouraged.
It’s a gamble. These red states are already heavily gerrymandered so they have to make assumptions about the composition of the electorate and actually make some districts more competitive in order to pull something off. Maybe it’ll work and maybe it won’t. I’m glad to see Dem states fighting back, but the long term strategy is to win in red areas. If we can shrink the number of people voting Republican no amount of gerrymandering will save them. Most important, none of this changes what we do now so press on with your donating and volunteering. They want us to feel helpless and demobilized; don’t give them what they want.
Also, I admire HCR and am a paid subscriber to her substack, but I don’t read it anymore because it started giving me panic attacks. Her work is critical for history but in my opinion you don’t need to follow the day to day atrocities to be informed and valuable to the cause.
I like HCR but can see your point. I don’t know much about gerrymandering but it does seem complex. I worried about Democrats who stay with a just fight back idea. That said, governors have a certain degree of power and it seems blue state governors are prepared to gerrymander. Some of this will probably end up in the courts. And some voters will be frustrated to have the power of their vote diluted. In Missouri, we have a MAGA governor who wants to carve up blue Kansas City. I imagine there will be ferocious pushback but they’ll probably do the gerrymander. I’ve wondered whether it may be risky for the GOP.
Wishful thinking moment: If red states do gerrymander further and those changes uphold legal challenges, the BEST possible outcome for the country then would be that most DEMS still win state and US seats despite these shenanigans because ALL voters are fed up with Republicans' cruel policies and their despicable behaviors in governing.
Let's NOT give them what they want. Keep fighting, calling, writing, protesting, rallying, doing everything one can to support Democratic Voters.
Simon addressed it his Zoom meeting with paid subscribers on July 31 at 22:25-25:28 https://www.hopiumchronicles.com/p/trumps-tariff-madness-makes-it-clear
and he also talks about how diluting districts by moving republican voters to other districts puts those diluted areas into play for Democrats.
Simon on Bluesky "One of the more interesting questions about the new Texas maps is whether Ds can mount serious campaigns in these newly competitive districts and begin to revive the Dem Party in Texas. Long term we have to learn how to make FL or TX competitive. This overreach could jumpstart that process in TX."
Thank you, Deborah, for this reminder.
I don't think the GOP has factored in the degree to which the Hispanic GOP vote has cratered. This could backfire on them spectacularly!
I have formerly Republican family members living in the Houston area who are furious and terrified. They didn't like Trump but voted for him for a variety of reasons, but are now rabid in their hatred of him. I have to assume this is playing out in many Spanish-speaking households. (My family members are Cuban and Venezuelan.)
Very interesting, thank you for letting us know.
In support of "No Kings Day #2, #3 and #4..." I offer the following:
The Wages of Corrupt Leadership
When leaders feast while others starve below,
And twist the truth to serve their selfish gain
The poisoned seeds of tyranny will grow
Until the common good becomes their bane.
Trust withers like a rose in barren ground,
As justice bends beneath the weight of gold,
While honest voices struggle to be found
the lies that endlessly unfold.
The state's foundation cracks with each deceit,
Its pillars weakened by each broken vow,
As citizens retreat from public street,
Their faith in governance corrupted now.
Yet history shows that power built on lies
Will crumble when the people's conscience cries.
I know the word 'king' is being 'symbolically' used for trump as though it echoes through the Ages from when America gained independence. However, I think there is a much more realistic way to deal with this.
1. As a bit of a side-bar. America's independence from Britain (from my understanding and correct me if I'm not accurate) was because the TEA Corporation tied at the hip to the British Government raised taxes on Tea ... not the British Government. This is NOT a subtle difference and if I'm inaccurate please let me know. Fighting against a 'government' is one thing, fighting against a Corporation backed by government is an entirely different Thing.
2. This leads to trump (not a king). Trump is a Mob Boss. Stop and get your head around what this means. OUr government cannot fight against a 'king'. However, our laws can deal with a Mob Boss. What are the ways that trump is a Mob Boss? He attacks, threatens, extorts, punishes, replaces his minions and believes he should control everything. He's a simple Mob Boss and if we all begin to treat him and his minions as being complicate in the Mob, we will get further. We cannot elevate those in the admin as part of a kingdom/kingship/royalty.
I really would like Simon to talk about this and think about it. Reality is vitally important. It is NOT real that he is a 'king' and he is not 'pretending' to be a 'king. The Reality is that he's a corrupt mob boss who has always been one throughout his life and those who work with him and for him are working for a mob family.
I deeply believe that the Reality of his being a Mob Boss will resonate with many, many, many more people ... on all sides. 'King' is just too squishy.
“No kings” caught on and 5 million protesters joined together.
“No mob bosses” may be more accurate but it us less punchy.
Hi Jenny ... I fully understand that. Personally, for me, hyping is not how we live and how we deal with Reality. for me, it's about educating people. We can march because of the 'punchy' but ZERO policies can be put in place to deal with 'punchy' so, just for me, it's better to march to get rid of corruption in politics by a mob boss and I believe a term could be developed that brought people out and then there were avenues for follow-up. To me, there is ZERO avenue to follow up on 'no kings' and then it just gets dismissed as 'hype'. Mob Boss is who he is, what he does and policies can be put in place to stop this. That's just me. Please discuss this with your friends and others and get back to me. Iin other words, I believe we need to be dealing with Reality and not in a REality TV Show.
Erica Chenoweth claims that authoritarian regimes fail when 3.5% of the populations begins to resist peacefully and regularly. She also claims that it is usually corruption that wakes up the other 96.5% of the public. So highlighting the corruption of the mob boss is vitally important.
I had heard that. I'm definitely involved with Indivisible, Rev Wm Barber, Hopium and others and when I hear 'no kings' I find I feel agitated. I'm a firm believer in Name It.
I really find your emails so insightful and very clear…I read an article in the Sunday New York Times by Michelle Goldberg in the Sunday Opinion “ THE TERROR TACTICS OF ICE
INSPIRE A NEW TRUMP RESISTANCE” very inspiring…do you think she would meet with us?
THANKS FOR ALL THAT YOU DO 24/7…Ros Mazur
After I post this comment of thanks for all these excellent interviews, I’m putting the phone down and go enjoy the sunshine with our dog, Farley.
Good afternoon all,
Just wanted to send along my latest post: https://davidsalzillo.substack.com/p/one-president-three-genocides.
It criticizes Trump's handling of three separate wars. If you have any feedback to offer on it, please do so.
Thank you Simon, this is all incredible info! Truly love our selection of candidates. My Uncle who is recently retired, worked for a pivotal non profit organization connected to the pharmaceutical industry and played an instrumental role in getting out the vaccine necessarily, to nursing homes across the country (particularly the east coast region) during COVID.
Unfortunately for him, Buddy Carter was their only source on Capitol Hill to help sponsor good bills related to the field cuz he was the only pharmacist on necessary panels his company needed to reach through. Now that my Uncle is retired of course, he’s personally donating to Ossoff and proud of it.
I don’t consider ourselves the underdogs. We are not just the opposition, we are the future and we have sharp candidates to back it and a deep bench to help push us forward against seeming odds these days and against what now is thankfully appearing to be the flailing rise of Trump and his authoritarian movement (hence, Epstein isn’t going away nor are the looming effects of the BBB also starting to be felt in real time, nor is the backlash to ICE) within our country that we know one, is NOT irreversible (as professed by a number of astute historian HCR included) and two, is truly unsustainable in our 21st century modern society, arguably the most culturally diverse in the world. One can’t fight off the inevitable in such a societal landscape…..birth rates!!! Thank you again for all you do. I’m going to post a second question/comment because I didn’t want to link it with this or else it would have likely gotten lost in the shuffle so to speak.
now for my august palette cleanser.... joe biden's last speech to the nation (sorry about the ads)
17 mins. really hits home when you hear it today.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fC8EqPSVzQ
Thank you so much, Simon, for your wisdom, always supporting and guiding our actions.
Simon, second comment/question I wanted to pose if I may? Would you be willing to offer your take on Kamala’s ‘comeback’ appearance on Colbert? Some have criticized it as too contrived, staged, or a further shadow of what seems to be wrong about the Democratic Party. While we all here are not afraid to admit our faults and are not cultists…I also take issue with the criticism she’s receiving.
People can crap on just about anything if they want to which normally is a further projection of their own self frustration. Personally, I felt her appearance was sharp, candid, refreshing, and in fact, optimistic. I had predicted some time back with my family and friends that she would ultimately NOT run for Governor of CA. Do I feel she would have won and have been effective? Yes! But it’s clear her heart wasn’t in that particular race and I personally feel she is meant for bigger moments.
How can we expect a career excellent prosecutor to fold and reenter the system, forcing herself to likely have to ‘dance with devil’ so to speak? Yes, whomever does win the race (hopefully a Democrat) will be in a complicated position concerning Trump. But for Kamala’ core, she doesn’t ’work or deal with crooks,’ she prosecutes them! Such a move I feel would have been both counterproductive and counterintuitive in spite of the fact it would have re juiced her political career. That’s not to discredit the position because I feel Governor Newsome (who I’ve had mixed feelings about for some time) is in a complex position but is meeting the moment, necessarily fighting fire with fire!
That said, there are other things that can re juice Kamala’s career and I believe she is methodical and sees the bigger picture through a lens of longevity better than many these days. She remains in my view, one of the most underestimated figures in our time.
Of course, she had a hard working team with her during this past election. However, she was the face and the brand! Not to mention, as a prosecutor, she was undoubtedly highly involved with much of the decision making process. For her to have amounted such a vigorous campaign in such short time, and to have amounted the following she did, the endorsements she did, the tone she did, the money she did, was all surreal and rather miraculous even in spite of the loss. Just imagine how much further she can actually go!
So, will she run in 2028? Maybe, maybe not. Would the party be foolish not to embrace her should she choose to? Absolutely! I do have a sneaky feeling she is setting herself up behind the scenes to be offered/appointed the next AG should we win the Presidency God willing. Going back to her roots but in a position of utmost significance would be rather just and karmic and perhaps, would enable her to be even more powerful in a way than whomever the President would be. Nevertheless, she is a leader on many levels and is far from ‘done’ certainly in my view.
For those who feel she’s ‘over’ or is a burden to the party are naive and antithetical to what we’re striving for here at Hopium. Especially, given the energy we expended towards her campaign.
Anyway, we are very aware of the close relationship you shared with Kamala and I for one, have always admired and identified with your assessment of the X Factor she possessed (for me, since noticing her from her days in the senate, for you, longer of course). I know we have future races to fight for and other topics to keep engaged with, especially as Kamala’ trajectory is currently unclear (however smart in that she will utilize this time to truly progress as a more genuine retail politician if you will, traveling the nation).
However, would you be able to shed any light, feedback, thoughts on where she stands now and where you feel she may be headed. I feel in my gut she will be an instrumental figure for us for some time to come. I understand if you also can’t give too much away out of respect for her privacy. Thank you again for all you do and for your incredible leadership of this community. We can’t stress that enough!
I’m so annoyed at the pushback she’s getting, and I expect people would be less inclined to criticize her every move if she was a white man.
Self report: Spent 3 hours tabling beside our Farmer's Market yesterday. This is the third time my Indivisible group has done this and I've been there every time. It was a very different experience. TWICE as many people signed our mailing list to receive our weekly newsletter this time. So many people would approach US, begin a conversation with US, then take our literature. And half a dozen people commented on our recent Front Porch Forum (our online community "message board") post inviting people to join us in creating a wall of resistance. It was very heartening, to see more and more people getting braver, paying attention, and choosing to engage.
I haven't slowed down this summer - yet. (My daughter is moving in a couple of weeks so I'm front-loading my activism before I spend my "summer vacation" packing and lugging boxes.)
Thank you for your efforts
Saturday I joined our weekly Defend Democracy (aka Stop the Billionaires, previously known as Tesla Takedown) in Mt. Kisco, NY with my sign: "MAGA Mike is a Liar" on one side and G.O.P R.I.P gravestone on the other side. As Simon says, the 2026 midterms have begun, and we will defeat MAGA Mike Lawler, and flip NY CD-17 back to blue!
I like the sign messages!
Thanks!
I am new member to the chat here. I’ve enjoyed your overall view of things and in particular your view of the Democratic Party at this point. I think I consider myself an independent and that doesn’t mean that I’m more Republican certainly, but it means that my ideals do not align with the Democratic Party either. This has primarily to do with the fact that the Democratic Party, it seems to me, as a whole has not dealt with the issue of money and politics. For instance, your list of candidates here, the first thing you’re asking for is money. I know very little about these people and already we’re asking for money. Senator Elizabeth Warren, whom I really like, almost never sends something out without asking for money. This is continuing the dynamic where the person who raises the most money is going to win and that’s a game that the Republicans or MAGA, have rigged because they are basically pandering to the ultra rich. The ultra rich will always be able to contribute more than us with less effort expended. So, if it’s a contest of money we’re gonna lose. But that is not really the heart of the issue which is I don’t want people who’s primary skill is fundraising running our country. This selects for the wrong people. The skill set of governing and the skill set of fundraising in my opinion do not over lap. In my view they may even be opposite. Also, I don’t want my government spending more than half of its time fundraising for the next election cycle. I want them high-lighting their policy positions and their success in governance as the reasons why they should be re elected. I want them working more consistently and not taking a break to fundraise. I don’t want their chief of staff to be a money guy. I don't want our elections to be a media circus. I want them to be serious.
I personally would vote for a candidate who said on the Internet, having raised no money at all, exactly what he was about including elections that don’t require money, candidacy that doesn’t require money, elections that are structured and consistent; not a circus. People in general may think this is too idealistic and not practical and yet it is done in lots of other countries. It would take some time and effort to establish your here, but I swear if a candidate just said, I am going to campaign for structured elections that are funded through tax dollars only, I’d vote for that guy if he had nothing else to say; if he didn’t ask me for money. I’ve talked to a lot of people about this. I know that I am not the only person who feels that this is essential to maintain our democracy. I’m not the only one who feels that this is second in importance only to defeating MAGA and P-2025. First in importance if we/when we do get to the other side and we are having to reinvent ourselves in the wake of this disaster.
I sure would like it if this became a topic of discussion. Everywhere I look the whole topic of money and elections revolves around Citizens United as if repealing that would fix the problem. I don’t think it would and in fact, with out other structural changes, I think we would have Citizens United V2 in short order. I know these chats don’t really engender discussion but I wish it would happen somehow. I believe it would be of interest to many.
DNC chair Ken Martin talks about getting big money out of politics in this interview on Pod Save America. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OTkvjF1DjY
He also talks about fraudulent people asking for money via text (and email) and speculates that Democrats have lots millions of dollars this way. It's why I delete every text I get and only donate through Hopium or other trusted sources.