Hi all, this post is going to be fairly quick, because it’s about a thing that hasn’t happened yet but that I’m very excited about.
Next Tuesday, September 21st at 5pm, I’m co-hosting a virtual event Representative Andy Kim is holding with former Attorney General Eric Holder.
It’s a fundraiser, so at various times in this post I’ll ask you to donate if you’re able, nd it’s also a chance to hear one of the most thoughtful young members of Congress speak about voting rights with one of America’s leaders in the fight for democracy.
If that’s all I needed to say to convince you to support Andy and join the event, here’s a link!
For everyone else: I know some of you on this list know Andy, know how much I respect Andy, or both. He served in the Obama National Security Council, flipped his Central Jersey congressional district blue in 2018, and then won re-election by 8 points in 2020 even though his district voted for Trump over Biden. After January 6th, a picture of him cleaning up the capitol went viral:
Anyone who knows Andy knows that’s just who he is. He’s a helper.
Which is why, even though he’s going to have another tough re-election fight, he’s not backing down from the fight for voting rights or for democracy. Eric Holder needs no introduction (which is good because we’re in the middle of this post already) - and his work as the chair of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee has helped prepare us for what is about to be a bruising fight to curb partisan gerrymandering.
So this is going to be a very interesting conversation about the most important issue facing our country right as the debate over that issue heats up.
Do I feel weird asking you for money? Yes! But I’m willing to do it anyway because Andy’s campaign is worth supporting - he’s shown he can win tough races, but Republicans have made his seat a top target for 2022 and he’s in the very expensive Philly media market. So I hope you can join the event.
That said, I know the suggested donation isn’t cheap. So, as long as I can get permission, I’ll write up something conversation for a post next week so that everyone who subscribes to How Democracy Lives gets the highlights. In turn, if it’s possible to throw even a dollar Andy’s way, it will make a real difference. Would-be Republican challengers are going to be looking at the number of supporters Andy has, not just the amount of money he raises, when they decide whether or not to throw their hats in the ring.
So one last time, here’s a sign-up/support Andy link. I’m not planning on making these kind of posts a habit, but it’s a sign of how much I support Andy, and how much I’m looking forward to this conversation, that I’m very willing to make an exception.
Thanks, and watch this space for highlights of Tuesday’s conversation sometime next week.
Have a great weekend,
David