Monday

Some of the news is concerning today: Fencing was erected at the White House and the VP residence as D.C. braces for unrest. But we should not face this moment with fear. This is a moment for courage, not alarmism. The fact that our government is preparing for a storm is good news, much better than in 2020 when they were taken by surprise.

This is a good day to be a smart, careful consumer of news and information and to be a voice of reason for those around you. Avoid the drama-la. Are there some scary possibilities out there? Of course there are, but they’re unlikely to materialize, and if they do, we’ll take them as we find them. Make sure you stick to news you can trust and critically examine the rest. On Saturday, the FBI issued a statement advising the public that they were aware of two fake videos being circulated on social media. One involved a fake claim the FBI had determined three groups were committing ballot fraud. The second involved Kamala Harris’ husband, Doug Emhoff.

NBC News reported that Russia was behind a fake video claiming Haitian immigrants voted illegally in Georgia. It looks like Putin’s government and Trump’s campaign are both involved in efforts to undercut Americans’ confidence in our elections. That’s something we know and have known for so long that we don’t always pay the attention that we should to it. But it’s Donald Trump who has created this crisis of confidence in our elections—it did not exist before him, and he continues to fan the flames. The half-truths and lies are so pervasive that people beyond his base may have doubts too. That is not the conduct of someone who belongs in the White House. Let’s make sure we say that today to encourage people to vote for democracy tomorrow. And let’s avoid the speculation and the hype.

So take care. If something looks either too good or too inflammatory to be true, take a second look. And encourage people you interact with online to do the same thing!

And, of course, my constant reminder: Polls don’t vote; people do. The most important thing to do today is to make sure that you and all of your like-minded friends vote!

As much as our attention is focused on the presidential race, the races for control of the Senate and the House will be equally important. Challenges in those states and districts may draw our attention to places we haven’t focused on in the run-up to the election.

The most vulnerable Republicans in the House are likely to be those in Democratic states like California and New York. Democrats only need to pick up four seats to control the House, but of course, they’d like a tidier majority than that. They’ll look first to Republicans running in districts where Joe Biden won, and eight of those races are in those two states. But there are other races to watch, like Alabama’s 2nd District, which was newly drawn after the Supreme Court invalidated a racially gerrymandered district and where Shomari Figures, a native of the district, returned home from working at high levels of government and in the private sector in Washington, D.C., in hopes of becoming Alabama’s newest Democratic Congressman. If he wins, that’s a pick-up for the Democrats.

There is also an interesting race in Virginia’s 7th District, where Democrat Eugene Vindman, who served in the military for 25 years, starting out as an Infantry Officer in the 82nd Airborne, becoming a military prosecutor, and rising to become an advisor at the White House National Security Council before he became a casualty of Trump’s first impeachment. He is the twin brother of retired US Army Col. Alexander Vindman. Although he would be replacing a Democrat who chose not to run again, a victory by Vindman would make a statement about courage and service in an era where we need more of that.

But there are also districts that could flip Republican, like Maine 2, where Democratic Representative and military veteran Jared Golden decided his best option was to run away from Kamala Harris, whom he declined to endorse. Rather than appealing to the better angels in his district—I know many of them, it’s where my alma mater, Bates College, is located—Golden is trying to beat the Republicans at their own game. Trump won the district by 6 points four years ago and is up by 5 points in the polls today.

Golden’s opponent is the Trump-endorsed Austin Theriault, a 30-year-old state representative and former NASCAR driver, who Republicans hope will be able to appeal across the massive, mostly rural district, which stretches from rocky shorelines in the south all the way north to the state’s border with Canada.

These downballot races are incredibly important. If Trump claims an early victory, which he is almost certain to do, at least a part of it will be aimed at keeping Democrats from voting in them. Trump’s future, in large part, depends on not just regaining the White House but also in preventing margins in the House and Senate that might impeach him for the almost inevitable misconduct he will engage in if the past is prologue. Now that the Supreme Court has made it clear that a sitting president engaging in official conduct cannot be prosecuted—ever—impeachment becomes an even more important feature of the landscape.

But hopefully, we will not end up there, and it will not be needed. Stay calm and focused.

I’ll be here all week to help you understand the post-election legal landscape. Thanks for being here and for supporting Civil Discourse. If you aren’t already, I hope you’ll consider becoming a subscriber. Our work to restore the Republic is just starting.

We’re in this together,

Joyce