The weekend news was dominated by two topics: Voter suppression and the weakening economy. We can fight against the former, but the destruction of the economy is a problem beyond our control, for now. But not for long. As a WSJ op-ed contributor noted on Sunday,
Mr. Trump does himself and his party no favors by waving away economic reality. Democrats spent the Biden presidency playing down inflation, and look where it got them.
Yes, indeed! Americans can tell when the economy is worsening. It shows up in the cost of groceries, back-to-school clothes, and holiday gifts. Trump can fire as many messengers as he wants, but he cannot control retail markets. Republicans are losing on the issues of the economy (tariffs, inflation), immigration, and accountability for the rich and powerful (Epstein). Democrats have a relative advantage on the issues. It could be otherwise, so let’s count our blessings and prepare for the battles to come!
Let’s take a look at the developments over the last few days to help put them in perspective.
Voter Suppression
Trump has asked Texas Republicans to gerrymander congressional districts ahead of the 2026 midterms. Doing so could (theoretically) give Republicans an additional five seats in the Texas congressional delegation. It appears that Democratic legislators in Texas are preparing to flee the state to prevent the necessary quorum to pass the gerrymandering legislation. Politico, Texas Dems to flee state amid national redistricting battle.
Per Politico,
Dozens of Texas Democrats plan to flee the state amid a special session Sunday afternoon, making a last-ditch effort to disrupt a mid-decade redistricting attempt forced by President Donald Trump, according to two people briefed on the matter.
It marks their second act of breaking quorum — when the state House will lack the minimum number of lawmakers needed to conduct business — since 2021. And it comes as the party scrambles to counter the aggressive action in Texas, intended to keep Republicans in power in Congress next year by creating five GOP-friendly seats in the state.
In response, other states controlled by Democrats are considering mid-decade redistricting to counter gerrymandering efforts in Texas. To be clear, the point of those Democratic efforts would be to engage in political gerrymandering to offset gerrymandering in Texas.
Some readers have cautioned against Democratic gerrymandering, arguing that such efforts amount to voter suppression against Republicans. Other readers say that we are in an existential battle for democracy and that refusing to reciprocate in the (sadly) permissible practice of partisan gerrymandering is shortsighted. See, generally, Brennan Center for Justice, Gerrymandering Explained. (“[S]ince the Supreme Court’s 2019 ruling . . . gerrymandering for party advantage cannot be challenged in federal court.)
If Texas Democrats succeed in shutting down the Texas legislature by fleeing the state, then states controlled by Democrats can avoid the difficult issue of reciprocal partisan gerrymandering. The obvious solution to partisan gerrymandering is the passage of legislation like the Freedom to Vote Act, which Democrats attempted (but failed) to pass under President Biden
The effort by Texas Republicans to engage in mid-decade redistricting is but one of the many voter suppression efforts that Trump has put into play since his inauguration. The Brennan Center for Justice has summarized the current voter suppression efforts by the Trump administration in this article, The Trump Administration’s Campaign to Undermine the Next Election | Brennan Center for Justice.
The Brennan Center is a highly respected source of reliable information and scholarship. It accurately catalogs the Trump administration’s voter suppression efforts. It would be easy and understandable to read the Brennan Center article and come away with a sense of dread and foreboding about 2026.
The article by the Brennan Center also lists the countermeasures to defeat the voter suppression efforts by the Trump administration. So, for example, per the article,
Voter suppression effort: Attempting to Impose a “Show Your Papers” Requirement on Voters. Status: Subject to challenge in five lawsuits across the nation, implementation of some provisions blocked by two of those lawsuits.
Voter suppression effort: Meddling with Election Equipment. Status: Challenged in two lawsuits, and “the agency still must follow several steps under federal law before the guidelines can be implemented, including consulting with advisory boards of nonpartisan experts and posting the guidelines for public comment.”
Voter suppression effort: Accessing Sensitive Voter File Data. Status: “In some states, giving voter records to the federal government without written consent from voters would also be a violation of state law; in others, redaction would be required.”
Voter suppression effort: Weaponizing federal agencies. Status: “Courts have already struck down this administration’s attempts to subvert the law. For example . . . two courts have preliminarily stopped the president from unlawfully trying to direct an independent, bipartisan agency to add a citizenship document requirement to the federal voter registration form.”
I could go on, but you get the point. Educating ourselves about the problem is the first step. Identifying solutions, including those already in the works, is the second step.
I receive emails from readers every week saying, in effect, “Okay, the 2026 elections will take place, but Trump will ensure they are not free and fair.” The obvious follow-up questions are, “How is he going to do that?” and “What can we do about it?”
Many readers highlight the “voter suppression” tactics without acknowledging the countermeasures that are already in place. To be clear, I am not saying that we can relax and let down our guard. That would be unwise, just as it would be unwise to communicate that “All is lost” and “Trump is going to rig the 2026 elections and there is nothing we can do about it.”
A more accurate statement is “Trump is trying to rig the 2026 elections, and Democrats are fighting back on all fronts.” Don’t just spot issues; spot solutions as well. And communicate both to nervous friends, neighbors, and fellow activists.
Finally, if you want some confidence about the path to reclaiming free and fair elections, I highly recommend this 37-minute video featuring David Pepper being interviewed by John Avlon. See The Bulwark, Fight Everywhere or Lose Everything! (w/ David Pepper)
The video explains that Republicans have an unfair electoral advantage in the US House because of decades of partisan gerrymandering, a practice that tends to “lock in” minority rule.
Sounds bad, right? Well, it is bad, but there is a solution.
As David Pepper explains, decades of gerrymandering have resulted in a situation where Democrats do not field a candidate in many state-level and federal-level districts. In some states, the number of unconstested races is shockingly high—as in 30 to 40%. When there is no Democratic candidate on the ballot, that sends a message to Democrats in that district that they should not bother to show up.
As David Pepper explains, just having a Democratic candidate on the ballot in “safe” red district can affect statewide and national races. For example, Allison Riggs just won a seat on the North Carolina Supreme Court by a margin of 700 votes. Riggs won her seat after the chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party, Anderson Clayton, committed to having a Democratic candidate in every state legislative race without regard to Democratic prospects for success in those districts.
Allison Riggs sits on the North Carolina Supreme Court today because civic-minded Democrats committed to running as a candidate in a safe red district in North Carolina. Per David Pepper, “There is a public service in running that goes beyond winning.”
David Pepper also explains that failing to contest every race at the state level distorts national elections as well. Mike Johnson, the current Speaker of the US House, began his political career with two unopposed terms in the Louisiana legislature. In 2022, Johnson won an uncontested congressional election, after which he was elected Speaker of the House. In 2024, he faced no Democratic opponent.
Mike Johnson has presided over some of the most reactionary legislation ever passed by the House. As David Pepper notes, “Without the gerrymander, most of the GOP’s extreme policies would lead the GOP to lose over and over again.” And yet, according to legacy media, Democrats are losing because of “their message,” not because the playing field has been stacked against them.
David Pepper says the following near the end of the video: “The battle for democracy runs through your backyard. Helping a ‘red district’ Democrat to run can help end gerrymandering. Fight from the bottom up!”
The message from David Pepper and John Avlon is empowering. If you are worried about 2026 and would like some thoughtful commentary on the path forward, I recommend John Avlon’s video interview of David Pepper. The Bulwark, Fight Everywhere or Lose Everything!
Trump’s effort to “cook the books.”
Last Friday, Trump fired the chief statistician for the Bureau of Labor Statistics following a weaker-than-expected jobs report. That effort was greeted with widespread derision and alarm. Major media outlets and economists described the action as shortsighted and dangerous. See WSJ, The Bureau of Labor Denial. (Accessible to all.) (“The reality of slowing job growth is clear to anyone paying attention, no matter the official statistics. Mr. Trump’s data denial is one more reason fewer Americans will trust the government.”)
The White House spent the weekend mounting unconvincing defenses of Trump’s action. As noted in the Wall Street Journal editorial above, even Trump’s defenders couldn’t quite bring themselves to say that firing the chief statistician was warranted. See also, The Guardian, White House officials rush to defend Trump after shaky economic week | Trump administration.
Indeed, some of the defenders simply made matters worse. See CNN, Hassett says Trump ‘wants his own people’ at the Bureau of Labor Statistics after firing commissioner.
Per CNN,
National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett defended Trump’s decision to fire Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner Erika McEntarfer, claiming the president “wants his own people there.”
It will further erode the trust of the American people by staffing a non-partisan function with political appointees. Future economic reports will merely be the “starting point” for endless political bickering about the true state of the economy. And it is a no-win situation for Trump and for American business.
If the jobs report magically rebounds after Trump appoints “his own people,” that outcome will be inherently suspect. But if employment and inflation continue to trend in the wrong direction, Trump will fire the next crop of new hires and continue to replace qualified statisticians with political hacks. (Think Mike Lindell, the “My Pillow Guy.”)
The real loser in a “cooked books” scenario is American business. Business leaders need accurate data to make appropriate hiring and investment decisions. Indeed, denying accurate data may be a recipe for disaster. See NYTimes, Trump Fired America’s Economic Data Collector. History Shows the Perils. (Accessible to all.)
The Times article is worth your attention. It discusses historical parallels, including Greece, where the government faked economic reports for years, resulting in a collapse of the Greek economy and multiple bailouts by the IMF and European Central Bank.
And when a Greek government statistician began to report accurate numbers, the Greek government persecuted him for nearly a decade in a series of overlapping criminal and civil cases. When the statistician would be acquitted of a charge, he would be tried (and convicted) by an appeals court on the charges rejected by a jury, or a different prosecutor would file the same charges again in a different venue. See American Statistical Association, Eight Years of Government Persecution of Greek Statistician.
Trump’s firing of a statistician because he does not like the actual economic performance underlying the statistician’s report is affirmatively harmful to the US economy and another attack on the rule of law. Our elected representatives can do their jobs only if they know the truth about what is happening in America. By firing the chief statistician, Trump is attacking the truth and, derivatively, the democratic system.
A note on Democratic fundraising
Adam Bonica published an investigative report on his Substack platform, On Data and Democracy, The Mothership Vortex: An Investigation Into the Firm at the Heart of the Democratic Spam Machine.
The facts reported by Bonica are shocking and sickening. He details the revenue and expenses of one of the most significant Democratic fundraising operations, Mothership Strategies. Bonica’s article is carefully researched and includes a downloadable copy of the code necessary to extract the information from Mothership Strategies’ FEC filings.
There is a lot of detail in the article, but let me jump to the conclusion:
My analysis of the network’s FEC disbursements reveals that, at most, $11 million of the $678 million raised from individuals [by Mothership Strategies] has made its way to candidates, campaigns, or the [Democratic] national party committees.
But here’s the number that should end all debate:
This represents a fundraising efficiency rate of just 1.6 percent.
Here’s what that number means: for every dollar a grandmother in Iowa donates believing she’s saving democracy, 98 cents goes to consultants and operational costs. Just pennies reach actual campaigns.
This article should prompt a crisis-level meeting and communication by the Democratic National Committee to explain the Democratic Party’s actions regarding abusive fundraising operations that generate obscene profits for fundraisers.
Clear communication in the next several days is essential!
Bonica’s article closes with this stark message:
Most crucially: Recognize that Democratic donors deserve the same honesty the party demands from everyone else.
The party faces a choice. Continue feeding the vortex, or shut it down. Continue enriching consultants who’ve perverted its message, or reclaim its integrity. Continue treating supporters as ATMs, or start treating them as partners.
A party that prides itself on taking the high road doesn’t get to make exceptions for its own fundraising. Not when the cost is this clear. Not when the damage is this deep.
In the meantime, I will continue to promote grassroots organizations that are raising money on a volunteer basis for candidates and field GOTV operations without relying on intermediary PACs or fundraising consultants.
Stay tuned.
Opportunities for Reader Engagement
I received the following note from Dana Glazer of The Visibility Brigade
I just read your post from Friday about needing another #NoKings day, and I want to share with you that our Visibility Brigade movement will be conducting a nationwide action on August 15th called #BeBraveDay, where we will get the below message out into the public consciousness. Here are the details:
On Friday, August 15th, we celebrate #BeBraveDay, when hundreds of Visibility Brigade chapter groups will converge on overpasses and bridges across our nation, proclaiming:
BE BRAVE WITH US. WE’LL STAND WITH YOU.
Say this message out loud. Speak it to another person. Repeat it again. Does it make
you feel energized and ready to fight to save our country? Words. Have. Power. Check out where this message originated. Artists can go here.
We welcome you to join us on our overpasses on August 15th, but you can present this message elsewhere as well: on sidewalks, on display in store windows, in the front dash of your car, on your lawn, taped onto telephone poles - anywhere that is public and where we have 1st Amendment Rights or where you have permission to display it.
You can learn more here.
Concluding Thoughts
Reader Seth D. sent a note about his reaction to the motion picture Born Yesterday, which he watched over the weekend. (In his description, he refers to my Saturday live stream, as well.)
Seth writes:
I had an unexpected moment of inspiration while watching Born Yesterday. It’s classic cinema, featuring Judy Holliday’s Oscar-winning performance as the gangster’s moll who improves herself by studying the nation’s history, which is astounding.
There’s a scene where her character is looking around the Capitol Rotunda, listening to the stories of the nation’s founding. She regards the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights with awe, as the three documents upon which the nation was founded.
I was suddenly overwhelmed with a great confidence that a day will come, even though I may not be alive to see it, perhaps my son, or his children will, that day will come when some other person is looking around the Rotunda, or whatever serves as the seat of our nation in the future, and there are great paintings and statues dedicated to the fall of Donald Trump and the MAGA movement, and the subsequently drafted documents that heralded the next great phase of this nation in which we finally truly strived to live up the promises of those original three documents.
I just thought I’d share it.
If I had anything at all from this experience to share with your readers it would be, “Do not give up,” as you so eloquently espoused this morning, and that you just never know when unexpected inspiration is going to hit you.
Thanks, Seth! Well said.
Talk to you tomorrow!
Daily Dose of Inspiration
The moon is beautiful, but it can make astrophotography challenging. The moon can infuse the entire sky with enough light to interfere with efforts to capture faint targets in the darkness of interstellar space. So, rather than fight the moon, I decided to photograph it. The somewhat out-of-focus image below was taken on 8/2/2025 using a SeeStar 50 telescope (not my usual Celestron Origin).
Enjoy!
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