Dear fellow Wisconsin Democrats,

Last night, one candidate needed a lozenge. The other one needed a reminder that he’s not running for dictator of North Korea.

Was it the world’s greatest debate? No. Did it change the stakes in this election one iota? Also no. Biden had a cold. Trump lied his face off. Meanwhile, he refused to accept the result of the election—three times. Trump waxed poetic about his nostalgia for January 6. Trump couldn’t contain his enthusiasm for killing Roe v Wade.

And we know what Trump will do if he gets back into power—because he’s told us. For details, read up on Project 2025. The national abortion ban is just the start.

Biden, too, has both a track record and a vision for the future. Defending freedom. Upholding democracy. Delivering for working people. That beats Trump’s record—ripping away freedom, attacking democracy, shoveling trillions of dollars to billionaires and huge corporations—every step of the way.

Our job—all of our job—is to make this election about that.

Each of us is going to wake up each day for the next 138 days and decide what to do with each precious minute. Each of us has a choice to make. And the sum of those choices is going to determine the fate of American democracy. When pundits panic, I sometimes reread the great Thomas Paine quote:

These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.

Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered. Dig deep. Focus on the stakes in people’s lives. If you’re feeling anxious about politics, there’s no better treatment than political action.

You can’t wring your hands when you’re rolling up your sleeves.

In solidarity,

Ben

[edited by Allin Walker]