There was a time when we could live our personal lives without thinking too much about what was happening in our country. Except for those rare occasions where some government official was caught in a scheme to defraud the taxpayers, the government mostly ran efficiently and well. That time has long passed. We now must watch our government carefully and that is especially true now that one of our political parties is using misinformation and any legal or illegal means to achieve the power that they want. For the first time in our country’s history our rights and our democracy are at risk.

We only have two more elections to use our power to vote to save democracy in our country and protect the precious rights that we thought we would always have and which are now at risk –the right of every citizen to have his vote counted- the right of every citizen to protect their health—the right for all children to have a good and safe education—the right and promise of America that all citizens who live here will have equal rights to practice their religious and political beliefs as long as those beliefs do not advocate violence against their fellow citizens. When state governments start to ban books and turn one group against another because of differences in their color or political beliefs or their preferences about who they want to marry, then we no longer will be living in a democracy but in a country which wants to control every citizen’s life and thought. That is what countries like Russia and North Korea do and that is what our country can ultimately become if we don’t all fight to save the rule of law which protects our democracy. We are running out of time. The next two elections are crucial. We must take action now!

How can we do that? Only by voting for candidates who will fight for all of our rights for all of our citizens. We must come out to vote by the millions and make our voices heard all over our country. Our country, our democracy, our future and even our lives are at risk!