The following is a speech given by Bradley James Weber of the Addison Township Democrats at a recent fundraiser. It’s a poignant reminder of the importance of this year’s election.
Like it or not, believe it or not, everyone casting a ballot in this election is a single-issue voter.
- Voting Rights
- Social and Economic Justice
- Reproductive and LGBTQ+ Rights
- Common Sense Gun Laws
- Affordable Healthcare
- The separation of Church and State
- Ethical Standards for Supreme Court Justices
- Accountability for Insurrectionists
These are just some of the Democratic values that we aspire to and fight for outside and inside of the voting booth.
But — as much as it pains me to say it — in 2024, those are all nice-to-haves.
In 2024, there can be only one plank in the Democratic platform.
In 2024, there is only one topic, one talking point, and one headline that every American needs to have on their minds, in their speech, and on their keyboards:
Saving Democracy.
Saving Democracy is the single issue we are all voting on in this election.
Whatever else we were working toward, whatever else we strive for so the United States can improve itself for all its inhabitants, whatever aspirations we have for our nation — if Democrats lose in 2024, all that effort and all of those hopes no longer matter.
Does it sound . . . far-fetched . . . hyperbolic . . . a little alarmist . . . to say out loud that if the individual found liable for sexual assault and guilty of 34 felonies — retakes the White House, it will be the end of free and fair elections in this country?
Maybe.
But I’ll say it anyway.
If Donald J. Trump wins in November, the American Experiment is over.
But, with Joe Biden back in the White House — Commanding and Chiefing like only he can — and with the strong support of Democrats — elected and otherwise — shoring up the bulwarks that safeguard the Constitution and the rule of law — we will return to those high, fine ideals that move America forward.
So, that’s why, you, me, all of us — every person casting a ballot in 2024 election — is a single-issue voter.
Most people aren’t aware of it or even thinking about the election this way.
We, as members of the party that demonstrably and consistently gives a damn about real Democracy, it is our duty — not just as Democrats, but as citizens of conscience and integrity — to spread the message, to help friends and apparent enemies alike, understand why the one and only issue on the ballot is the very existence of America’s system of government.
In 1787, hostess of Philadelphia’s political elite, Elizabeth Willing Powel, asked Benjamin Franklin, “”Well, Doctor, what have we got — a republic or a monarchy?”
Franklin replied, “A republic . . . if you can keep it. “
However flawed it may be, for nearly 250 years, our republic, this American Democracy, has been — and continues to be — successful, durable, and resistant to attacks from within and without.
Let’s keep it . . . and keep it going.