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Olá Friend, Whew. This has been a difficult week, and the stress hangover is real. If you have actually followed my newsletters this past year, you may have noticed a familiar theme: despite the hellscape we have been navigating, my reaction has always been to punch back harder, keep focussed, stay the course and organize. But I have to admit, I’m a bit thrown by events of this past week - capped off by this disastrous Supreme Court ruling that gives the president “immunity” from all official acts. And let’s be clear: this is about Trump. They overturned what appellate courts and appeals courts said unanimously was an absurd ask. They accepted the case to everyone’s surprise. And they gave Trump 110% of what he wanted. The stakes around the election have suddenly gotten exponentially bigger. So after a pretty restless night, looking at the facts, weighing different arguments and gaming things out, I’m going to share where I landed. Please take it as you will. Despite all the warning signs, it’s still shocking to see how fragile our Democracy is. The pillars that once seemed inviolable have tumbled so quickly; for me it feels like watching the World Trade Center fall. You can’t quite believe what you’re seeing. WOULD that I were being an hysterical woman. WOULD that I am an alarmist activist. WOULD that the rule of law ultimately prevails and the movie can’t possibly end like this. One thing I do know, it’s not just going to happen because I want or will it to. I have to go back to the only thing I can control right now, that is my original instinct of punching back harder, keeping focus, staying the course, and organizing. What I am not going to do is wring my hands and rehash how disappointing the Democrats are or how ill-prepared Biden was for the debate or how goddamn old he is. I’m also not going to throw my hands up and say Game Over. None of that will help us win - and I still want to win. To greatly paraphrase Rachel Maddow - with this new Supreme Court ruling, the only thing standing between Democracy and Autocracy is that we have leadership that believes in the Constitution and the rule of law - as flawed and full of holes as that document has proven itself to be. We need leadership that is fundamentally moral and inclusive and believes in history and science and truth. We need leadership that understand that it’s women of with every shade who are holding this ship together, with spit and bubble gum. Which again circles back to us: we need to organize, and we need to vote. I’m not going to spend time defending Biden or predicting whether or not he will step down (spoiler alert: I don’t think he’s planning on it). I do know I’m not going to waste any time fixating on it, except to say that most of the high-level “analysis” is coming from elite white men, whom I’m not usually in the habit of listening to. And one more thing - if you are jonesing for pressuring Democratic leadership to act on something, pressure them to stand for a platform that includes reforming the Supreme Court front and center. It's not going to be easy, and we have to win big, but they have given themselves power that has fundamentally shifted our way of life. So this is a too-long invitation to say I hope you are still in the game, and to please join us as we bring it home these last few months. There’s a lot in the works throughout the country and the world. Read on for more, and as always, reach out to me with questions or comments. I am always available.
If it hasn't become clear over the past week - I'm going to shout it all caps: YOU NEED TO VOTE. It's impossible to stress this enough. If you haven't already requested your 2024 ballot, do it now. If you don't know how, please reach out and I or someone else will walk you through it. Go to votefromabroad.org !DON'T MISS TWO SPECIAL EVENTS!*Heather Cox Richardson Speaks to Democrats Abroad, July 10, 4pm - author and historian has mesmerized many followers for almost 8 years as she puts current events into historial context. Let's see what she has to say about our current crisis.
* DAPT First Silent Auction Fundraiser - Sept 20th. - are you an artist, photographer or crafter who can donate your work? Do you have a vacation house available for a weekend? Can you share your skills and teach someone how to do something? We need items! All proceeds will go to Get Out The Vote efforts. If you have something, please contact Paula at [email protected]
If you haven't received phone-bank training, please consider trained. Here is the link to live trainings in various time zones around the world: 
I encourage everyone to inform yourselves about the Christian Nationalist Blueprint for America - Project 2025. And then do everything you can to organize around this - this is what is in store if Trump is elected. I'm including links to last Friday's Supreme Court ruling, because it is directly related. Smarter people than I will help connect the dots. I know it's more than you need, but the more I know, the more convinced I am that we need to organize and organize more. Joyce Vance: Let's Read Project 2025 Together Joyce Vance - Why you Should Be Concerned about Loper Bright The Intercept: The Supreme Court Power Grab Chris Hayes: WTH is Project 2025? That's it folks. Of course I'm going to ask you to do the simple task of liking our social media on FB/Instagram/Threads. While global is still on Twitter, as are many of the other country chapters, we have chosen to ignore it as a messaging platform. No way. In peace and love, Thanks for being Democrats. Sally DeSipio Chair, DAPT DA Portugal |
Please join us for the July GOTV meeting on July 17th, 5pm. We will walk you through the biggest outreach of the election - phonebankers from all over the world will make calls to DA members to help them through the process of returning ballots - with special focus on the important swing states. We have assembled a great team, but we need more. 
