Happy Saturday all. Reporting in this morning from Raleigh, North Carolina, ground zero in the 2024 Presidential election. Last night I did an event with one of our Hopium heroes, North Carolina Democratic Party Chair Anderson Clayton. I got to meet some of members of our plucky community last night, including one of our earliest members, Bridget Johnson, also known as “B Johnson” in our paid subscriber chat. He we are together last night. B was so great to meet you!
After our wonderful event last night Anderson and I recorded a video for all of you. You can find it above. I am here in Raleigh representing all of you. By raising $325,000 for the North Carolina Democratic Party this cycle our community is the largest investor in North Carolina in the country. We went in early for I believed that we could win here this year, and I believed that Anderson has what it takes to be a great chair and leader here. I got to spend some time with Anderson yesterday getting her report on everything here and I am convinced we have made a wise investment, and that she is doing everything we all hoped for – building the statewide effort here from the ground up, precinct by precinct, fueled by the same passion and and commitment of the grassroots that drives all of you.
I also got to see an old college friend, Gerda Stein, a fellow Tufts Jumbo and sister of Josh Stein, who will be (with our help!) the next Governor of North Carolina. Great to see you Gerda! So proud of your brother, the Hopium community is excited to be on the Stein team!
While we may be in a bumpy patch right now, the work to win this election is going on all across the country. Here in North Carolina people are fired up, working hard, and fighting to win this thing. Many of you have put your head down and channeled your anxiety into good works, supporting candidates and state parties across the country. As I’ve been saying for weeks now we simply cannot let up. We cannot take our foot off the gas. Early voting in the Presidential election begins in three states on September 20th – 2 months from today! We need to keep working for working hard, outhustling them, is how we’ve been winning elections all across the country these last few years and and how we are going to win this November.
One bit of good news in polling today – Dems lead by 1 point in what’s called the Congressional Generic, or who will you be voting for in your Congressional races this fall. This is our largest lead since May 15th and one of our largest leads of the year.
If you want to do more and worry less this weekend here are some things you can do:
Winning The House – $535,000 today, $600,000 goal – Donate | Volunteer | Learn More. We’ve also raised more then $46,000 into the individual House campaigns (you can either give to all 12 or each one individually)
Watch my big “With Dems” presentation on the greatness and goodness of the Democratic Party or this short video on the need for freedom to prevail over dominion this year
Volunteer for the Biden-Harris campaign – their volunteer program is really ratcheting up – check it out and sign up for a shift of calls into the battlegrounds today!
Commit to Vote on Day 1 and get everyone you know to join you
Sign up for our next Hopium-wide gathering on Tuesday at 7pm ET
Finally help me spread Hopium and grow this remarkable community of proud patriots, info warriors and big citizens. Sign others up to be a Hopium subscriber at this link. Note that options for group and gift subscriptions are available to those who want to bring friends and colleagues into the Hopium community. Click on the group and gift tabs here to learn more. To update your payment information or check your renewal status follow these instructions from Substack. Let’s keep the Hopium flowing and our community growing!
I’ll send some more update for North Carolina tomorrow or Monday. Keep working hard all. Proud to be in this fight with all of you – Simon
That poll about Congress is really good news. Hopefully some of the MAGA antics and the info about Project 2025 will bring people out to vote for Democrats!
I hope so, too. Thank you for reading! It’s nice to meet you, and I’ve followed your blog. I’ve been reading Xena for a couple of years, give or take.
I’m noticing much better, fairer (not fair, just fairer) coverage on local news outlets, even in Wichita, KS. I see it online a lot; they show voters stating they want the naysaying to stop, and to get to work to elect our ticket. Those media show things like Minority Leader Jeffries stating that Pres. Biden is our nominee. It’s difficult; the Kool Kids all want to talk about whatever it is while they protect their money from fair taxation, but there are still more of us voters than there are of them. When it gets down to it, are those donors who want the president out actually going to vote for the Don for US president? They’re going to be among the first to be picked up under Project 2025, and all their money will be stolen from them, as opposed to them having to give up some fair taxes. I wish the Dem donors and the Kool Kids would finally change the subject!
I’d also like each of them to show that the Don is any at all more able than Pres. Biden. From what we see, he’s far less able, but nobody’s calling him on it.
Well, it looks like Joe is out. I will admit that I’m relieved and happy about this–I did not think he was a strong candidate anymore, and I’m glad he listened. I sincerely hope we stick with Kamala as our nominee–she is underestimated, I firmly believe she will make a fantastic President, and I’m super excited to support her in the election!
I do absolutely agree with you that through this entire mess, not enough attention has been paid to how terrible another four years of Trump would be. Really, Biden’s brain in a jar should be able to win against him–I don’t understand how anyone still supports the Donald. But sadly, that is not our reality.
I must be rattled. I got the embed link for Gilda’s line I’ve adopted, but somehow, the link for something that is no longer in play got posted. I’ve tried to delete it, or edit it, or both, but finally had to close the page, get back on, and post a new comment. The one with Rep. Jeffries is not the pertinent comment, it’s just taking up space. Enjoy the Gilda one; short and sweet, and my sincerest feelings just now. 🙂
My heart wanted to fail back when now-AG Kobach was our Secretary of State. It was not at all boring! It seems that MO could be in for similar adventures. It’s vital to pay attention to all the races on the ballot. Everyone’s got their reasons for running, and it helps everyone when we know about those reasons. In addition, Jess has important words about gun violence.
Let’s talk about a kind of boring state position…the Secretary of State.
Yawn, right?
Wrong. The race for this position should be as interesting as it sounds…a calm race to fill an important position. But it’s not. Not in Missouri and not in other GOP-dominated states.
What are the duties of a Secretary of State, and why should we pay attention?
The Secretary of State is the chief elections official in Missouri, bearing responsibility for the administration of statewide elections involving both issues and individuals, and oversees local verification of petition signatures for initiative petitions. The Secretary of State’s Commissions section authenticates official acts of the governor, and has the authority to appoint and commission notaries public.
That’s a very important position. It seems like the person in charge of the elections for the entire state should be serious and not bend toward extremism.
Let me introduce you to a few candidates for Missouri Secretary of State, but let me first remind you of Missouri politics and gun culture. From the Kansas City Star:
“Even when gun policy isn’t mentioned explicitly, the presence of firearms in political messaging has come to act as a kind of visual shorthand that can quickly signal pro-gun attitudes without a word.”
First up, Adam J. Schwadron of St. Charles. Here is his recent mailer to Missouri voters:
Adam Schwadron, Missouri Secretary of State candidate. Photo, political mailer.
Adam looks as if he has a lot of big feelings as evidenced in the stickers and paint on his AR, but the point of the matter? Why did he send this mailer out to Missouri voters? What message is he creating by holding an AR while seeking the position of Secretary of State? What is an AR meant to convey about voting systems and fair elections and constituent petitions?
What would it feel like as a constituent to deliver a petition to a man you know feels comfortable enough to take and send pictures shooting an AR?
Adam looks absolutely menacing holding the AR. I can’t help but feel that this is meant to convey intimidation. It can be scary to receive a mailer from a current Missouri lawmaker, running for higher office, pointing a high-powered gun at an unknown target. I’m not sure why his campaign thought this imagery appropriate?
Yes, I do…because others are doing it.
Meet Senator Denny Hoskins, who is also running for Missouri Secretary of State as a Republican. Denny has a long history of gun fanaticism.
From April 2024:
The Missouri Senate is considering an anti-red flag law proposal. The bill would prevent guns from being taken away from anyone because of a court order or protection order. Senator Denny Hoskins introduced the bill and called it the Anti-Red Flag Gun Seizure Act.
Denny has opposed efforts to reduce gun violence through legislation like red flag laws, which allow law enforcement to temporarily take the weapons of people who a court has decided are at risk of harming themselves or others. It’s no surprise that he would included guns in his campaign for the Secretary of State, but it is no less grotesque.
Senator Denny Hoskins is not in the photo above, but he was more than happy to post the picture on his Facebook feed. The woman standing next to Hoskins’s sign is holding a rifle with a silencer and scope.
A few days later, on July 15, just two days after the shooting at the Pennsylvania Trump rally, Sen Denny Hoskins posted the photo below. In the photo, Denny is holding an AR. The Pennsylvania shooter used an AR to kill one person and wound others, including the former President.
Denny Hoskins, Missouri Secretary of State candidate. Photo: Screenshot, Facebook
I thought the Republicans were calling for the temperature to be turned down after the rally tragedy?
I have saved the best for last…well, the worst. The very worst. Meet Valentina Gomez. In a statement, Gomez said she would deploy the National Guard to oversee Missouri voting.
Valentina Gomez, Missouri Secretary of State candidate. Photo: Screenshot X
Gomez has filed for the SOS position, but I don’t think she has any plans to actually try to win the position. I haven’t quite been able to figure out what she’s up to, but she is using hyperbole and extremism along with assault-style guns to make her points. She seems unhinged in most of her statements…many of these statements also have nothing to do with the office she is running for. She loves rage-baiting.
She has used a homemade flamethrower to burn books stating, “When I’m Secretary of State, I will burn all the books that are grooming, indoctrinating, and sexualizing our children. MAGA. America First.”
Gomez also uploaded a strange video in which she is running through the suburbs with a vest with a flag decal that gives the impression that she is current military or a veteran — she is neither. She states, “In America, you can be anything you want,” and continues with, “So don’t be weak and gay,” “Stay f-cking hard.”
The video has since been removed, but another is still up on Twitter. It was posted just hours before the July 13 Trump rally shooting. You can find it here. In the video, Gomez references JK Rowling and offers to take her to a shooting range before firing off several rounds at an unknown target.
But why? Why would three separate candidates for Missouri Secretary of State send out such violent messages to the voters in my state?
Fearmongering. To stir up hate and discontent. To represent authoritarianism. To showcase an illiberal democracy.
These candidates are following the gun lobby’s playbook — they are leveraging the demagogue’s playbook. They are attempting to manipulate voters, or in the very least, intimidate voters.
We can counter this gun extremism by not voting for the folks who push it on us. We can stand against gun violence and demand better gun legislation. We can elect lawmakers who will pass common sense gun laws that will protect constituents.
A little of that common sense would go pretty far in Missouri. Especially in the race for Secretary of State.
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