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After 28 years of service in Arlington County’s local government, first on the School Board and then the County Board, I have stepped into a new role and life chapter: Private Citizen. My career has equipped me with extensive experience, valuable connections, and an unwavering passion for fostering good local government in Arlington and in the D.C., Maryland and Virginia (DMV) region, an area I call home.

March 3 Blog: The Chaos Continues...But the Pattern is the Same

Dear Friends:

I hope Spring, which has arrived in Arlington at least (there are crocuses blooming in my yard) is lifting everyone’s hearts a little despite the continuing horrors from the Regime.

Both Timothy Snyder and Rachel Maddow had good explanations for the unjustified attack on Iran. I’ve linked to Snyder’s substack here which lays it out well. One reason Snyder sets out for the war is Trump paying back favors which were really bribes (billions in crypto investments in the family company, a super luxury jet from UAE, etc.) he’s taken from Middle Eastern governments. Those entities want the US military to destroy their enemy in Tehran for them. In other words, our current President is using the US military as his private payback mechanism

The other reason for the war is the classic autocratic ploy of starting a war to justify quashing any criticism (especially, the revelations of the Epstein files) or resistance at home and thus cementing his power. The result of his power plays is staggering corruption and plundering of the wealth of our nation. Greed and corruption are always foundational. Maddow summed it up as “qui bono” or who benefits? I think “follow the money” is really helpful in explaining pretty much everything this Regime does.

So the attack on Iran is, in many ways, just more of the same chaos and violence which we need to fight and resist. I continue to be hopeful watching regular people around the country protesting and pushing back; seeing judges hold the line; and even some political leaders stepping up. It feels like the Regime’s facade is starting to crack, but there is much work ahead. Please put March 28 on your calendar for No Kings 3 Day and stay alert to opportunities to resist in ways other than turning out on the 28th. Consider supporting organizations that help vulnerable people; backing candidates who refuse corporate money and stand up for regular people; boycotting and/or protesting companies and organizations that support the Regime.

I continue to find the regular 3:00 pm Thursday Indivisible calls that Ezra Levin and Leah Greenberg hold very helpful. They are now spotlighting select Democratic primary candidates around the country, which has solved one of my dilemmas. I, like I suspect every one of my readers, get dozens of texts and emails every week from new candidates asking for money. They all sound great, but I do not have the time to really check out their claims. Given how the party leadership has behaved over the past few years supporting Joe Biden when it was obvious he should not run again, and then not standing up to DJT, I’m no longer comfortable giving to national Democratic Party organizations. But, I know money is important, even relatively small amounts from lots of people helps a lot. With their interviews and endorsements, Indivisible is now providing me with a set of candidates that I am confident will be good and are worth supporting. One of their requirements is that these candidates refuse all corporate and PAC money. Another is that they have been approved by a 60% vote of local Indivisible groups.

The first two candidates are Minnesota Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan running for Senator and Dr. Jasmine Clark running for US Congress from Georgia. After the primaries are over, and I hope we have a crop of new and exciting forward-looking and smart candidates, I’ll consider giving to the Democratic Party again.

My contributions are relatively small, but I suspect my attitude is shared by millions and all those contributions add up. As Indivisible endorses candidates, we will post their recommendations on a new page on my website so you can find them easily.

This brings me to the future. For the short term, we really cannot take our eyes off the prize of saving our democracy. But the medium term is coming and that involves what comes next.

I highly recommend this interview of the economist Paul Krugman with Congressman Ro Khanna. I have not focused before on how the middle class was created so quickly and so intentionally in the mid-20th century, although I’ve talked about how the GI bill and social programs created a strong middle class and a strong country. That accomplishment of creating a strong middle class helped propel the United States to world dominance. The current Regime wants to destroy the middle class and our democracy for their own benefit. The Rule of Law and a healthy democracy get in the way of corruption. An important point made in the interview is that there was the political will to create a middle class and support the leaders to make that happen. I’m hopeful that Trump and the horrifying excesses of the Epstein class are creating again the political will needed to create a much more just society and a strong middle class.

And to bring our focus on the medium term close to home, I plan to attend Arlington County Board member Susan Cunningham’s event on March 8th at the Women’s Club of Arlington. She’s asking for some donations for her re-election campaign which is smart. I always tried to start some light fundraising the year before I planned to run for re-election. Susan is planning to discuss the upcoming County budget with attendees. This year’s budget promises to be a tougher one than Arlington is used to. Revenues are down quite a bit, our vulnerable populations are growing and have more need, all because of the malignant federal government across the river. It’s important for all of us to understand the various tradeoffs we will need to make as a community over the next several years. You may want to read about the Manager’s proposed budget which is the starting point for work sessions and discussions.

As always, I hope this has been helpful and welcome comments and suggestions.

Yours in peaceful resistance,

Libby