Newsletter - June 2023

Much of what we hear, both from traditional media and social media, highlights the extreme polarization and tribalism in our government and our country. These huge issues prevent us from working together to solve difficult problems.

A recent poll by NewsNation indicated that three-quarters of Americans say members of Congress should be willing to compromise and prioritize bipartisan legislation over standing with their party, including 84% of Democrats and 71% of Republicans. However, three-quarters of respondents have little confidence that the two parties will be able to work together in a bipartisan way over the next two years.

That poll provides an extraordinary snapshot of voters' lack of faith in our federal government. I hope that you all can take some solace in examples of organizations that are actively working to promote discourse and effective problem solving:

• Addition of a respected Republican and a respected Democrat as Executive Fellow for the Bipartisan Policy Center

• "Polarization is tearing apart our country" – The Plain Dealer

• "Governing in the United States Requires Compromise" – Freedom House

In addition to my principles of respect for opposing views and commitment to problem solving that were themes for the last two months, partnership with the public remains a cornerstone of government effectiveness. Public consultation ensures that citizens get information on key issues facing our country, and thoughtful analysis of public opinion equips our elected officials with solutions supported by bipartisan majorities. In addition to opening our minds to opposing viewpoints, we need to demand that our elected officials commit to solving problems leveraging bipartisan solutions forged from opposing viewpoints.

In other news:

• I continue to work actively with the Center for Electoral Quality and Integrity

• I am supporting Business for America's Modernizing Congress campaign

• I have reached out to a number of organizations to gain a better understanding of work being done to promote the empowerment of states and municipalities to achieve national objectives

Have a great month and a great Fourth of July holiday.

Newsletter - May 2023

The overriding theme for this month's newsletter is R-E-S-P-E-C-T!

On this Memorial Day I want to express my respect and gratitude for those that made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. The broader theme of this month's newsletter is respect for those that have different opinions or beliefs than our own.

The fifth of Steven Covey's Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is "Seek first to understand, then to be understood." This principle is also applicable to a highly effective democracy.

We all have an instinct to negatively judge those whose opinion or outlook is different than ours. Hillary Clinton famously said, “You know, to just be grossly generalistic, you could put half of Trump’s supporters into what I call the basket of deplorables." She clarified that she was being "grossly generalistic," but this example epitomizes the tendency for people in all walks of life to label and disrespect groups who do not share their beliefs.

Rather than discounting or disrespecting opinions that differ from our own, we would all be better served to take a moment to try to understand and embrace different perspectives.

Earlier this month I had the privilege of attending a Braver Angels national member meeting. Braver Angels seeks to depolarize American politics through grassroots organizing. The primary areas of focus for the member meeting were their upcoming National Convention and the recent launch of their Braver Network.

The National Convention, which will be held in Gettysburg, PA in early July is expected to have 600 "politically balanced" delegates. They have assembled a very robust agenda, which will be punctuated by voting on an actionable platform at the end of the convention. For those that are interested in attending, delegate applications are still being accepted.

The Braver Network is open to any organization that wants to be part of the solution (i.e. broad based movement for civic renewal). There are already 138 organizations that are part of the Braver Network, and I strongly encourage organizational representatives that are reading this newsletter to consider joining this outstanding network.

Posts and additional info from the past month:

• The AllSides Media Bias Chart is a great tool for broadening your news perspective or simply finding out the political leaning of your news source

• Issue One and the Council for Responsible Social Media released a poll last month that underscores broad bipartisan support for setting higher standards for social media platforms

• PolitiFact provided some very useful tools and techniques that you can use to distinguish authentic videos from deepfakes

• The latest press release by the Center for Electoral Quality and Integrity has been published

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Have a great month!

Newsletter - April 2023

No single issue illustrates our inability to effectively solve problems more clearly than America's gun violence epidemic. Despite our best efforts to stem the violence, we can't seem to make any meaningful progress. And entrenched interests on both sides of the aisle only serve as obstacles for making changes.

Still, I truly believe we could get the vast majority of Americans to support a national goal of reducing gun violence. Late last month I reposted on social media my proposed framework to do just that.

There is no question that gun violence is an extremely difficult problem to solve. Effective resolution of difficult problems requires a shared commitment from all stakeholders and respect for different perspectives.

Let's demand this of ourselves and our elected officials!

In other news: the Center for Electoral Quality and Integrity (CEQI) is making great progress in leveraging the expertise of Quality professionals to help secure the most fundamental component of our democracy.

I hope some of you were able to attend last week's webinar where we officially introduced our Best Practice Election Operations Model. CEQI is also working to launch a national poll on election integrity, in partnership with the School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Georgia. The objective of the poll is to identify general voter perceptions on whether it is easy to vote, and hard to cheat. The results from this survey will be used to create benchmarks and best practices which can then be tested by and shared with election officials throughout the country.

Additional information from recent posts:

• News Literacy free webinar series. I hope some of you were able to attend their three sessions. Regardless, I encourage you to check out their website. They offer several free resources, including an e-learning platform, an app, a new podcast, shareable tips, tools, quizzes and an annual news literacy event.

• I recently took the Social Security Challenge and eliminated 108% of the shortfall! This interactive tool provides an engaging and informative approach that allows users to explore various options for eliminating the Social Security shortfall and enhancing benefits. Similar to Voice of the People's policymaking simulation (administered by University of Maryland's Program for Public Consultation), it demonstrates that there are common-sense ways to make Social Security solvent and engages voters in crafting the solution. I highly encourage you to check both tools out!

Have a great month!