With exactly four weeks to go, this election season seems poised on a precipice almost any way you look at it. These could be the best of times or worst of times, and that's just between now and Election Day. Here are just a few examples:
The debate, in its large sense. On the one hand, we are having that very rare experience of a major national debate on the fundamental direction of our country, at the moment of the passing of an era. John McCain and Barack Obama offer such fundamentally different directions that we have the opportunity to seriously ask "who are we, and where do we want to go?" But on the other hand, emerging from the shadows are the ugliest ways in which we do politics in this country, the kind of contest that demeans us as a nation. What will the next four weeks hold?
Democracy, triumphant and anxious. On the one hand, the numbers of people engaging with the campaign, contributing, registering to vote, and voting (both in the primaries and early for the general) are phenomenal, defying the conventional laws of gravity about disinterested Americans. On the other hand, we can't dismiss the possibility of a meltdown in an election system simply unable to handle the numbers of voters who want to participate.
Financial calamity and a new role for government. On the one hand, the sheer magnitude of the potential catastrophe in our economic system is foreign and unnerving to us all. Will it dwarf all else in the election and compromise our future and our children's prospects? On the other hand, will the crisis awaken a new understanding of the key role of government in mitigating the destructive excesses of an unfettered market?
In each of these areas, Demos has been involved in seeking the better answer to the question, promoting values that reflect America's highest democratic ideals.
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We've worked for an inclusive and expanded democracy, including encouraging new voters through Election Day Registration, full implementation of the NVRA "motor voter" law, and fighting for voter-friendly decisions by administrators and courts alike.
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We've worked for expanded economic opportunity and to protect the middle class, including fighting for effective regulation of credit card and lending industry practices.
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We've worked to advance an understanding that a new balance must be struck between the private sector and a public sector with the capacity and effectiveness to insure that the public interest comes first.
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And we've published extensively to promote these values and add fresh ideas on critical issues in our public debate.
We'll be working through November 4th, and we will keep working regardless of the election's outcome. But like so many of you, we also hold our breath, hoping that the next four weeks will be a testament to our country's strength, our people's wisdom, and democracy's resilience.
Miles Rapoport
President
