So, last night, right after watching the second to last episode of "The Bureau", I checked Twitter, had this thought, hit send and went to sleep... https://twitter.com/djrothkopf/status/1294112165436313601

Now, this morning, I wake up to find something like 20,000 responses of one sort or another. The most prevalent was "liking" the idea--which was offered in a kind of off-the-cuff, let's imagine ways to defuse this very serious threat we face way. For those who did that, thanks.

But, of course, this being Twitter, there were the assorted assholes who lead horrible empty lives and have nothing better to do than take shots at the casual ideas of complete strangers who came at me, attacking me for offering an imperfect or, in their eyes, unworkable notion.

Some, the real prizes in the crowd, even attacked me for failing to fix the underlying problem and for therefore not being sufficiently committed to democracy. To them I note: yes, yes, honey bunny, it would be better if our president were not evil, not the greatest threat...

...American democracy has faced since the Civil War, not a criminal, not a traitor. But you see, he is. And he is committed to attacking our system of government so that he can remain in power and avoid going to jail for his manifold, egregious, unprecedented crimes.

So, to my way of thinking, this is a five alarm fire. This is the moment we rise up, we pull out all the stops, we do whatever we can to save our system or, should Trump retain power, it may be gone forever. That means pressuring political leaders to do more than whinge about it.

That means creating independent groups to monitor, call out and seek to reverse abuses. That means getting resources to groups that can challenge the abuses in court. That means mobilizing citizens so that when they see something, they say something--they become witnesses.

That means calling in international observers. It means doing everything we can, treating this just as we would a foreign invasion of our soil, fighting to preserve what is dear to us because we are at one of those moments when if we don't, it may be lost.

I've said that twice now. Let's say it again:This is an existential crisis for American democracy.This is not just some boring story about the post office, a corrupt head of the postal service, disappearing sorting machines, delays, & a president who is attacking voting by mail.

This is a story about a multi-level, on-going attempt to take the vote away from US citizens, to disenfranchise all of us, to undermine the entire basis on which our country was founded. It is an effort that has been going on since Trump embraced Russian intervention in 2016.

It involves Russia again. It involves reaching out to Ukraine for dirt on Joe Biden. It involves Congressional assistance in these matters like Sen. Johnson's corrupt hearings and the sham Senate impeachment trial that covered up and gave license to the Ukraine abuses.

It involves the plot against the post office...but also voter suppression that has been going on for years, an Attorney General who is manufacturing false charges against Obama Era officials, sending federal forces into American cities to crack down on dissent...

...and to provide the excuse to do so at election time to intimidate and otherwise keep voters away from the polls. It will involve lies and faked economic statistics and ludicrous conspiracy theories. It will involve the complicity of dozens of high officials & 000s of others.

It is already happening. It is not a dystopian fantasy. And, and hear me on this all of you--kind sensible Twitter followers and Twitter jerks alike--it may very well succeed. After all, it did in 2016. And Trump has many many more tools at his disposal now than he did then.

The best antidote is, of course, massive turnout and active support not just for @JoeBiden & @KamalaHarris but for all Democrats up and down the ballot. The GOP has become a party actively committed to destroying our system, supporting our enemies, enriching the corrupt...

and undermining justice and the rule of law in America. They must be defeated to the point of being eradicated. There is no place for active enemies of the country in our political system. Donate, volunteer, help get out the vote, help counter the lies, and vote yourself.

But, we must also see this threat for what it is and pull out all the stops in fighting it. Including musing on different ideas that can help--including those that may be far-fetched but by being floated may again raise awareness of the gravity of the threat we face.

There are just over 80 days until the election, just over 11 weeks. In that time, we can stand up against the most corrupt and dangerous president our country has ever seen or we can succumb to him and his enablers and his benefactors among our enemies overseas.

If Paul Revere were alive today, he'd be warning us not on horseback but via social media. That's how this movement, this last line of defense must begin, using the tools we have right now. That's why we should try to engage as constructively as possible...

...and remember who the enemy really is, the nature of the threat, and the urgency that we do something about it. So, let's focus on that, ok...and then, after we have saved our country, then perhaps those of you who want to work out your emotional problems...

against strangers on Twitter can have at it again. But not now, please. Not for the next few months. Focus. Fight. Let's not let a bunch of malevolent creeps destroy something that if flawed is nonetheless rightly, deeply precious to us all and to the world.

p.s. Should we preserve the postal service? Yes, of course. Should we not do anything illegal? Yes. Should we avoid the impossible? Yes, don't do anything impossible. I'm not defending the initial, casual, admittedly half-baked idea...only the impulse to seek solutions.