NOW is the time
All good people must come to the aid of their country
First, I said this during London Climate Action Week two weeks ago. Then, before the July 4th holiday and 250th anniversary, I found myself saying this phrase repeatedly to friends, family, and business associates:
“If the U.S. has free and fair elections,…”
—
This is a rare departure from my usual writing about The Work (reducing emissions, removing emissions, making clean products).
Although politics, legislation, regulation, and deal-making matter for climate and energy, The Work is grounded in math, physics, chemistry, biology. That’s immutable, and independent of politics.
It is also true that the politics culminate in elections, and elections matter to The Work. Though notoriously messy and hard to interpret, elections decide how we prioritize money and action. the foundation of elections must be free and fair.
This is no longer given in the United States.
Today, I share startling facts. Some of you may know them already, some not. Nonetheless, they are startling.
—
The U.S. Postmaster General, David Steiner, said he would not deliver mail in ballots.
Specifically, he confirmed in a Senate Hearing (NY Times, PBS) that his proposed rule would not allow mail in ballots for States that would not sharing voter rolls. The Hearing, June 24th 2026, followed a news story that he would not deliver ballots. His testimony is here. It’s based on a Trump executive order to hinder mail in voting.
This is demonstrably illegal, and runs counter to the explicit statements in the Constitution that States can operating voting as they wish.
The proposal cites President Donald Trump’s March executive order that seeks to tighten mail voting rules and create eligible voter lists, even though the Constitution explicitly grants states the authority to run elections, while Congress has a limited oversight role in adopting election regulations. Despite the president’s own use of mail ballots in past elections, he has called the voting method “cheating.”
To that end, a Federal Judge rule July 1st that the proposed rule was illegal and issued a stay (stories in CNN and The Hill). Three days later, President Trump asked the Judge to reverse the stay (here and here).
To summarize: The president asked the Postmaster General to restrict voting counter to state law, was caught out in a Senate Hearing, barred by a Federal Judge, and then tried to overturn that stay the day before America’s 250th anniversary.
—
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) ruled that States may count mail in ballots that arrive after the election if they are postmarked before the election (SCOTUS, ACLU). This shockingly narrow 5-4 decision confirmed what was in the Constitution. This judgement was the consequence of attempts to undermine mail-in voting.
In response, threats to voting have ramped up in recent days at an alarming rate and extreme vehemence.
The FBI, under Director Kash Patel, direct over 200 Federal Agents to seize ballot boxes and review votes from the 2020 election (NY Times, Washington Post, The Guardian). You may recall that President Trump famously asked the former Secretary of State of Georgia to find him votes illegally (Brennan Center,) and multiple investigations found no evidence of wrongdoing or voter fraud (Washington Post, Wikipedia). Although a judge Quashed this effort on July 7th (NY Times, ABC News), the situation is fluid and likely to be appealed.
The Trump Administration demanded that states must change their voting rules or lose anti-terrorism, FEMA, and Homeland Security funding just yesterday, July 7th (NY Times).
The Justice Department threatened the top voting officials in all 50 states with criminal prosecution (NY Times, ABC News, CBS News) over a non-existent problem – non-citizen voting.
The muzzle velocity, stridency, and extremity of these attacks on voting is shocking, but not exactly new. The last year has seen multiple attempts to gerrymander voting and redistrict, first by Republican legislatures, then by Democratic legislatures in response. The Supreme Court also gutted provisions of the Voting Rights Act, resulting in radical gerrymandering and elimination of African American districts.
Other kinds of voting suppression include purging of voter rolls (a good reason not to share with the Postmaster General), intimidation at voting places, shutting polling places (accelerated after the SCOTUS decision, notably in Republican controlled states), and arresting U.S. citizens, which have surged in the last 5 days.
The last one is particularly awful, now empowered by Immigration and Customer Enforcement (ICE). Just a few weeks back, a nun was arrested and detained by ICE on her way to church, fully dressed in her habit (USA Today, ABC News, The Guardian). Only dramatic public outcry and interventions by Congressmen and Senators secured her release - not so for others detained by ICE.
This increased activity seems both lawless and desperate. Perhaps because polls in advance of the election show overwhelmingly negative results for the President and the Republican Party.
Said differently, the Trump Administration fears it cannot maintain political control if free and fair elections are held, so they are actively preventing free and fair elections.
—
Against this backdrop, I evoke Thomas Paine’s missive above. Paraphrased for the modern world, now is the time for all good people to engage.
Rather than write thousands of more words on these themes, I encourage readers to act. Specifically, act to secure voting and turn out the vote. Being appalled is not enough – the issue is what to do.
A few ideas.
Commit two hours a week - 17 minutes a day, four blocks of 30 minutes each week, or an hour each weekend day – directly countering this nonsense. (1) Educate yourself. (2) Speak to friends and neighbors. (3) Share facts from reputable news sources, including by email. This is minimal, but material, commitment.
Give time: In addition to the minimal steps above, engage. If you’re an individual citizen, call members of congress, write postcards that turn out the vote, and help bring ballots to those in need. Consider supporting voters directly and countering attempts at intimidation on and before voting day. If you’re a lawyer, provide pro-bono support. If you’re a businessperson, commit to serving voting in your communities. Consider training to support polling sites.
Give money: I prefer to give to non-partisan organizations that serve voters directly.
League of Women Voters: The League has helped ensure voter participation and voting rights for over 100 years, helping register voters, helping them vote, and fighting for voter rights. I give each year.
Vote.org: Everything you need to vote, and an Election Protection Hotline (1-866-687-8683). I gave this week.
American Civil Liberties Union: Another organization over 100 years old, the ACLU has documented voting rights attacks by courts, by lawmakers, and by local officials. I give each year.
If you want to give with a slightly more political bent, Fair Fight is a good place to start, especially for Georgia. Another organization is the Southern Poverty Law Center, which has its own voting rights page. Of course, you’re free to support political actors of your choice in any party.
More than posting: Countering this egregious attack on voting requires more than posting on social media. It requires coordination, organization, and action. If you post frequently, that’s fine – feel free to share this article – but do more.
—
I didn’t want to write this piece.
I had to.
Now, back to our regular content on climate, energy, and building a better world.