It was an honor to join @NC_Governor in Guilford County to celebrate his "Year of Public Schools." The work continues: supporting public education must remain our state’s top priority.
Strong public schools make strong communities, a strong economy, & a strong North Carolina.
America could wake up on Wednesday with all three branches of our government — the — Executive, Legislative, and Judicial — Trumpist.
With this clip, take five minutes to ponder Germany’s memorials and the price that nation paid for being bamboozled by a bombastic autocrat. Listen to the heartfelt message of my German tour guides, for whom these memorials are like ghosts of mistakes made and evils allowed… ghosts that haunt their society still. These are the same guides who clink glasses in the beer halls and yodel from the hilltops with our American tour members. They admire America. They love America. And they are worried for America.
If we vote for fascism, it’ll likely be won by one or two percent (or even less)…and perhaps just a few stadiums of people will tip the balance. And history has taught my European friends that the cost of a course correction is infinitely more heartbreaking after a wannabe dictator wins an election than before. We are all participants, we are all responsible, and we will all bear the consequences of our collective choice.
The very soul of public education is on the line. I’d appreciate your support as State Superintendent of Public Instruction.
The last day to vote is on Election Day: Tuesday, November 5th. Polls close at 7:30pm.
A century ago, Germany’s democracy was hijacked by a bombastic and charismatic tyrant — and in this five-minute video, you’ll learn how he did it. Why did I produce this? Because I believe that history is speaking to us, and all too often, those who refuse to learn from it are doomed to repeat it.
As you watch, imagine filling out a Bingo card filled with Germany 1933/USA 2024 parallels: big rallies, rage-filled and hateful rhetoric, simple answers promising quick and easy solutions to complicated problems, empty promises of a great-again future, scapegoating outsiders, and political enemies silenced on day one. And notice the caring wisdom and concern from my German friends as they share these lessons from their dark history.
It’s hard to understand how Trump could, on the eve of a tight election, paint a picture of Liz Cheney before a firing squad by actually saying, “Let’s put her with a rifle standing there with nine barrels shooting at her, OK? And let’s see how she feels about it when the guns are trained on her face.” You can’t get into the mind of a dictator with an insatiable appetite for power — but you can recognize the playbook they all seem to follow.
Just watch this clip. It’s excerpted from my hourlong public television special “The Story of Fascism in Europe,” which is streaming free (and ad-free) at https://t.co/YA10kVH0V8. If you care about our democracy and love our country, it’s hard to stop watching.
When I produced this in 2018, I hoped this day would never come in our country. But November 5th is upon us. Please share this with anyone in your life who might need a reminder that the stakes are high...and this is very real.
Just like Kamala Harris, I have been the underdog and I have been underestimated!! My success always discredited!… Let me tell you something, women have to work ten times harder and perform ten times better and STILL our success comes with excuses… its because shes pretty or because she slept her way to the top. I see the disgusting attacks against Kamala and it’s not only angered me but has motivated me MORE now than ever to not just say something, but to DO something!… I cant stand a bully!
Many don’t realize that the first people Hitler sent to his concentration camps weren’t everyday Jewish citizens, but his political opponents. So, when Trump rants about retribution, locking up his opponents, and giving them “very long sentences,” I can’t help but take him seriously… because history teaches us that is what fascist dictators do during their “Day One” period to consolidate their power. (After all, if you’re hellbent on staying in power but aren’t likely to win the next election, you can’t have your political opponents running around free.)
To keep fascism out of our lives, vote for democracy!
Rick Steves: There was a handful of people who opposed Hitler, refused to do the proper salute, to kiss his ring; these are the Kinzingers, the Liz Cheneys, and the Mitt Romneys…of the German democracy in 1932…
FUN FACT: If mega-billionaire moguls like Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk oppose Kamala Harris for president, it indicates that her beliefs resonate with everyday Americans rather than those autocrats.
All of our US stores will be closed tomorrow, October 29, for Vote Early Day.
Patagonia employees can use their paid time off to cast their ballots early and volunteer to get out the vote.
You can join us, too. Find out how at https://t.co/SspBUpYVMz
In 2016, before I recruited him to write for WaPo, Jamal Khashoggi was banned from writing and TV in Saudi Arabia after he criticized Donald Trump.
He remained silent until his first piece for the Post in 2017.
Today, WaPo is choosing silence. Sad.
https://t.co/rXZDLWPf8J