Democracy defenders must form a broad coalition

Alexander Cotoia recently disaffiliated from the Republican Party.

In explaining his decision to become a registered independent, Cotoia wrote on Facebook, he retains his “deeply held, traditionally conservative principles.” But nothing about the Trump Administration is “even remotely ‘conservative’ under a conventional construction of that term,” he said.

The Trump Administration has chosen a course, he wrote, that “imperils our economic stability, compromises international security, subverts the rule of law, and undermines constitutional government.”

Cotoia isn’t the first person I know who has left the GOP. And his social media post reminded me of former U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger’s consistent defense of democracy against the threat that comes from his own party.

Many conservatives are good people. I’m eager to work with those who show such courage to re-form our democracy. It will take a broad, diverse team to win this fight.

The social contract that has held this nation together for nearly 250 years has collapsed. Trump and his MAGA allies intend to replace our representative democracy with an authoritarian government that serves the elite at the expense of the rest of us. Their coup is on the verge of succeeding.

But we still have elections, for now. Those of us who would preserve democracy must take back control of the U.S. House of Representatives in 2026. We must also win the presidency and, hopefully, control of the U.S. Senate in 2028.

The odds are against us. In the presidential race, the electoral college favors Republicans. On top of that, authoritarians use their power to bully, intimidate and even cheat when possible.

To win, we’ll need allies from across the political spectrum and a team that is mission-focused on stabilizing our system of shared governance.

This is the core fight of our time. If we don’t succeed, all may be lost.

The good news is that folks are sticking their necks out for democracy, from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders on the left to Kinzinger and former U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney on the right.

Ocasio-Cortez and Kinzinger are both potential presidential candidates. Frankly, any defender of democracy who finds a valid path to the presidency will have my support.

We can get back to battling over other policy issues once we restore a stable democracy.

Finding common ground

There are lots of important issues in these times. Crime and homelessness are on the rise. Our education system is slipping. Trump’s tariffs are reckless and oppressive. Probably most important is that we’ve destabilized our planet’s climate, and we’re still making it worse.

But we won’t be able to influence policy if we don’t re-establish the system of shared governance that gives us a voice.

The Trump Administration and GOP are taking away voting rights, women’s rights, economic freedom for people of color, due process for immigrants, and more.

They’re assaulting free speech on college campuses and freedom of the press. They’re targeting nonprofits and the judiciary and dismantling safety nets at a stunning pace. 

Trump is militarizing public land so we lose access and taking away our ability to know what our government is doing with our tax dollars.

The president is destroying our alliances with other democracies and forming new ties with tyrants, ensuring there aren’t any safe spaces on the planet.

We cannot let differences on issues like crime, abortion and gender identity divide us. Not now.

While we need to do what we can to beat back encroachments on our rights and erosions of systems people depend on, we must also seek common ground. Many of us are finding it on issues like preserving due process, defending immigrants, protecting public lands and opposing tariffs. We must continue this work. 

Not a plea to vote blue no matter what

I’m glad there are a few prominent conservatives in this fight like Kinzinger, who says the Republican Party “is gone” and he’s voted straight Democratic the last four years. I’m pleased to see Ocasio-Cortez honing a uniting message for those of us who aren’t billionaires.

Not surprisingly, there are some potential Democratic presidential candidates who have not found such moral clarity.

At the top of that list is California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has proven to be an opportunist in one of the most critical moments in our nation’s history.

Newsom initially called the deportation of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, who was wrongly sent to El Salvador, a “distraction.” He dismissed the situation as unimportant. Only after heavy pushback from Democrats did he relent.

If you can’t stand up for immigrants and preserving our due process rights in this moment, you shouldn’t be in office.

Democratic U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, who flew to El Salvador to meet with Abrego Garcia and try to bring him home, rightly called out Newsom on NBC’s Meet the Press.

“I think Americans are tired of elected officials or politicians who are all finger to the wind, what’s blowing this way, what’s blowing that way,” Van Hollen said. “And anybody who can’t stand up for the Constitution and the right of due process doesn’t deserve to lead.”

Electing politicians who lack a moral compass helps explain why our system failed and we got Trump. The last thing we need is such a politician running against the MAGA cult in 2028.

So, to be clear, I’m not arguing that we need to vote blue no matter what. I’m pleading with high-ranking Democrats to finally listen to the people, show some courage, build a broad alliance, and put forth candidates who voters will be excited to support. For starters, stop knocking down folks like Ocasio-Cortez.

This is also a plea to those conservatives who value democracy to join our alliance. We need more Kinzingers.

‘Freedom is a fragile thing’

In his inaugural address as California’s governor in 1967, Ronald Reagan spoke of the routine business of “the orderly transfer of administrative authority by direction of the people.” It’s something we’ve seen countless times. I’ve probably taken it for granted.

But there’s something magical about it, Reagan said in that address, something that makes it “a near miracle to many of the world’s inhabitants — this continuing fact that the people, by democratic process, can delegate power, and yet retain the custody of it.”

With we the people of the United States on the verge of losing this privilege, I understand what Reagan meant. This is why we must focus on defending democracy as if everything is at stake.

It is.

I’m more aligned politically with Ocasio-Cortez and folks like Pete Buttigieg and Beto O’Rourke than Kinzinger. Give me Ocasio-Cortez with a real path to the presidency in 2028 and I’ll be happy.

But I’ll also take Kinzinger if he builds the best chance to defeat MAGA.

I hope to see more conservatives joining folks like Cotoia and Kinzinger and standing up for democracy. I hope Democrats will make the practical, necessary choice to work with them to re-establish the social contract that underpins our shared community.

“Freedom is a fragile thing, and it’s never more than one generation away from extinction,” Reagan said in that inaugural address, long before he went on to become U.S. president and help end the Cold War. “It is not ours by way of inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation, for it comes only once to a people.”

“And those in world history who have known freedom and then lost it have never known it again,” Reagan warned.

We must band together. We have to win.