With local elections now passed, my attention turns to the Iowa Caucuses and the vital work of 2020.
The field of Democratic presidential candidates is deep and diverse, and people I respect are committed to many of them. We all want someone who can win.
Our country faces myriad serious issues: racial inequity, a climate crisis, income inequality, mass incarceration, Go Fund Me for healthcare debt, out-of-reach housing, childcare deserts, tax-free corporate profits, crumbling infrastructure, bought-and-paid-for politics, a hallowed-out safety net, disenfranchisement, forced childbirth, gun violence, and a world unraveled and leaders indifferent to the pain they’re inflicting on humans.
Lots of our candidates care about these issues. But that’s just table stakes.
The Iowa Caucuses, whatever their faults, operate outside of the usual choose-one-of-two of elections. It’s our chance to follow our hearts.
And my heart says Elizabeth Warren.
Warren has the skills and the plans for the desperately needed — say it with me — big, structural change.
She’s a big thinker who designed the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, then ran it. She’s a hard fighter who isn’t afraid to stand up against big banks, big tech and big energy. And she’s an inspiration and a teacher who can clearly explain the plan, how it works, and why it’s important, and then lead the way.
But can she win? Yes, of course she can. If we don’t let ourselves get tied up in I-like-her-but… knots outthinking ourselves.
I hope you’ll allow yourself to dream big, follow your heart and join me in supporting Elizabeth Warren.