The BIG Picture on National Security

Election Tampering by Anti-Democracy Operatives Is Real, And Really Scary

As a longtime intelligence professional, I’m more plugged in than most to the powerful threats to democracy posed by destructive forces both domestic and foreign. The cracks in our politics have created a larger-than-usual opening for those who want the American experiment to fail. One way to fight back is to heighten our collective awareness by understanding the scope of these activities that has the potential to change the course of American history. And make no mistake about it, that can and will happen if our democracy doesn’t hold in the November 5^th election.

Thanks to the release of a declassified report on foreign threats to the 2022 elections by the Director of National Intelligence we now know how far-ranging these operations have been, both in breadth and complexity. Our understanding of active Russian measures had already advanced after Putin’s interference in the 2016 elections. Despite how obvious Russia’s mission is to topple American democracy, it’s chilling to see how many of our citizens and politicians have wittingly or unwittingly fallen for their tactics hook, line, and sinker. (I’m looking at you, anti-democracy voters!)

For example, Russia focused on blaming multiculturalism, diversity and “leftist ideals” for ostensibly driving the United States into “crisis”. This talking point was primarily targeted at males over 40 years old who were interested in rightwing conservatism. Another Russian plan to divide Americans and erode public support for Ukraine aid targeted white, Latino, lower- and middle-class Americans who identified with traditional family values.

If you're thinking this sounds a lot like what voters see every night via some news outlets, or hear daily from right-wing influencers on social media, you are 100% correct. These are non-news, non-stop smear campaigns driven by a foreign intelligence apparatus that has increased with every election cycle since 2016.

All that propaganda pales in comparison to the horror show we’re in for if democracy does not prevail and the frightening Project 2025 plan is put into action. Never before have we seen a manifesto from a presidential candidate that details a design to tear down and “rebuild” the entire government while dismantling our freedoms and the rule of law. 

With knowledge as power, we have laid it all out for you in these backgrounders about our literal enemies of the state. We encourage you to pay attention to them:

Project 2025- What it means to all of us. 
Project 2025 -How to tell a friend about  Project 2025 

Post submitted by  Carlton P Tolsdorf Jr.
Carlton Tolsdorf is a volunteer with The Union who serves as the Virginia State Lead for The Union as well as a member of The Union Communications team, and a co-lead for The Union Northeast States. You can reach Carlton via email at:
virginia@jointheunion.us or carlton@jointheunion.us  

Note: The views and opinions expressed by volunteer contributors are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the positions of The Union, a single-issue organization that welcomes all and is dedicated to protecting democracy.

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