Sending Office: Honorable Jamie Raskin
Sent By:
Devon.Ombres@mail.house.gov
Affirm the Vital Importance of Democracy in the United States – Cosponsor H.Res. 513
“Democracy is never a thing done. Democracy is always something that a nation must be doing. What is necessary now is one thing and one thing only, that democracy become again democracy in action, not democracy accomplished…” – Archibald
MacLeish, 9th Librarian of Congress
Dear Colleague –
The democratic principles set forth in the Constitution laid the groundwork for the global spread of democracy over the last two centuries. These principles—and the system of government that we have built up around them—have served as a model
for countries around the world. But citizens are increasingly indifferent to the fact that democracy is the lynchpin of the American way of life.
In the 1930s, at a time when democracy was under attack, more than 90% of young people in the United States believed that it was essential to live in a democracy. Today, only 30% share this belief. Even more troubling than this decline is the
concurrent rise in authoritarian beliefs. In 2018, 24% of young Americans believed that democracy was a “bad” or “very bad” form of government, while 35% agreed that military rule was a good way of running government. Given this context, it should alarm
all Americans that the International Democracy Index has labeled America a flawed democracy, now ranking 21st among democratic nations. We should be number one!
The decline in the belief in democracy as a viable or desirable form of government, coupled with a surge in the popularity of authoritarian beliefs, is a chilling trend both in the United States and around the world. Freedom House recently concluded
that, “Democracy as the world’s dominant form of government is under greater threat than at any point in the last 25 years.”
We urge you to cosponsor this Resolution and join us in reaffirming that, as President Ronald Reagan said, “Democracy is worth dying for, because it’s the most deeply honorable form of government ever devised by man.”
If you would like to cosponsor this Resolution or if you have any questions, please contact Devon Ombres in Rep. Raskin’s office at devon.ombres@mail.house.gov.
Very Truly Yours,
Jamie Raskin Kelly Armstrong
Member of Congress Member of Congress
|
 e-Dear Colleague version 2.0 |
||
