Join Final Day’s Walk to U.S. Capitol  

by Rick Hubbard | Dec 29, 2024

At long last, only 6 miles of walking are needed to complete my long journey from the West Coast to our Capitol in D.C.

Will you walk these final miles with me? 

Here are the details:

The final segment of the WALKING TO FIX OUR DEMOCRACY walk will begin (target start time) at 10 am, Fri., Jan 3rd from the parking area at Fletchers Boathouse, 4940 Canal Road, NW, Washington D.C. 20016.

Please plan to arrive between 9:30-9:45 am. Dress in warm clothing, boots/shoes, hat, mittens, etc appropriate for that day’s weather. For snow and/or ice, consider bringing ski poles and/or traction devices, plus a backpack to store your layers, snacks, and hydration. 

If you want to carry signs, placards, etc, related to “Fix Our Democracy,” either bring your own or carry what I can provide. I have up to 4 parade-size American flags, 3 “Fix Our Democracy” banners (2 walkers per banner needed), and 3 large signs you are welcome to carry.

Part 1 – The walk will begin at 10 am and walk the C&O Canal towpath/US Bicycle Rte 50 for about 2.5 miles to the Georgetown Waterfront Park Labyrinth, at Water Street NW, arriving there about 11-11:15am to take a short break and meet up with any other walkers who prefer what will then be only a walk of 4 more miles to the Capitol. Parking is likely available not far from the Labyrinth.

Part 2 – We’ll then begin walking from the Labyrinth again at approximately 11:30 and follow a walking route via the National Mall to the Capitol,

most likely arriving there between 1:30-2 pm.

We’ll briefly rally there for some short remarks by both me and others. 

Once finished we’ll all have the option to enter and speak to our representatives and then to find our way back to our vehicles via Uber or other public transportation.

Please sign up if you plan to walk, to provide a loose estimate of who’s likely to join in. And feel free to call or message Rick at 802-999-3905, Email: rick@rickhubbard.org.

Americans of all ideologies know that with the greatest economy in the world, there is no good reason why all its 335 million residents can’t enjoy a political system that is organized and funded to be fair, inclusive, equitable, and competitive.  Those we elect to represent the interests of “we the people” must do the job for which they take an oath to do, as set forth in the Preamble of our U.S. Constitution.  That includes a mandate to “promote the general welfare” of us all, with:

• An economy, based on capitalism, that spreads its benefits broadly among us all.
• A healthcare system that provides high-quality healthcare to every one of us, at the lowest system-wide total cost, and in a manner that is both economically and socially sustainable.

And achieve the same result with education, climate change, consumer safety, financial regulation, defense, and more.

It IS possible and we CAN do better!

So let’s send the message to our representatives new and old to “DO YOUR JOB”!

Rick

Rick Hubbard

Walking To Fix Our Democracy
https://www.fixourdemocracy.us/

The Faces Change, But for Decades Congress has Ignored it Constitutional Oath to ‘ Promote the General Welfare’ for All Americans 

by Rick Hubbard | Nov 26, 2024

I’m Almost There! 

After more than 3,000+ miles of walking across the United States, I reached the outskirts of D.C. yesterday – Monday, November 25th.  

I’m now pausing the walk to take a well-earned holiday break at home with friends and family in Vermont before returning to finish the last 12 miles of the walk. My tentative plan is to arrive at the Capitol about January 3rd when the newly elected Congress is sworn in and remain in D.C. through inauguration day on January 20th.  I want you to be a part of that, but more on all that later.

What Have I Learned?

I’ve asked hundreds of Americans this simple question:

“How well do you feel the majority of those we’ve elected and who’ve sworn an oath to “promote the general welfare” of “we the people,” have done to effectively address the biggest issues that affect us all over the past several decades?

Whether Democrat, Republican or independent, almost all agree that those we’ve elected should be working for the common good of ALL of us, and that a majority of them are not!   lnstead they are prioritizing their personal interests their donors, or their party’s agenda.  

That’s Why Voters Were So Angry on Election Day

Year after year, our elected representatives have all taken the same oath to represent us. But regardless of which party has been in power over the past several decades, their inaction and misguided actions on the biggest issues we all face – fair wages, quality healthcare, affordable housing and more —  resulted in the mess so many of us face today.    

It’s now the Trump Republicans’ turn to improve the lives of everyday Americans. But if the lives of most don’t dramatically improve — and fast — there will likely be a another big backlash in four years. Everyday Americans want to be heard, and they want action to improve their lives, not nonsense.  The clock starts ticking January 3rd.

There is no good reason why, in one of the richest countries in the world, we can’t:

Have an economy, based on capitalism, that broadly benefits us all.  We CAN ensure that if one works a full work-week, every family can feed themselves and have a roof over their heads.

Have good quality health care for ALL of us at the least, total, systemwide cost.  Other countries do it — we can, too.

Have elections that are fair, equitable, inclusive, and competitive – and not owned by corporations or special interests.  We CAN legislate the end of Citizens United and end the grip that corporate and special interest money has on Congress, and we CAN pass the 28th Amendment. We CAN pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and protect the freedom to vote of ALL Americans. And we CAN & MUST pass the Freedom to Vote Act.

All of these and many more can be accomplished by enacting effective law and policy, IF our elected representatives DO what they swore an oath to do.

Walk With Me As I Enter Washington

Let’s take that message directly to Congress!  My tentative plan is to walk into Washington to the Capitol on January 3rd.   Will you walk the last few miles with me from Georgetown into DC? We’ll do a small — peaceful — rally in front of the capitol, then disperse to our new representatives’ offices. Details will be forthcoming, but plan on coming to Washington to make your voice heard!

Until then, I’m THANKFUL for all your love and support!

Happy Holidays.

Rick

Rick Hubbard

Walking To Fix Our Democracy
https://www.fixourdemocracy.us/

Rick WALK UPDATE – OUR VOTE – Its Beginnings and Purpose 

by Rick Hubbard | Oct 31, 2024

This is my last update until after we have elected our new Representatives. I’m now through Ohio. More Ohio event updates at bottom. 

I’m now walking east along the Ohio River, toward Pittsburg PA in a few days. 

OUR VOTE – Its Beginnings and Purposes

Will we be subjects? Or citizens? 

We rebelled from Great Britain due to King George III’s unwillingness to take the views of America’s colonists into account. Our cry then was “Taxation Without Representation.”

This first resulted in our Declaration of Independence at a time when few in the world lived other than as subjects, forced to obey a wide variety of Monarchs, Autocrats, and Despots.

Life for most was very grim. Poverty was widespread.

America decided that “We the People” would govern ourselves, via a Republic with democratically elected representatives at all levels of government,

Nationally, we defined the job our representatives would swear to accomplish in the Preamble to our Constitution.

“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Most of our state Constitutions similarly echo some version of the importance of serving “our common good.”

Nations, regardless of ideology, tend to rise if their laws and policies properly serve their people on the biggest issues that face us all: the economy, health care, education, the fairness of the structure and financing of our political system, financial protections; climate change, consumer protections; and much more. 

As I walk and meet loads of different people, almost all of us understand that, for several recent decades, a majority of those we have elected to Congress and to our state legislatures have not properly served the interests of us all – “We the People,” and that it is badly hurting our nation.

We do not havean economy, based on capitalism, that broadly benefits us all.

We do not have a healthcare system that provides good quality health care to all of us at the least, total, systemwide cost.

We do not structure and finance the political system to elect our representatives in a manner that is fair, equitable, inclusive, and that provides us with both a wide range of choices and an optimal process to select among them.

And these are only three of many more issues areas that are not properly serving us. Yet, it doesn’t have to be this way. All of it can be accomplished by enacting effective law and policy in each of the above, and many other issue areas. It’s not for lack of good ways to accomplish this. It’s due to our political dysfunction and the unwillingness of a majority to accomplish what they swore an oath to do.

However, we quickly divide from this common starting point of agreement, as to which candidate of which political party will best accomplish this.

Yet, since almost all of us agree on the dysfunctional root of the problem, fixing it in a nonpartisan way to benefit us all is likely our best starting point. Let’s make our elected representatives do a better job on behalf of us all.

Of course there are many good representatives at work on our behalf.

But if they do not constitute a majority, appropriate laws and policies are not enacted to properly serve us on these many common issues, Then, the entire institution becomes dysfunctional and unable to do its job.

Unfortunately, too many of those we have elected to represent our common interests – the “public good” of us all,” have Instead become incentivized to often act in ways that place their own re-election interests, those of their wealthy and influential campaign funders, and those of their political party above the common, broad interests of the American people.   

As we now exercise our precious right to elect our representatives, VOTE – for the common good of us all!

Ohio events Update

Ohio activists have successfully used Ohio’s Citizens Initiative to put in play an anti-gerrymandering measure up for a vote in the November election as ballot measured #1.

However, the heavily gerrymandered Republican legislature proposed their own anti-gerrymandering ballot measure.

Moreover, the Ohio Ballot Board, chaired by Ohio Secretary of State, Frank LaRose, who largely wrote the description of the anti-gerrymandering Ballot measure #1, wrote it so as to misleadingly state that it actually promoted gerrymandering.

Frank LaRose swore an oath, to suppoort the Ohio Constitution which, in its preamble states that he will “promote the general welfare” of all Ohioans.

How well is he doing his job?

Sadly, this sort of “representation malpractice” is all too common among a large proportion of our state and federal representatives.

It’s another great example of why we must improve the structure and financing of our political process.

I attended many events in support of ballot measure #1 while in Ohio.

See below for photos.

With Catherine Turcer, Executive Director of COMMON CAUSE, Ohio, outside the county board of elections near Columbus in support of Ballot measure #1 during early voting.

With League of Women Voters – Ohio activists in Ravenna, Ohio outside their county Board of Elections during early voting.

In Kent Ohio for a “Voting Rights” presentation by the League of Women Voters – Ohio at the Kent Public Library.

In Akron with activists at a “Honk and Wave” in support of Ballot Measure #1.

In Green Ohio with activists for another “Honk and Wave” for Ballot Measure #1.

Lastly, as I walk I meet a wide variety of wonderful Americans of all ideologies. In Ohio this included Pastor Ben Croston and his assistant Cindy Hughes of the Deerfield Friends “Church on the Circle” who devote the entire bottom floor of their church to a massive amount of donated clothing and other essentials that are available for folks in need from near and far. 

Ben graciously allowed me to overnight my support RV in the rear of their church parking lot for two nights.

Once Again. Thanks for all your love and support!  

Rick

Rick Hubbard

Great Opportunity to Reduce PAC money Plus Walk Update 

by Rick Hubbard | Oct 11, 2024

Walking to Fix Our Democracy is proud to endorse and support a citizen initiative to abolish Super PAC spending in state elections in Maine.

Maine Citizens to End Super PACs collected over 76,000 signatures in support of a referendum to limit annual contributions to Super PACs from individuals, businesses, and other PACs to $5,000 in a calendar year.

For years, courts have perpetuated a legal error of logic to declare that contributions to Super PACs  may not be limited. That error of logic has now been identified in this Maine initiative. If adopted by voters in  November, it is very likely to be immediately challenged in court. That challenge will ultimately be appealed to our U.S. Supreme Court, and it will have an excellent opportunity to correct this error in legal reasoning.

Harvard Constitutional Law Professor Larry Lessig

has created a video to explain the legal argument to end Super PACs,

Watch it via the following link:

The legal defense of this Maine initiative will be expensive, just as it has been expensive to gather the necessary signatures to get this on the ballot in November. 

Supporters of Walking to Fix Our Democracy can help. I’ve already donated. I hope many of you will as well.  

To do so, go to Maine Citizens to End Super PACs , read more, then click the red DONATE button.   

This is likely our best near-term opportunity to reform the way money is perverting representation by those we the people have selected to “promote the general welfare” of us all.   Thanks!

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WALK UPDATE

Milwaukee Event

Before leaving Wisconsin, I participated in a Milwaukee Public Library

event organized by VOTERS FIRST that showcased their efforts to have the Michigan State Legislature enact a brilliant yet straight-forward solution comprised of two key elements.

A “Top 5” PRIMARY ELECTION in August of election years where the top 5 vote-getters advance to the general election where voters will have the option to rank their favorite candidates in the GENERAL ELECTION in November of election years, initially focused only on congressional seats (US House and US Senate).

If successful, Wisconsin may be the first state to adopt such an approach via their state legislature. To date, such adoption in all other states has been via Citizen Initiatives.

Chicago Event

After Milwaukee I crossed to the east side of Lake Michigan and continued walking through Lansing, MI, finally turning south to Ann Arbor and beyond into Ohio on my way, slowly, toward D.C.

On October 1st, I backtracked with the “Tow Car” to Chicago for an event at The Chicago Center On Democracy.

Two of us participated in a moderated discussion. 

Frank Barry is an editorial board member and columnist at Bloomberg and the author of Back Roads and Better Angels: A Journey into the Heart of American Democracy.  In his book, Barry recounts his RV trip across the Lincoln Highway during a pivotal time in U.S. history, exploring the deep divides and unifying forces within American democracy. 

I focused on “fixes” needed to the structure and financing of our political system to better incentivize our elected representatives to do their job to “promote the general welfare” of us all on each of the biggest issues we all face in our daily lives.

Volunteer Support

A few days after returning from Chicago, I was greatly assisted by Patty OBrien as I passed by Dundee, Michigan.

Patty drove the support vehicle, which allowed me to take regular breaks to hydrate and snack while walking 12.5 miles that day.  Such volunteer support is welcome and appreciated!   Thank you Patty!

Until Next Time

Thanks for all your love and support!  Meanwhile, let’s all VOTE!

Rick

Rick Hubbard

Walking To Fix Our Democracy

 Great visit to Madison – No Thanks to COVID 

by Rick Hubbard | Aug 13, 2024

It’s been a tough few weeks – the toughest since I got back on the road in April.   Just before leaving Dubuque, I contracted a bad variant of COVID-19 and was the sickest I’ve been in 50 years.  What an ordeal!  I experienced everything many of you have already experienced, with high temps, extreme sore throat, extensive congestion and exhaustion.   

I’d banked some extra miles and had some flex in the schedule, so I got myself to the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s medical center emergency room.  With some expert medical help at UW, plus rest, I’m back on my feet and walking my 10+ miles per day, thank goodness.

What If I Didn’t Have Good Healthcare?

What if I didn’t have insurance, as 27.1 Million Americans don’t? Or was part of the 69 milllion more of all working age Americans who have insurance coverage so inadequate that if we get really sick, we’d face bankruptcy. Together, that’s almost 1/3 of us.   

Every elected representative at the federal level takes an oath to support our US Constitution which sets forth their job in its Preamble in pertinent part as “promote the general Welfare” of us all. 

Doesn’t this mean providing everyone with good quality healthcare at the least system-wide total cost in a sustainable manner? The Congressional Budget Office 4 years ago calculated we could accomplish all this in 2030 for an increase in national health expenditures of less than 1/10th of one percent of total projected Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2030.

Yet a majority of those we elect to represent our interests nationally don’t even try to accomplish this job they took an oath to do.

The structure of our elections contributes to this.  Huge contributions from a tiny fraction of the wealthiest, elect politicians who prioritize their donors interests while ignoring the general welfare of their constituents.   

It’s more profitable for corporations and special interests to get a candidate elected to do their bidding to block structuring a healthcare system which most efficiently serves everyone.  And insurance companies and middle men lobby to keep the system the way it is.  There are democracy reform solutions like open primaries and small-donor funded elections to solve it, but we must just muster the will to accomplish it.   

Rally & Media Coverage at the Wisconsin Capitol

August 10th, I was invited to speak in support of “top-five” open primary elections plus ranked choice voting for all federal candidates at a rally organized by Voters First Wisconsin and others at the impressive State Capitol building in Madison.  The talk took advantage of a built-in crowd from a huge farmers market held each Saturday, and resulted in press coverage as well.  Wisconsin Public Radio did a short audio story and a longer written version, plus there was a great story by Madison’s ABC affiliate, WKOW.  

Milwaukee and Chicago Next

I’m headed to Milwaukee this week, then on to Chicago, where I hope to connect with Illinois democracy groups.  If I’m ahead of schedule, I may drive into Chicago for a day during the Democratic National Convention to take advantage of the media presence, now that I’m feeling better.

Until Next Time

Thanks for all your love and support!   And take it from me:  Keep yourself healthy!

Rick

Rick Hubbard