The day before I launched Democracy Docket on March 5, 2020, New York reported its second case of coronavirus — what we now call COVID. The New York Times declared that "Trump Makes Room for Experts, but Still Takes a Leading Role on Coronavirus."

Meanwhile, though Joe Biden had just swept nine states en route to the Democratic nomination for president, the Times was not convinced. "Democrats Decide That Joe Biden, as Risky as He Ever Was, Is the Safest Bet," was the best it could muster. Another headline proclaimed that "Doubts Linger as Democrats Vote: 'I Don't Think We Have a Perfect Candidate.'"

Even before the primary — and certainly before COVID — I had grown weary of the way the legacy media seemed to grade Donald Trump against one set of criteria and Democrats against another.

As general counsel to Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign, I had watched as the most qualified candidate of my lifetime was subjected to endless negative coverage over the email domain she used, while Trump openly asked Russia to release hacked emails to damage her campaign.

By then, Trump was a known election conspiracist — what we would today call an election denier — and the GOP was his willing accomplice in attacking the right to vote.

Three years earlier, Trump had set up a commission to search for nonexistent voter fraud. After the 2016 election (which he won), he posted on social media: "Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California."

Yet, none of these attacks on our elections were getting the attention they deserved. In October 2019, I decided to do something about it. 

I launched a newsletter called On the Docket to highlight the challenges facing voting rights and elections in court. It was originally going to be distributed quarterly. But after the reaction to its first edition, I decided it would be monthly.

Over that New Year's, I realized the problem was too big to combat with just a monthly newsletter. The media's double standard, the lack of genuine interest in voter suppression and election subversion as a growing feature of Republican electoral strategy were issues that demanded more. If I was going to be effective, I needed a full-fledged independent media company.

The problem was that I was a busy lawyer with a demanding practice, and I knew nothing about running a media company. Still, I discussed it with my family over dinner and decided to give it a try. When I found that the web domain "On the Docket" was already taken, my wife suggested “Democracy Docket.” Twelve dollars later, it was mine.

At 8:16 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020, I announced that I was ready to go.

Now, here's some joy from one of our pawtners in the opposition movement. 

My original hope was to launch by the end of January, but it turned out that building a media empire took longer than I thought. Who knew!

Throughout 2020, I wrote and spoke out against Trump's lies about mail-in voting, and I assured nervous readers that he could not postpone or cancel the elections. But mostly, we tracked the flood of cases targeting the rules governing how Americans vote.

In the aftermath of the election, we chronicled Trump's assault on democracy through frivolous lawsuits — and ultimately, on Jan. 6, 2021.

Democracy Docket has grown dramatically since then. It publishes on its website seven days a week. It has several daily and weekly newsletters that go out to more than 400,000 subscribers. Its social media accounts reach millions. Its YouTube channel has more than 650,000 subscribers.

It now relies on a full-time staff of more than 20 — reporters, editors and a team that keeps it all working and growing. By midyear, that number will be over 30, and it could easily double by its seventh birthday next March.

But the problem I set out to address in 2020 has only gotten worse. Free and fair elections are under greater attack than ever before.

The legacy media is in decline and weaker than it has ever been. In too many quarters, it remains committed to a both-sides journalism that is ill-suited to this moment. As a result, Democrats continue to be held to a far higher standard than Trump and his Republican allies.

The challenges facing Democracy Docket today are also the same ones we started with.

I continue to have an active law practice — I now run a 60-plus attorney firm that is on the front lines of the fight for free and fair elections. While I write for Democracy Docket as often as I can, I unfortunately cannot devote anything close to full-time attention.

And yet the work has never mattered more. As large as Democracy Docket has grown, it still needs to scale larger and faster. The decline of legacy media and the rise of right-wing media have made our mission more critical than ever. In this arena, size and influence matter enormously.

To achieve what is necessary ahead of the midterms, we need to expand our scope and depth — through hiring, yes, but also by growing our base of free subscribers and paying members.

That's where you come in.

If you know someone who might benefit from the content Democracy Docket produces, please pass this along and encourage them to sign up. As a premium member, you already know the importance of supporting this work. For that, I am deeply grateful. 

We are in for a difficult few months and years. But that is not a reason to give up — it is a reason to act. Now is the time to stiffen our spines and stand up for democracy in the courts and in the public square.

That is the challenge of our generation. I have dedicated my life to this cause.

I hope you will join me.

Now, here's some joy from one of our pawtners in the opposition movement.