A defining feature of Donald Trump is that he demands attention. From outrage to stupidity to outright cruelty, he forces us to look at him the way a disaster prevents us from averting our eyes.
Much has been written about the attention economy and how Trump makes us more polarized, less informed and, frankly, dumber. But there is another byproduct of focusing on Trump that is far more dangerous to democracy. It allows other Republicans, particularly at the state level, to operate under the radar — with little attention paid to how they are tilting the playing field in their favor for next year’s elections.
Across the country, the GOP has built an election operation focused on gerrymandering, voter suppression and election denialism. Fueled by dark money and false conspiracy theories, it is the Republican Party’s top priority.
This is no accident. Trump knows that the greatest threat to his power is losing the majority next year. By slowly eroding voting rights, Republicans are gunning to secure a victory the only way they know how.
We can’t let them get away with it.
Let’s start with North Carolina. At this point, Republicans in the state see voter suppression as their side hustle — while outright election subversion is their main hustle. After trying to steal a Supreme Court seat with a failed effort to disenfranchise 65,000 voters, they’re back at it and raring to go.
Last month, state Republicans introduced a sweeping elections bill aimed at restricting voting. Among other steps, the measure would bar state and local election officials from promoting voting. It would also require members of the military and citizens voting from abroad — the latest targets of the GOP voter suppression campaign — to provide a photo ID. North Carolina Republicans know that without these efforts, Democrats are more likely to win.
