The past week has been tough. The presidential debate did not exactly go as we hoped. The Supreme Court ruled that Trump has absolute immunity for “official acts” as President. But all of that only makes the election in November more crucial. The choice is literally between a dictatorship and a democracy, and it’s essential that we encourage everyone we know to vote.

Which brings us to our interview of the week: Daria Dawson, the Executive Director of America Votes. Daria explains why our vote is so important – if it wasn’t, why are some trying so hard to suppress it? – and how getting out the vote, or rather “spreading out the vote,” will help us keep our democracy this year. If you want more details about Project 2025, we encourage you to check out our info page here.

And finally, because we definitely needed a little joy this week, Rachel, Amanda and Jasmine raise a glass to communities and the nourishing power of giving back in this week's Toast to Joy.

If you haven’t signed up for Red Wine & Blue yet, please join us at pod.redwine.blue/join and encourage your friends to join too. The fight for democracy is far from over and the time to take action is now.

For a transcript of this episode, please email theswppod@redwine.blue.

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