The meaning of Democracy Underground is threefold.
In its first meaning, Democracy Underground is a metaphor for voices of the people of America. We have had our voices buried by an unfair and unrepresentative system and drowned out by mountains of dark money. We will be buried no longer! This leads to the second meaning.
In World War Two, American and British Commandos parachuted into Occupied France to link up with Resistance fighters there. These teams, known as the Jedburghs, fought against overwhelming odds with their French counterparts to disrupt German formations and supply lines. This resistance movement became known as The Underground.
As a former Army Green Beret, the Jedburghs are in my unit heritage. I believe it is up to us to wage a civil insurgency to not only restore our democratic ideals, but to push our democracy to a new stage of evolution in line with the events of the New Millennium.
The final meaning of the Underground is as a safe space for the members of the movement to gather. That is what I hope this site can be for Americans interested in a revitalized democracy that represents the interests of its people. This site will be a rest and reprieve from the toxic partisanship that clogs the national discourse.
There is another way. We don’t have to feel trapped by our government, but to break the cycle of partisan extremism, we need new voices to rise and offer a different way forward.
We need a movement toward a new politics – a politics for the 21st Century that makes the revitalization of democracy it’s number one goal. We need a politics that transcends our petty partisan battle lines in order to solve problems.
Our world is faced with unprecedented global dangers right now. The United States cannot afford to cede its role as a leader toward a better future. We need thoughtful, evidence-based leadership that is capable of navigating the treacherous waters of our changing world.
In order to do this, we have to change the incentive structures of our democracy. For too long have we allowed the interests of politicians to drift out of alignment with the interests of the people, to the point where our current leadership sees personal interest no differently than national interest.
We need a movement toward a new politics – Democracy Underground is that movement.