Letter: Our institutions are under attack

Our institutions are essential in preserving democracy. Some vital elements of our democratic institutions include a free press, judicial system, environmental protection, education, labor unions, intelligence agencies, election systems and health services. These institutions, and others, are under attack by the current administration by actions such as repeatedly discrediting the press and intelligence agencies, eliminating environmental regulations (clean air, water, climate change), and chipping away at health care.

Our own election system, for example, is being attacked by Russian interference. Unfortunately, our president and the Republican-led Congress refuse to protect this precious institution. The president consistently undermines the judicial investigation of Russian interference. The cyber coordinator position was eliminated in May. In July, House Republicans voted down funds for grants to help states prevent cyber attacks on their elections.

“Sometimes institutions are deprived of vitality and function, turned into a simulacrum of what they once were, so that they gird the new order rather than resisting it.” (On Tyranny, by Timothy Snyder). In 1933, in less than a year, Germany had become a one-party state in which all major institutions had been humbled.

Vote for Democrats Christine Brown and Marie Cantwell to protect our democratic institutions.