We have now released six editions of Making Sense; Maximizing Impact (MSMI) – see our Newsletter Archive for back issues.

Given where we are in the election cycle calendar and all that is (everyone who is) hanging by a thread in this political moment, we want to revisit what action one can take today, alongside their closing summer fun. Scroll down for a list of all of our 2026 recommendations to give for political impact, as well as things you can do to contribute your time.

And, of course, as always, we hope to have:

*From The Serenity Prayer, rooted in the early 1930s writings of Reinhold Niebuhr. He developed "Christian realism", an approach that took human sinfulness and the limits of moral idealism seriously, arguing against both naive utopianism and cynical fatalism about politics and society. He wrote extensively about ethics, power, and democracy!

Remember the canoe trip we had planned to canoe in the BWCA at the end of July? Due to physical limitations of half of the sexagenerians scheduled to attend, we had to cancel it. Less than a month later, we learned that we were never going (we just didn't know it!). BWCA was closed for only the third time in its history due to the climate-fueled fires in the area. This was the second closing of this decade already. The first closing ever was fifty years ago this Fall!

So, here's hoping that in these closing weeks of Summer, we all breathe in lots of clean fresh air, are able to distinguish what we can – and can't – change, and keep contributing the time and treasure that meets or exceeds the challenges of this political moment.

Our goal here is, always, to help others (and ourselves) to…

1. Make sense of the often nonsensical; and
2. Maximize our impact.

We also always try to convey a sense of hope for the fights we are all engaged in. The future, and the unfathomable present, will require us all to bring our best in the months – and years – ahead.

Election Season Is (Almost) Upon Us

Given that next month it's showtime for most voters' election attention, we want to focus on what we (and you) can do. Our hope is to always provide practical and actionable information.

But first, a bit more context.

It is quite clear that this administration will stop at nothing to subvert elections. The "Save America" Act (SAA). The FBI has gone after organizers in Ohio, subpoenaed ballots in GA, and threatened election officials with federal charges. The Right is weaponizing the DOJ. They are trying to weaponize the USPS. They aren't done. They will try as hard or harder than January 6, 2021, right up until the new legislature is seated.

They are failing. For now. Over and over in court. Red, blue and purple state Attorneys General bonding together across the country to protect the vote and election officials. Pushback from Republicans in WV, UT, KY, WV, GA and even FL. The feckless House passed a version, but the Senate went home without a clear vote on Republicans' "top election-related priority". Not because anyone found their spines or principles.

But the writing is on the wall: they are the ones holding the bag, and they are more unpopular than ever. Don't take our word for it. Listen to Rep. Thomas Massie's plain talk (yes, we're encouraging you to watch 33 seconds of this wingnut; you won't be sorry).

But, we can take nothing for granted. We're not only talking about an election. Or about protecting our most vulnerable neighbors and communities who are suffering mightily. We're talking about our country. Our planet! We have to turn things around and start building for the future. (≈90% of the new power capacity that was brought online globally in 2024 was wind, solar or battery. The cost is down for renewables and the beloved market has spoken. But the U.S. government is killing energy in our country.)

The good news: The legal, activist and organizing communities are aligned and sophisticated. We will need ALL of us to enforce the election results – soon after the November election, and right through the seating of the new congress in January.

The organizations and networks will be ready – if they can get adequate funding – and we all have to be as well.

Readying the Resistance

Over the past 8 years, we've been most engaged in organizing donors (yes, that's organizing too!). Given the way mainstream Dem candidates and races siphon off dollars in what we see as less impactful ways, organizing more funding for political change agents at the grassroots and nationally has been, and is, critical.

This year however, we have shifted equal or greater focus from organizing donors in support of deep grassroots organizing to support of resistance orgs. This includes orgs that are fundamental to protest, legal advocacy and protecting elections. Election protection requires many critical elements. Standing up in court to patently unfair, often illegal, efforts by right-wing operators wherever they think they can get away with it. Supporting and protecting the critical cogs of the elections machinery: election workers and state officials who actually believe in democracy. Because elections are controlled at the county and state level, of course.

Check out this incredible 2026 Election Risk Heat Map, where the Voting Rights Lab has done the hard work and put together a heat map that can be used by anyone, and will be critical to the full Election Safeguards Response Network (ESRN) membership.

Protests like Hands Off!, No Kings I-IV, and annual May Day rallies (which date to 1889), build up the resistance and put bad actors on notice that people will turn out en masse to resist election interference and voter intimidation. And, in November, if there is that interference, or another effort to interfere with the seating of validly elected officials, this network – and we all – will be ready to turn out and say Oh no you won't!

2026 Advice to Date

Please don't wind yourself up to no end; Don't let T-Rump – or anyone else – live rent-free in your mind. Do hope-scroll. Don't doom-scroll. Go do the things that keep your soul fueled; you know what they are.

At a minimum, do not inflame others' angst and anxiety. Spread the hope, not the doom.

GIVE, as generously as you can manage. Here is a compiled list of our recommendations to date. We've divided the list into our ongoing Primary 2026 Investment Recommendations, as well as listed all other mentions we've made in previous newsletters.

And we've added one great new one this month:

The American Experiment Project. AEP and its affiliated projects are the most innovative, data-rooted and promising approach impacting "new media" that we have come across thus far. These folks are building and influencing audiences in very promising ways. They train, and surface and share the most powerful social media content, across influencers and groups. They started the quite successful JAAM podcast – four young Black men delivering sharp, thoughtful commentary on politics, culture, fashion, gaming, and internet culture – injecting incisive political commentary and critique and reaching an ever-growing audience. They have helped get progressive voices onto mainstream cultural outlets (e.g., sports shows) and even core "manosphere" shows.

They keep a low profile given the toxic political environment on the right. If you'd like to learn more, please reach out to us and we'll share some more info and/or connect you to them directly.

DO something. Don't mourn, Organize! These all represent distinct worthy pathways for getting involved, giving of your time and/or opening up your networks. We are quite confident you will also find real hope and inspiration in the process. You'll note that the first four of these orgs are also recommended for giving. The fifth is something quite novel and new. We're intrigued and hope you will be too!

• Movement Voter Project, Tom's consulting client and passion of 8 years, describes itself as a mutual fund for political giving. It directs donor resources to impactful work happening across the country, particularly in swing states. MVP is the leading nationwide funder of organizing groups. We met many of our favorite friends and activists via MVP house parties to raise funds for grassroots groups (and house party season is accelerating right now for 2026!). Learn more about MVP's 2026 strategy, and find MVP volunteer opportunities. If you live in Eastern MA, you can reach out directly to the E MA Hub at mvpemageneral@gmail.com.
• Force Multiplier, an amazing all-volunteer operation, was founded in Brookline, leverages individual volunteers' (Force Multipliers') networks to supercharge fundraising and drive support. Their bread and butter is still funding – and providing online forums with – Democratic House and Senate candidates in tight but winnable races. But they also hold online events with, and send significant funding to, voter engagement, registration, education and turnout organizations, as well as election protection operations locally, nationally and in the courts. Find ways to get involved here.
• Indivisible has continued to be the most effective nationwide single organization we have seen in this historically challenging moment. They leverage local volunteers to impact and support organizing and advocacy. They collaborate and lead nationally, not only on the big protests most of us know about, but also in the coalitions that are defending elections and building organizing and progressives in other ways. Their volunteer opportunities vary location to location. Check out current 2026 election-oriented volunteer opportunities here. Don't miss the breadth of local groups (and find yours) here. Here's the latest, terrific, weekly updates from our local chapter.
• Working Families Party is the political party we all need, working inside and outside the Democratic Party, as the party of the multiracial working class, fighting for our freedoms and to build a nation that cares for all of us. Their guarantee gets right to the point. WFP backs it up with organizing; supporting, recruiting and running great candidates (check out their endorsements); and organizing around the issues working families care about most (that have been animating many of the wins you are seeing across the country). Founded in New York, rumor is they were critical to the strategy and pavement-pounding that brought the city Mayor Zohran Mamdani. Learn how you can get active at WFP.
• Sway And now for something completely different. Brought to us by our friend and fellow traveler, Andrew Bundy, this Public Benefit Corporation provides a unique way for ordinary citizens to get involved and build political power. Take a few minutes to check out how it works. They bill themselves as a non-partisan voting group platform that helps people organize to have the same influence as unions and lobbyists. Check out the groups you can join (or how to start your own!). At election time, you get a voter guide from the groups you're in and gain more influence with elected officials who want their votes.

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Still with us? One of the challenges of a newsletter like this is knowing who is actually reading it; trees falling in the proverbial forest. Please let us know how this newsletter landed for you, or how you feel about receiving these. Even a one-word reply tells us you're hearing our trees fall.

Tom & Julia