Newsletter - November 2025

I frequently refer to Thanksgiving as the holiday that lets us look at the glass as half-full.

In that spirit, I can say that I am very thankful that the government has reopened!

I truly am thankful for all that I have, including friends and family, and all that I have learned through my journey with Speak Up for Good Government. My eight good government principles continue to serve as a North Star that guides my work.

Braver Angels is going beyond talk to translate their proven approach to civil discourse into action through Citizen-Led-Solutions, a program that empowers citizens to forge common-ground solutions to sovle local problems, and through their Citizens Commission on Immigration.

Building on the success of their Trustworthy Elections Campaign, Braver Angels hopes to hold immigration events throughout the country, with particular priority given to Congressional districts represented by members of the Problem Solvers Caucus.

Following our Northeast Ohio "Experiment in Democracy" in August, we are looking to leverage the Voice of the People/Braver Angels partnership to support a Citizens Commission on Immigration event in Northeast Ohio during the first half of next year. More details to follow...

In less rosy news: the gerrymandering "race-to-the bottom" by both parties is repugnant and does not serve the interests of our country. The Constitution basically specifies that from a numerical perspective everyone should have equal representation. For example, the state of Ohio has 12 million people and 15 congressional seats, so every Congressional representative from the state of Ohio should serve a district of approximately 800,000 people.

Constitutional references: Article 1, Section 2 of the Constitution, Annotated explanation of Article 1, Section 2

Simply put, Congressional districts should be party blind and color blind. The process of gerrymandering tries to promote specific outcomes, favor individual parties or special interests, by drawing district boundaries to pre-determine election outcomes. I believe that districts and representatives that represent cities, counties, and/or regions provides the most representative and effective democracy.

I have begun working with ChatGPT to see what party blind and color blind maps would look like. Here is a preliminary side-by-side comparison of the recently approved Ohio legislative map vs. a map generated by ChatGPT. It is important to note that considerable work is needed to fully evaluate this concept.

I'm wishing you and your family a safe and very happy Thanksgiving.

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