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WaPo Op-Ed: I flew a gyrocopter onto the Capitol Lawn to save our democracy
When I return to Washington for my arraignment in federal court this week, it will be by car, not gyrocopter. My flying days are over, perhaps forever. Accepting responsibility for my actions means I accept their consequences, which I always took seriously. As my freedom rests in the court’s hands, my hope is that Americans will understand why I took the risk to deliver them a message: We the people must pay attention to democracy.
Everyone is entitled to an opinion about my flight over the Mall last month, but I did not commit this peaceful protest thoughtlessly. The most important requirements were met: No one was hurt, no property was damaged and the message was delivered. It was a message Americans agree with.
A poll by the Global Strategy Group indicates that 91 percent of Americans see the corrosive influence of money in our political system as a problem that demands attention. And in a Gallup tracking poll, voters identified frustration with government as their No. 1 concern in recent months, ahead of the economy and jobs.
Evidence of what those polls mean is quietly emerging around the country five years after the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision. Tens of thousands of Americans have protested, marched, written their elected representatives and local media, and quietly built a movement. Sixteen states and 650 cities have called on Congress to propose a constitutional amendment overturning Citizens United. Three other states have called for an unprecedented Article V constitutional convention.
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