On the Eve of Operation Over-Lord, as we mobilize the largest democratic armada in history to reclaim the home front, I want to honor the vast network of citizens, organizers, and allies storming the polls with their ballots to turn the tide. I have a message for my friends in the Coalition of the Willing, those who have joined me on the Ballot-field, the Allied Front: I Love Being Here With You. I love the East, I love the WestAnd North to South, they’re both the bestBut I’ll only go there as a guest‘Cause I love being here with you[1] We have been working and strategizing towards this moment for so long, and now we are launching what might be the most powerful landing of democracy-defending ballots in history. The determined effort by ordinary people joining hands across state and county borders in this election isn’t just about the vote. It is a colossal campaign powered by millions of everyday heroes rising to resist authoritarianism. We are part of a vast sea of compatriots: voters, volunteers, door-knockers, phone-bankers, and sign-planters—advance force operations who represent a historic landing of self-governing willpower. We are millions of Americans who for months have been working across states and cultural divides building solidarity, creating a multi-front offensive to ensure that the dark ideology of corruption and cruelty that has been carried on in our country without consequence since January 2025 finds no safe harbor here after Election Day. Many of us are veterans of the line. We have endured tough and prolonged fighting on the forward edge, some of us for a decade or more. To those of you who have been covering the story, investigating and scouting the terrain, working in the vanguard to hold the breach points in court, you have been the anvil. Those of you planning the rallies, establishing regional groups, working with locals to reach every neighbor, and running for office, you have established beachheads. To those of you storming the polls with ballot in hand and holding the perimeter, you are each a part of the hammer, striking a decisive blow for democracy. Social networks, Indivisible groups, No Kings organizers and participants, and every volunteer working at the grassroots level with passion have been our force multipliers. We will have secured the high ground with monumental victories when the votes are tallied on Election night. And I love being here with you.❤️🥰♥️ All of us, all of YOU are the new Greatest Generation, turning a ripple of resistance into an unstoppable sea of change. We have created irreversible momentum, and victory at the ballot count is within our sights. We know that Tuesday may not be the final battle, but it is our H-Hour, our D-Day. We have spent months and months, and millions of dollars in donations, and hundreds of thousands of person-power-hours preparing for this: a massive, coordinated offensive where every voting booth has become a beachhead against tyranny. The unstoppable momentum of our shared purpose is carrying us towards our victory. But let us not mistake this “landing” for the end of the campaign. Once our ballots have all been cast, once the votes are counted, we will still need to dig in, consolidate and strengthen our newly captured democracy, and be prepared to defend it against counterattacks. The true test will depend on our commitment to carry forward the esprit de corps that brought us to the victory through our votes and to hold our ground. We will send a lean and mean team of excellent electeds to spearhead the breakout. The objective of this frontline force will be to dismantle corrupt systems and restore the rule of law, liberating our country from kleptocracy and establishing accountability for the violators who have decimated our decency and integrity. I can see it now: first, we might breathe a collective sigh of relief, but then we will raise an immense cry of joy. And as we begin to clear the rubble and dismantle the indecencies, I imagine we will share a long-lasting sense of exultation. And a devoted determination to never again allow the need for a battle like this. I love the sea, I love the shoreI love the rocks and what is moreWith you there, there'd never be a bore'Cause I love being here with you[2] I don’t want to be too hasty...the battle has not been won yet. The votes have not been counted. And they have not been certified and the new leaders installed in office. There is much ground we have to cover together between now and that vision of bliss I described. But all the while, and all the way, I want you to know, I love being here with you❣️ I love the thrill of New York JonesI’d love to kiss you on your noseBut I’d like to say before I closeThat I love, I just love, Oh, I love being here with you[3] As always, you can find the books in my WILD Mystery Series HERE. And follow my production team on Substack on YouTube Many thanks to my wonderful editor Theresa Daus-Weber Liner Notes: Notable Covers for Peggy Lee’s “I Love Being Here With You”: My fave: Diana Krall, Live in Rio (with the great Ray Brown) HERE Ella Fitzgerald, Live on the Ed Sullivan Show HERE Bette Midler with Barry Manilow, Bette Middler Sings the Peggy Lee Songbook, HERE [1] “I Love Being Here With You,” by Peggy Lee and Bill Schluger, Original 1961, Capitol Records, ©Denslow Music, Inc. [2] "I Love Being Here With You," by Peggy Lee and Bill Schluger [3] “I Love Being Here With You,” by Peggy Lee and Bill Schluger Get full access to Sandi Ault - Reporting from the WILD at sandiault.substack.com/subscribe
