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What kind of America do you want?

A crowd of protesters in Times Square,, with one person holding a sign that reads "PROJECT 2025 is CHRISTIAN NATIONALISM" by Americans United for Separation of Church and State. The sign includes the hashtags #StopProject2025 and au.org/project2025. The background features prominent advertisements, including a Meta billboard and the Nasdaq building.

Project 2025 would restrict freedom of religion, writes Quince.

Photo by Selcuk Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images

Quince, a member of the board of Lawyers Defending American Democracy, was the first African American woman to serve on the Florida Supreme Court and as chief justice.

On Nov. 5, in elections around the country, we will determine whether these United States of America will continue to aspire to be a democratic republic or whether this country will give up its freedoms and embrace authoritarianism.

As an African American female who has lived through — and is still living through — systemic racism in this country, I know that despite the flaws in our system, our best path forward is to continue to work for justice and equality for all, to work with and preserve the rule of law and embrace and strengthen the constitutional ideals that are the hallmark of our American democracy.


We need not speculate on what our lives will be like should extremism continue to take over the branches of government. We have already felt the brunt of a judiciary that is driven by ideology instead of legal rules and precedent. We have already witnessed legislatures that have instituted laws suppressing not only the right to vote but also the right to dissent and to assemble peaceably to express that dissent. We are witnessing the suppression of the free flow of knowledge through book banning. Our children are now being exposed to revisionist history, and they are being told what books they can read, not by their parents but by the state.

Beyond these horrors lurks Project 2025. Promoted as a “conservative promise” for America, it is nothing close to traditional notions of conservatism. Project 2025 is an extremist blueprint for what is effectively authoritarian domination of America. It is a comprehensive plan to eradicate the American way of life, by ignoring the fundamental principles of the U.S. Constitution, the fundamental principles of human dignity and the ideals of a free, just and equal society that form the bedrock of this democratic America. The 30 chapters of Project 2025, described by Politico as an authoritarian Christian nationalist movement with the purposeful intention of moving America from a democracy to an autocracy-fascist-oriented country, are a daunting read.

This 922-page document seeks to destroy the fabric of our lives and many of our rights as embodied in the Bill of rights.

Here are but a few examples of what would happen to us if Project 2025 is implemented.

The First Amendment would be severely upended. While the First Amendment embodies five distinct rights — freedom of speech, freedom of religion (free exercise), freedom of the press, freedom to assemble and freedom to petition — religious freedom would be dramatically restricted if Project 2025 becomes the blueprint for America.

The freedom of religion has for many years been interpreted to provide for the separation of church and state. That separation would be eviscerated. Not only would Christianity be the “national” religion, but it would be supported by our taxpayer dollars going to faith-based organizations through USAID funding and other governmental programs.

We have already seen draconian legislation that has significantly stifled the right to assemble peacefully by designating protesters as rioters should any type of disturbance take place. And we know that counter protesters will make sure there is disturbance. We have also seen the press vilified when negative stories or opinions about specific politicians are expressed. Now we are threatened with the use of the military and Department of Justice resources to punish political opponents.

Beyond the threats to these basic rights, we see in Project 2025 the demise of our free public education system. While there certainly needs to be major improvements in our education system, Project 2025 seeks to “throw out the baby with the bathwater.” Instead of proposing changes, proponents of Project 2025 want to essentially eliminate the system and turn education over to private and religious organizations that are not bound by any standards or admission policies. These provisions are prime examples of violations of the principles of separation of church and state.

When did so many Americans get to the point where they do longer believe in the Constitution, in the Declaration of Independence, in the ideals that have served us well for over 200 years? How did we get to this point where a country that was founded to get away from a king’s command over the people’s lives seems on the brink of embracing this type of authoritarian leadership?

Maybe we need look no further than eliminating civics from our school curricula. Maybe we now have a population that does not understand the Constitution. A population that does not understand the concept of three co-equal branches of government or the separation of church and state. A population that has not learned from history but is willing to make the same mistakes that lead to ruin for other countries. A population that cannot or will not think for itself but is spoon-fed, told what to believe even in the face of evidence to the contrary.

This is not the America I know and love. Please wake up, America!

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We are told this militarization is about “public safety,” but violent crime in D.C. is near a 30-year low . What we are witnessing is not a crime-fighting measure, but an unprecedented encroachment on local authority. The consent of the people — the foundation of democracy — is being sidelined to pursue a political or even personal agenda.

The Ethical and Constitutional Problem

Legally, a president can request National Guard support through interstate compacts. But legality is not the same as legitimacy. True democracy requires consent, not unilateral fiat. Under the Home Rule Act, federal control over D.C. is only supposed to last 30 days in emergencies. Yet the use of state-based National Guard units circumvents this safeguard and seems to demonstrate a hidden agenda. This is a loophole — one that undermines D.C.’s right to self-governance and sets a dangerous precedent for federal overreach.

An Urgent Legislative Answer

It is not enough to critique the abuse of power — we must fix it. That is why I have drafted the D.C. Defense of Self-Government Act, which closes this loophole and restores constitutional balance. The draft bill is now available for public review on my congressional campaign website:

Read the D.C. Defense of Self-Government Act here

This legislation would require explicit, expedited approval from Congress before federal or state National Guard troops can be deployed into the District. It ensures no president — Republican. Democrat or Independent — can bypass the will of the people of Washington, D.C.

This moment also reminds us of a deeper injustice that has lingered for generations: the people of Washington, D.C., remain without full representation in Congress. Over 700,000 Americans—more than the populations of several states—are denied a voting voice in the very body that holds sway over their lives. This lack of representation makes it easier for their self-government to be undermined, as we see today. That must change. We will need to revisit serious legislation to finally fix this injustice and secure for D.C. residents the same democratic rights every other American enjoys.

The Bigger Picture

This fight is not about partisan politics. It is about whether America will live up to its founding ideals of self-rule and accountability. Every voter, regardless of party, should ask: if the capital of our democracy can be militarized without the consent of the people, what stops it from happening in other cities across America?

A Call to Action

When I ran for president, my wife told me I was going to make history. I told her making history didn’t matter to me — what mattered to me then and what matters to me now is making a difference. I'm not in office yet so I have no legal authority to act. But, I am still a citizen of the United States, a veteran of the United States Air Force, someone who has taken the oath of office, many times since 1973. That oath has no expiration date. Today, that difference is about ensuring the residents of D.C. — and every American city — are protected from unchecked federal overreach.

I urge every reader to share this bill with your representatives. Demand that Congress act now. We can’t wait until the mid-terms. Demand that they defend democracy where it matters most — in the heart of our capital — because FBI and DEA agents patrolling the streets of our nation's capital does not demonstrate democracy. Quite the contrary, it clearly demonstrates autocracy.

Davenport is a candidate for U.S. Congress, NC-06.
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