No Kings Rally Remarks – Portland, Maine
Good afternoon. This isn’t 1776, but given the Trump Administration’s growing authoritarian attacks on our rights and freedoms, it sure feels like it.
My name is David Costello. I’m a former senior-level local, state, and federal government official and proud son and grandson of French and Irish American shoe, textile, and railroad workers.
I’m running for the US Senate to help in ending the Trump Administration’s reckless assault on our democracy, environment, and economy. To repair the damage already done - - and to enact reforms to protect against future assaults and to ensure that all Americans, not just the wealthy, are provided with the education, job skills, healthcare, and other life fulfilling opportunities to thrive.
Like many of you, my commitment to furthering political equality and other democratic values, didn’t begin with the election of Donald Trump. It was instilled in me as I participated on picket lines in Bangor and Old Town as a boy and has grown stronger ever since. I first ran for the Senate in 2024 because I believed that Washington was broken - - that our democracy was lacking - - and that our governing infrastructure was as outdated as our roads, ports, and bridges. You can imagine what I think now. Saying that Washington is broken today is a monumental understatement.
Our values - - speech - - free press - - and elite academic, legal, and scientific institutions are under unceasing attack by the Trump Administration with little regard to the long-term impacts on our environment, economy, public health, and citizenry.
Core American rights - - women’s rights - - LGBTQ rights - - civil rights - - and governing norms are being erased... Critical government programs, services, and protections are being dismantled... The rule of law is being ignored and our nation’s standing as the pillar of stability in the world is collapsing.
To rectify this situation, Democrats must first win control of one of our two houses of Congress... To help, Maine Democrats would do well to nominate a Senate candidate who is well qualified to take on Senator Susan Collins...
Having grown-up in a working-class family in Maine and having served for more than 25 years in senior-level government positions, both in the United States and abroad - - managing, not simply legislating or talking about complex multi-million-dollar programs and operations - - I believe that I am that kind of candidate.
That said, and more importantly - - to truly fix Washington, we need to do more than simply change whom we elect every two to six years - - We need to substantially reform our governing practices and institutions and eliminate the excessive and corrupting influence that money, wealth, and disinformation have over our politics and government...
Specifically, we need to enact long-overdue legislative and constitutional reforms... Among them, we need to: ban gerrymandering - - expand clean elections financing - - impose reasonable term-limits on federal judges - (including Supreme Court justices) - and legislators - - increase taxes on the wealthy - -expand civics education - - and support journalistically ethical non-profit media.
And... over the longer-term... we need to: abolish the Electoral College - - restructure our obscenely undemocratic Senate, so that its allocation of power is more in-line with a state’s population - - overhaul our House of Representatives so that it is comprised of more representative multi-winner districts - - and streamline our Constitution’s amendment process so that it’s no longer virtually impossible to update our national charter.
Only then are we likely to ensure that the interests and rights of all Americans are best served and protected - - and only then are we likely to achieve a more perfect union... For more information, check out costelloforsenate.com