I’ve never been the kind of person who pretends that everything is perfect when it’s not. And I don’t want to start now — so I wanted to say something all of us are probably thinking:

Things aren’t OK right now.

We all knew Trump 2.0 would be worse than the first time around. But there are moments when the gravity of our situation weighs more heavily on me. At the end of last week, Trump said the FCC should not renew the licenses of media companies that say negative things about him following the cancellation of the Jimmy Kimmel show. It is jaw dropping and something you’d hear coming out of Russia or North Korea — not the nation that pioneered the concept of free speech.

But even in the middle of these incredibly challenging times, I still have hope that we will get through this. Listen, that doesn’t mean I’m naive. I am under no impression that this is a guarantee and recognize that it will likely get a lot harder before it gets better. But I’m hopeful because I’ve seen firsthand how ordinary people — people like you and me — have changed things when we roll up our sleeves and fight for the world we want to build.

And we have stopped them from selling off millions of acres of our public lands. We have won countless court battles. And after millions of Americans spoke up, ABC just announced that Jimmy Kimmel will be back on the air, despite the threats coming from Trump’s FCC Chair. We are fighting their agenda in Congress, in the courts, and on the campaign trail.

I know those are small victories compared to the relentless attacks on our democracy, but pushing back and giving others the courage to stand up alongside us is how we’re going to get out of this mess. And we know that the most important thing we can do is take back the US House to stop Trump and build the future our kids deserve.

This year has been heart-wrenching for so many of us. But giving up is not an option. Bending the knee to Trump is not an option. That’s why I’m asking you to join me in this fight.

Despite everything we’re up against, I’m still hopeful for America’s future. Because the next election is right around the corner, and I’m ready to put in the work to win it — and I hope you are too. If you’re with me, I’d be extremely grateful to have your support before our next FEC fundraising deadline later this month.

With gratitude,

Brittany