The story of democracy is always to be continued.

That may be the only thing we can say about democracy with any certainty.

It's never a story with a neat beginning or a tidy ending.

Democracy is often fragile, imperfect, and alive, a thing that must be nurtured and defended

every single day. The presidential historian John Meacham captured that truth powerfully when

he reminded us that democracy is a work in progress because we ourselves are a work in progress.

Quote, a democracy is the fullest expression of all of us. That is at once thrilling and

terrifying. There was never a once upon a time in American history, and there's never going to

be a happily ever after because it's us. It's a daily, hourly, weekly struggle to decide

what rights do we want to enjoy and what responsibilities do we owe? End quote.

And this week, we got an example of this. Not in America, by the way. In Brazil. In a watershed

moment, Brazil's democratic institutions made history and in doing so sent a strong message across

the equator. This is how you confront authoritarianism before it's too late.

Brazil's Supreme Court voted four to one, four to one, to convict the former president,

Jair Bolsonaro, of plotting a military coup after losing the 2022 election. He was sentenced to more

than 27 years in prison. It was the first time in Brazil's history that a coup leader will serve serious prison time.

Imagine that.

A democracy taking on a former president who tried to overthrow the will of the voters and winning.

And consider who Bolsonaro was before he entered the race.

After retiring from the army, never rising above the rank of

captain, he spent decades in the legislature, known mostly for his vitriol. He once told a female

opponent she was too ugly to rape. Another time, he said he'd rather have a dead son than a gay one.

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