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9/1/17                                                  http://roganslist.blogspot.com/

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Many newspapers, including New York Times and Washington Post require subscriptions, but without one we can see a few articles each month.  We can also check with our local libraries to find out how to get online access through them.


1.      Under the Obama administration, we made a promise to undocumented immigrants brought here as children: share your personal information with the DACA program and as long as you abide by the laws you will be safe. Trump is putting us at risk of breaking that promise (http://time.com/4822368/donald-trump-immigration-dreamers-daca/). A bipartisan coalition of senators is working to fix it with the DREAM Act of 2017, and MomsRising is organizing folks to write letters to the editor to their local media outlets to help us get the attention of members of Congress and build pressure to move this legislation forward. We can find more information about how we can take part in this effort at this link:  http://action.momsrising.org/lte/LTE_DREAMER

2.      ​The Sinclair Broadcast Group, often called Trump TV, is planning to buy the Tribune Media Company, which would dramatically increase the reach of its news coverage. The FCC is making it possible for them to do so by easing a law that prevents a single broadcaster from reaching more than 40% of the country’s population (http://fortune.com/2017/07/25/sinclair-broadcasting-tribune-local-tv/). This would be wrong for any company, but it’s especially frightening for one with a history of political bias and bigotry against Muslims. Let’s join Mpower Change in sending a message to the FCC to block the purchase and stop corporate consolidation of local news outlets: http://act.mpowerchange.org/sign/sinclair_broadcast_group

3.      The Indivisible Guide has created a resource on getting our MoC to respond to Hurricane Harvey through policy action http://bit.ly/2grnUXg The four steps to focus on include 1.) passing disaster relief, 2.) fully funding FEMA, 3.) reauthorizing the National Flood Insurance Program, and 4.) taking action on climate change. Let's give our MoC a call and make sure that they are taking these necessary actions.

4.      Trump called Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa and promised support on a key ethanol issue: https://amp.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/aug/30/trump-tower-russia-meeting-chuck-grassley It is of note that Senator Grassley is the chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee which is investigating Donald Trump, Jr. Let’s let Grassley know that we expect him to uphold his oath regardless of the ethanol industry :https://www.grassley.senate.gov/contact

5.      The Trump Administration and its auto industry allies are determined to weaken clean cars standards, putting America’s largest-ever greenhouse gas reduction in jeopardy and extracting billions of dollars in profits for the oil industry. http://www.ucsusa.org/news/press-release/epa-reopening-standards#.Wagu0ch97IU Here is another view from some EPA alums:  https://www.groupcarpool.com/t/d8hoeyWe can attend the EPA Public Hearing on Clean Cars Standards on Tuesday, Sept. 6 at 9:00 a.m. at the Renaissance Washington DC Downtown Hotel, 999 Ninth Street NW, Washington, DC, USA, 20001 (phone number 202– 898–9000) We can RSVP to attend the hearing to the Sierra Club here: https://sierra.secure.force.com/events/details?formcampaignid=7010Z000001uuEyQAI We can also comment on this proposed change here:  https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=EPA-HQ-OAR-2015-0827-6325

6.      While he provided few details as he introduced his tax plan in Missouri on Wednesday, Trump was short on facts:  https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2017/08/31/fact-checking-president-trumps-speech-on-his-tax-plan/?utm_term=.3bd695d383f4  The bottom line is that while much talk is given to tax relief for workers, most of the benefits will actually go to corporations.  It looks like trickle-down economics all over again:  http://www.politico.com/story/2017/08/31/trump-tax-reform-corporate-rates-242194  It looks like the partisan game plan will be similar to the health care one, so let’s make sure we let our legislators know that not only do corporations not need tax breaks, the laws need to be such that that they are actually paying the taxes they owe.  Our infrastructure needs it.

7.      Hints of firing. Signals that Trump might pardon anyone under subpoena. A congressional bill to stop the probe. These are among the threats facing Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into whether the Trump campaign coordinated with the Russian government during the 2016 presidential campaign. Politico has reported that Mueller’s team is working with New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman in its investigation into former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort. This “could potentially provide Mueller with additional leverage to get Manafort to cooperate in the larger investigation into Trump’s campaign, as Trump does not have pardon power over state crimes.” http://www.politico.com/story/2017/08/30/manafort-mueller-probe-attorney-general-242191 Might there be other violations of state law that our states’ attorneys general should be investigating? Mueller may be within Trump/Congressional reach, but our state attorneys general are not. Let’s contact the Democratic Attorneys General Association and ask them to explore what they can do to investigate the Trump campaign’s connections to the Russian government during the 2016 campaign, especially in the event that the president or Congress decides to pull the plug on the Mueller investigation:  about@democraticAGs.org or PO Box 15776, Washington, DC 20003

8.      Once again, the Trump administration has selected a fox to guard the henhouse.  “The Education Department has tapped a former dean of the for-profit DeVry University to oversee a unit that responds to allegations of fraud.” Both Trump University and DeVry University have been involved in fraud lawsuits.  https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2017/08/julian-schmoke-for-profit-colleges/538578/  Let’s tell Trump and DeVos, as well as our MoCs that we do not approve of this choice.  Trump:  https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact and Devos:  https://www2.ed.gov/about/contacts/gen/index.html

9.      “Florida Rep. Ron DeSantis wants to put a time limit on special counsel Robert Mueller's wide-ranging investigation into the Trump's campaign ties to Russia.”  https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/08/29/ron-desantis-wants-to-shorten-probe-into-trump-russia-ties/612029001/ Let’s all try to call at least one member of the House Rules Committee and tell them not to let anyone sabotage Mueller’s investigation.  We can find names and numbers here:  https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B0k1qCMVpKZpNVYzWU4xRzRXeGM

10.  Stop the kleptocracy! Each visit by Trump and his family to a Trump business costs the Secret Service an estimated $3 million, much of which is paid to the Trump business itself. Golf carts alone have cost taxpayers an estimated $60,000. https://schiff.house.gov/news/press-releases/rep-schiff-introduces-amendment-to-prohibit-expenditure-of-secret-service-funds-to-businesses-owned-by-first-family Rep Adam Schiff (D-CA) is filing an amendment to an appropriations act. The amendment reads, “None of the funds made available by this Act to the United States Secret Service may be used to purchase, rent, or otherwise acquire goods or services, including hotel rooms, office space, or golf carts, from entities that are owned or operated by the President or the immediate family of the President.” http://amendments-rules.house.gov/amendments/SCHIFF_023_xml824171653225322.pdf Let’s ask our MoC’s to support Schiff’s amendment.

11.  Journalist Kristin Miller at Moyers & company tells us about the regulation rollbacks on sleep and safety that have already been implemented in the trucking industry in this article "Keep on Truckin."  Let's be aware of this additional hazard to our health and safety.  Let’s ask our legislators to look at this situation and make the trucking industry safer.  These kinds of rollbacks put too many people, truckers and non-truckers, at risk.

State Actions

1.      MI: Concerns over the Enbridge"s Line 5 pipeline, which runs through the Great Lakes, are growing as it has been revealed that areas of the pipeline are no longer protected by enamel and are therefore in danger of corroding http://bit.ly/2xABuvr It's time to decommission the pipeline. Let's join the Oil & Water Don't Mix campaign for calling for the shutdown of Line 5 by participating in the traditional Labor Day Annual Mackinac Bridge Walk on September 4th We can learn more about the day of action and RSVP here: http://bit.ly/2wl3Qvf  We can also attend the 3rd National Rally and Pipe Out Paddle Protest tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 2:  http://pipeout2017.weebly.com/

2.      FL: Chris King, one of Florida's democratic candidates running for governor in 2018 has said "no" to money from Big Sugar. As stated in this article from the Orlando Political Observer:   "It is a big deal for Chris King to pledge not to accept campaign money from the sugar industry – the sugar industry is one of the biggest special interests in Florida..." Let's consider making a small contribution toKing's campaign to show our support for this model and encourage the other democratic gubernatorial candidates to make a similar pledge. Maybe we're not ready to donate to someone we don't know: let's follow Chris King on Facebook to see what he does and what he has to say.  

Other Actions

1.      Some good news coming out of Texas; a federal judge has temporarily halted the discriminatory SB4  http://n.pr/2xzGP6iWhile the bill focuses on sanctuary cities, it also would have encouraged racial profiling, allowing law enforcement to detain anyone they suspected of being an undocumented immigrant. We can send our thanks to the ACLU and the ACLU of Texas, who filed the motion to block SB4 before it was set to take effect on September 1st http://bit.ly/2eHix2q ACLU of Texas: 713.942.8146 or State Headquarters P.O. Box 8306 Houston, TX 77288-8306 ACLU: 888.653.6498 or 125 Broad Street, 18th Floor, New York NY 10004 

2.      New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is cooperating with Special Counsel Mueller’s team as it relates to investigating Paul Manafort: http://mobile.reuters.com/article/amp/idUSKCN1BB04C  This is important because Trump cannot grant pardons related to state crimes so some think this action is meant to send a signal to Manafort and Flynn that there is no “get out of jail free card” and that they should be ready to play ball. Let’s thank AG Schneiderman and his team for cooperating with Mueller:https://ag.ny.gov/contact-attorney-general

3.      Even though his church is huge and could have been so helpful in the early stages of Harvey, Joel Osteen chose not to open his church to the needy, although it has tax-exempt status for that purpose.  His reasoning was that the city of Houston did not ask him to do so. After significant public pressure, he did open the church to those in need. In the same city, Jim McIngvale did not wait for anyone to ask and opened his furniture store as refuge to those who needed it. http://www.ibtimes.com/mattress-mack-vs-joel-osteen-houston-area-store-becomes-shelter-hurricane-harvey-2584379  Let’s thank Mr. McIngvale “Mattress Mack” for his clear sense of what it means to help those in need:  Gallery Furniture, 6006 North Fwy, Houston, TX 77076

4.      From one of our own:   The marchers going from Charlottesville to DC had a tough day yesterday - they are deep in Trump country at the moment, and folks with weapons showed up at their end point, so they stopped a little early. But they are back on the road today [yesterday]. If you can help spread the word or even better, join them, please do! There's a new carpooling site for getting folks there - https://www.groupcarpool.com/t/d8hoey

5.      Columnist Ben Carter says, "Trump voters, the time to apologize for your vote is now" in his column in the Louisville Courier-Journal.  He continues his column with "Apologizing is painful, but I have created a website, trumpsorries.com, to guide you through the process of apologizing for your vote last November. By answering a few questions, you can follow the three-step process of regret, responsibility and remedy to apologize for voting for Donald Trump."  If we have family and friends who have reached a point where they are sorry enough to say so publicly, let's point them totrumpsorries.com which begins with a friendly: "You know you made a mistake when you voted for Donald Trump. You were wrong and you're sorry. Welcome." 

6.      Good news on two postcard campaigns for those of us writing with Postcards to Voters:  1) "Karen Keys-Gamarra's voters turned out at a nearly 2-to-1 margin carrying her to a hard-earned, well-deserved victory in Fairfax County, Virginia." 2) "Kevin Patterson saw a much stronger turnout in his bid for Phoenix City Council than campaign observers expected. Your cards were noticed, written about in the local press, and all of the feedback has been positive." If we are Rogan's listers who haven't tried writing postcards yet, let's sign up to do 5 postcards as a response to something in the news that makes us angry. Let's encourage our friends and family to join us in our "craftivism" by emailing: Join@TonyTheDemocrat.org  If we all send 5 postcards, we can reach a lot of individual voters with a personal note.

7.      November 9, the anniversary of the fall of the Berlin wall, has been designated a Global Day of Action for a World Without Walls by a wide variety of groups in Mexico, Palestine and elsewhere.  Let’s sign the call to action and oppose not only Trump’s wall but the 70 walls worldwide that cut through people’s land and lives:  https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScCO7KpKDqjlBP2Jxj-SIZM0YGzd6pRzmirf6_C_igScn-mHg/viewform

Petitions

1.      “Discrimination on the basis of sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity has no place in America. It’s time to close the gaps in the law. Tell your Members of Congress to support the Equality”  https://act.nwlc.org/onlineactions/rxrK2dDRHkmpRnBfOGMzDw2

2.      The Working Families Party is circulating an emergency petition calling on Congress to “Pass a clean bill to fund relief and rebuilding in Texas and the Gulf Coast -- with no border wall.”: https://actionnetwork.org/forms/tell-congress-pass-a-clean-hurricane-harvey-relief-bill  Let’s join them.

Marches/events/teleconferences to attend/organize

1.      September 12:  “Hands Off My Ballot! Protest the Pence-Kobach Commission Meeting” - Join the NH Campaign for Voting Rights in standing in protest against the Trump Administration's "Election Integrity Commission" (Pence-Kobach). The Commission will hold its second meeting here in New Hampshire at St. Aslem College.  More information here:  https://www.facebook.com/events/128539274439735

Reading/Watching

1.      “Joy Reid – How Democrats Can Start Winning Elections Again-Extended Interview” (Daily Show):  http://www.cc.com/video-clips/y9h03n/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-joy-reid---how-democrats-can-start-winning-elections-again---extended-interview?fb_ref=share_web

2.      “How the Left Can Stop Arguing and Beat Trump” - http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/features/how-the-left-can-stop-arguing-and-beat-trump-w499218

3.      “Why I taught my kids to call our homeless neighbors ‘Peace Men’” - https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2017/08/22/why-i-taught-my-kids-call-our-homeless-neighbors-peace-men


Rogan’s List is a participant in and strategic partner of the Action Alliance,
a loosely-federated group of organizations that, in the wake of the
2016 election, are sharing daily or weekly calls to action.
Other member sites are listed here: https://www.actionalliance.co/  --scroll down and click through and you'll find many more opportunities to make a difference.
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Rogan’s List is also part of RISE Stronger’s United States of Resistance








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