Special Announcement
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people. RISE Stronger is made up of
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and accountable government for all.”
Just like us. Stay tuned in the days and weeks to come for some tweaks and changes, but Rogan’s List will continue to be the quality source of daily calls-to-action you rely on, but as part of the RISE Stronger organization. In the meantime, if you are not already a member of RISE Stronger, sign up here and join this wonderful organization: https://risestronger.org/sign_up
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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.
From the Nasty Women Action Network: There may be a Senate vote on Trump's tax
plan & budget as early as tomorrow. Please call the senators listed
below (scripts provided below, if needed).
There are Democrat AND Republican senators on the fence about the
proposed budget resolution, which will reward the rich and punish the
poor. Capitol Hill Switchboard: (202) 224-3121 CALL DEMOCRATS: 1)
Sen. Joe Manchin(WV), 202-224-3954, 2)
Sen. Joe Donnelly (IN) 202-224-4814,
and 3) Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (ND) (202) 224-2043 [Script for Democrat calls: http://bit.ly/2y3t1nE] CALL REPUBLICANS: 1)
Sen. Bob Corker (TN) 202-224-3344,
2) Sen. Rand Paul (KY) 202-224-4343,
3) Sen. John McCain (AZ) (202)
224-2235, 4) Sen. Susan Collins (ME) (202)224-2523, and 5) Sen. Lisa Murkowski (AK) (202)-224-6665 [Script for Republican calls: http://bit.ly/2hAuwiE]
2.
More on the budget vote: Once again Republicans are trying to destroy
our safety net to enrich their donors, quickly in secret. Just like Healthcare,
the more light we shine on them, the harder it will be to do it.
Indivisible's appalling details of the plan to cut 5 trillion from social
programs including Medicare, Medicaid, WIC, Head Start here:
https://theintercept.com/2017/10/04/senate-budget-tax-cuts-medicare-medicaid-health-care/
then read Indivisible's Chad Bolt has good thread on strategy here:
https://mobile.twitter.com/chadderr/status/920442281240
522752 Once we’ve read through this,
we can call our Senators to vote No on the budget resolution this
Thursday and on any Wealthcare" attempts.
3.
The budget vote is the gateway to the tax plan. Once
again it appears that Trump does not really know how the tax plan will affect
most Americans. While the wealthy,
including Trump and his cabinet, friends, and corporations will come off
sitting pretty, the rest of us will not see much of anything we will consider a
win for us or our country and it will also, backhandedly, undermine the
healthcare system by cutting healthcare programs used by millions of our
citizens. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-18/trump-may-see-annual-23-million-tax-cut-under-plan-study-says and http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/democrats-slam-gop-budget-taxes-health-care-cuts-50563382 Let’s make sure all our legislators know that
while we agree the tax plan could be simplified, but that gifts to the wealthy
at the expense of others, especially the most vulnerable among us is not what
we want. We can also use this site for
resources: https://www.trumptaxscam.org/
4.
The USNS Comfort, a state-of-the art Navy hospital
ship, is off shore of Puerto Rico with only 33 of its 250 beds filled while
hundreds on the mainland need its services.
The ship is waiting for patients, but there is a communication problem
between FEMA, the Puerto Rico Dept. of Health, and the medical community
regarding referrals. https://www.clickorlando.com/health/hospital-ship-mostly-empty-in-puerto-rico
Let’s contact FEMA to express our deep concern and ask them to step in to fix
this: Federal Emergency Management Agency, 500 C Street S.W., Washington,
D.C. 20472 or Administrator Brock Long on Twitter @FEMA_Brock
5.
Last week, the House Committee on Natural Resources
passed H.R.
3990: National Monument Creation and Protection Act; another deceptively
titled piece of legislation. This bill would essentially gut the Antiquities
Act, and the Sierra Club has a very helpful rundown of how the language in the
bill allows for this to happen: http://www.sierraclub.org/lay-of-the-land/2017/10/no-more-parks Let's
be sure to contact our representative and tell them to oppose H.R. 3990
6.
The Senate Judiciary Committee's oversight hearing for
the DOJ is putting Attorney General Jeff Sessions back in the spotlight http://trib.in/2gO7QvS Although
Sessions has only held the position for eight months, he has already done so
much damage. People for the American Way
have created a timeline of all the ways Sessions has walked back civil rights
and justice for all http://bit.ly/2kYupCt Let's
read through the timeline, then use it as motivation to call again for
Sessions' resignation. We can contact the Department of Justice by
phone: 202-353-1555 or
mail: US Dept. of Justice, 950
Pennsylvania Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20530 Let's also be sure to
contact our MoC and ask that they put pressure on Sessions to resign as
well.
7.
From Postcards for
America: The Climate Solutions
Caucus is a bipartisan group in the US House of Representatives which will
explore policy options that address the impacts, causes, and challenges of our
changing climate. The caucus was founded in February of 2016 by two
south-Florida representatives Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-FL) and Rep. Ted Deutch
(D-FL) who will serve as co-chairs of the caucus. It has a “Noah’s Ark” rule
where, if you are joining, you must bring a member of the other party with
you. Let’s check to see if our
representative belongs. If yes, let’s
send a thanks, if not, let’s why, then ask them to do so: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1NafXNOgK_YPJ2w6MA-j-o0IU5Pkngz6rREyWy-ks8r8/mobilebasic
8.
The Senate on Monday confirmed Callista
Gingrich, the wife of former House Speaker and GOP presidential candidate Newt
Gingrich, to serve as U.S. ambassador to the Vatican. The vote was 70-23, with
Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and several other Democrats joining all
Republicans in favor. http://www.politico.com/story/2017/10/16/callista-gingrich-vatican-ambassador-243849 Let’s
tell our Democratic Reps that they need to stop playing favorites with Congress
family and friends. There are certainly many experienced people for this job
that aren’t connected to congress.
9.
Trump is planning an increase in immigration jails
across the country to house the growing number of undocumented immigrants. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2017/10/17/trump-plans-massive-increase-federal-immigration-jails/771414001/
We’ve learned that most of these prisons are private and lucrative and seriously
underserving these people. https://www.thenation.com/article/a-look-inside-our-abusive-immigrant-prisons/ Let’s
make sure that legislators know that we disagree with this move and do not want
our money spent that way and that we want other private prisons closed.
10. Even
though neither Congress nor the White House were fully aware of the bill’s
import when Obama signed it into law, according to interviews with former senior
administration officials, but the Ensuring
Patient Access and Effective Drug Enforcement Act of last session, made the
opioid problem worse instead of better.
Many are calling for its repeal: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/opioid-addiction-epidemic-capitol-hill-calls-for-change/ Let’s let our MoCs know that we support this
repeal. Given the recent reports by the Washington Post and 60 Minutes, it’s
clear that this bill weakens the fight against the opioid epidemic.
11. Energy
Secretary Rick Perry gave the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) just
60 days to consider a radical proposal that would give preferential treatment
to coal power --- potentially at the expense of natural gas, solar, wind and
other alternatives --- and despite higher costs for consumers and serious
consequences for our health and climate. http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/rick-perrys-proposal-would-upend-years-of-power-reform/article/2637365 There’s less than one week left to submit a
public comment against this. Let’s do it here:
https://nextgenamerica.org/act/reject-dirty-power-plan/
12. Trump
has nominated David Zatezalo to run the Mine Safety and Health Administration.
Per Propublica, "Records show the coal mining company
formerly run by David Zatezalo retaliated against a foreman who complained of
harassment and unsafe conditions.” On
Wednesday, Oct. 18, the Senate Health,
Education, Labor and Pensions committee, by a 12-11 vote, approved the
nomination of David Zatezalo as undersecretary of Labor, heading the U.S. Mine
Safety and Health Administration. Let's contact our own Senators to let them
know that we oppose Zatezalo's nominated for mine safety because of Zatezalo's
own poor safety record.
13. The
Republican legislature in North Carolina has done everything it could think of
to thwart Democratic Governor Roy Cooper. Now it is trying to change the
state’s judicial system, in a move that would, among other things, ensure that
65% of African American judges would be placed in newly-drawn districts where
they would be forced to face other incumbents in now-partisan court
elections: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/18/us/north-carolina-republicans-gerrymander-judges-.html
This alarming strategy would not only reconfigure justice in North Carolina but
offer a model for Republican legislators elsewhere hoping to limit the power of
Democrats. It is part of a larger strategy to politicize the judiciary
(see, for example, McConnell’s announced opposition on Monday to the
senatorial “blue slip” or his unwillingness to allow a confirmation hearing on
Merrick Garland). In addition to the pressure NC voters can bring on
local legislators, the rest of us also need to let North Carolina’s senators,
Richard Burr (R) ( https://www.burr.senate.gov/contact/office-locations) and Thom Tillis (R) (https://www.tillis.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/about-thom
) know that we know that turning the clock back to partisan court elections is
only a mask for political interference in the judicial system.
14. The
Trump administration is attempting to kill the Iran accord without getting its
hands dirty. On October 13th, President Trump announced his administration will
decertify the Iran nuclear accord, punting the matter to Congress. By choosing
not to certify the agreement, he forces Congress to craft legislation in
60 days – and this Congress has continually failed to pass any major
legislation (http://www.politico.com/story/2017/10/16/trump-iran-deal-withdraw-243816).
Let’s make sure this cowardly gambit doesn’t work by calling our reps and
telling them to do their job and craft legislation within the 60-day review
period. We can make the call with 5Calls at this link: https://5calls.org/issue/iran-nuclear-deal.
State Actions
1.
ALL: A recent report card of
state energy efficiency policies and programs shows that even in this era of
partisan divide, blue and red states alike are embracing smarter energy use as
a key strategy for reducing harmful pollution, saving consumers money, creating
jobs and driving economic growth. Let's check here to see how our own states are doing. We
need to continue to drive and support positive energy and environmental action
at a local level. Let's contact our state representatives and senators to find
out how they intend to increase energy efficiency, especially wind and solar,
in our state.
2.
MI: Governor Snyder is expected to announce his
decision this week on whether to discipline Michigan State Police director
Colonel Etue after she shared a meme calling NFL protesters
"ingrates" and "degenerates" http://bit.ly/2xNlB3J Etue's
behavior is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to race relations and tensions
within the Michigan State Police Department http://bit.ly/2ywVpxE Someone who displays racist
behavior should not be the head of the police department. Let's join Color of
Change in asking Governor Snyder to fire Etue. We can read through background
information, a call script, and talking points here https://act.colorofchange.org/call/call-now-fire-mspdirector/
3.
MD: Huge budget
cuts crippled outreach that lets people know when, how and where to sign
up for the ACA, so Indivisible ACA Signup Project is spreading the word through
social media. They have only 2 days to get 37 more supporters. Help
them reach their goal by October 21 to set off a Thunderclap, a
social media flash mob message blast. Please click, add your social media
support on Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr. THEN cut, paste and share –https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/63166-aca-signup-reminder Find out more about how Thunderclap helps
grassroots organizing here: https://www.socialworkhelper.com/2013/10/02/thunderclap-can-help-grassroots-organizing/amp/ Learn more about the ACA Signup Project here.
Love to have you get involved! https://www.acasignupproject.com/
4.
DE: Huge budget
cuts crippled outreach that lets people know when, how and where to sign up for
the ACA, so Indivisible ACA Signup Project is spreading the word through social
media. They have only 2 days to get 23 more supporters. Help them reach their goal by October 21 to
set off a Thunderclap, a social media flash mob message blast. Please click,
add your social media support on Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr. THEN cut, paste and share - thanks! https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/62591-aca-signup-reminder Find out more about how Thunderclap helps
grassroots organizing here: https://www.socialworkhelper.com/2013/10/02/thunderclap-can-help-grassroots-organizing/amp/
Learn more about the ACA Signup Project here. Love to have you get
involved! https://www.acasignupproject.com/
5.
OH: Huge budget
cuts crippled outreach that lets people know when, how and where to sign
up for the ACA, so Indivisible ACA Signup Project is spreading the word through
social media. They have only 2 days to get 32 more supporters. Help
them reach their goal by October 21 to set off a Thunderclap, a
social media flash mob message blast. Please click, add your social media
support on Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr. THEN cut, paste and share -https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/63081-aca-sign-up-reminder
Find out more about how Thunderclap helps grassroots organizing here: https://www.socialworkhelper.com/2013/10/02/thunderclap-can-help-grassroots-organizing/amp/
6.
NH: Huge budget
cuts crippled outreach that lets people know when, how and where to sign
up for the ACA, so Indivisible ACA Signup Project is spreading the word through
social media. They have only 2 days to get 48 more supporters. Help
them reach their goal by October 21 to set off a Thunderclap, a social
media flash mob message blast. Please click, add your social media support
on Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr. THEN cut, paste and share - https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/62807-new-hampshire-aca-signup Find out more about how Thunderclap helps
grassroots organizing here: https://www.socialworkhelper.com/2013/10/02/thunderclap-can-help-grassroots-organizing/amp/
Other Actions
1.
The ACA helps us in many ways, but one problem it
doesn’t address is skyrocketing medical costs. Neither do any of the major
proposals for a single-payer system, for which Americans would pay more than
other country’s citizens, because healthcare costs more here (https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/10/16/16357790/health-care-prices-problem).
Part of the problem is that many hospital fees are not public knowledge, so
let’s help Vox Media strike a small first blow for transparency by sharing our
recent emergency room bills (personal info may be redacted) with this Vox Media
project: https://erbills.vox.com/.
2.
HalloweenCostumes.com “has removed an outfit depicting
German-born diarist Anne Frank, a Jewish victim of the Holocaust, from its
website after public outrage.” The CEO of the Anti-Defamation League responded
to the incident by saying: “This should never have happened in the first place.
It shows we still have a long way to go in terms of educating people about what
happened during the Holocaust, and why this unique event in human history
should never be trivialized.” http://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/company-pulls-anne-frank-halloween-costume-website-amid/story?id=50533589 As
we prepare for our Halloween festivities, let’s take a few minutes to educate
ourselves about the implications of costumes like this, as well as costumes
depicting cultures and ethnicities not our own: https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/31/us/cultural-appropriation-halloween-costumes.html and http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=114199552 Halloween
is a time of celebration! We can be scary, funny, and edgy without being
insensitive!
3.
In case you missed it last week, here is the video of
the teleconference last week on “Building Coalitions” presented by Real Talk, RISE
Stronger, Together We Will, Action Together Network, March into ’18 Program, and Act
Local. Comments about the presenters
are below the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vqeMVykRMs
Let’s watch this and see if we can put some of the ideas into action within our
own groups.
4.
According to Congresswoman,
Frederica Wilson (D-FL), when Trump recently called the widow of Sgt.
La David Johnson, killed in Niger, he more than once told the widow:
“'But you know he must've known what he signed up for.’” https://www.nbcnews.com/news/military/trump-told-widow-soldier-must-ve-known-what-he-signed-n811756 This
sort of comment is yet another example of Trump’s callous disregard for the
very real cost of service to soldiers and military families. This attitude is
particularly disturbing given this administration’s obvious interest in
escalating military aggressions, even as the prospects for returning soldiers
remain precarious, with the Veterans Administration reporting
disproportionately high suicide rates among veterans. https://www.va.gov/opa/pressrel/pressrelease.cfm?id=2951 Let’s
check out these tips and see what we can do to support soldiers and veterans in
our community:
5.
Congresswoman, Frederica Wilson (D-FL) has also
begun a scholarship for Sgt. La David Johnson’s children through her 5,000 Role
Models of Excellence program. http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/miami-gardens/article179356376.html
Let’s help if we can: https://www.gofundme.com/sgt-la-david-johnson-scholarship
6.
Suit Up
Maine has created a helpful piece on the dos and don’ts of engaging with
trolls on social media: https://www.facebook.com/notes/suit-up-maine/do-this-not-that-how-to-effectively-resist-trump-on-social-media/1506840242735154/ Let’s read it and put some of this into
action in our own social media practices.
7.
There is a new “Mainstream Media Accountability Survey”
from the Trump campaign folks. Let’s
help them out (no need to donate or give identifying info): https://action.donaldjtrump.com/short-mainstream-media-accountability-survey/
8.
Sometimes we need to refocus on things that have
actually happened (not just said) since the start of this regime. Lambda Legal
has put together a list "Every terrible thing Jeff Sessions and the DOJ have done
since February." Let's read this and review ways that Sessions is
undermining our democracy. Let's inform friends and family who may not be in
the know of these specifics.
9.
"A.J. Burgess was born a month too soon without a
working kidney, WGCL-TV reports, and his father Anthony Dickerson is a 110
percent match for an organ donation. But surgeons at Emory Hospital in Atlanta
won't perform the operation because Dickerson served time in prison for violating
probation." We can read the full article here. Parole violations or even imprisonment should
not stop a matched-donor from making a donation, especially to his own
2-year-old. Emory Healthcare needs to here from us.
Call: 404-778-7777.
Petitions
1.
On October 24, the world’s elite bankers and
financial institutions will convene in Sao Paulo, Brazil at the annual meeting
of the Equatorial Principles Association. These financiers have all committed
to guidelines set under an agreement called the “Equator Principles”--voluntary
standards signed by 91 financial institutions, mostly private sector banks, to
govern their finance of large infrastructure projects and to strengthen risk
management by ensuring that projects being financed are "developed in a
manner that is socially responsible.” http://amazonwatch.org/news/2017/0829-equator-banks-called-upon-to-act-on-climate-change-and-indigenous-peoples-rights
There’s just one problem -- the banks aren’t following through on their
“principles,” in the US or elsewhere. Climate Hawks, the Indigenous
Environmental Network, Amazon Watch and others ask us to support a petition
calling on the Equator banks to commit themselves to a series of specific
climate change and indigenous rights principles, laid out in their
petition: https://petitions.signforgood.com/EquatorBanksAct/
2.
There is an unmistaken link between domestic violence
and guns. http://lawcenter.giffords.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Domestic-Violence-Factsheet.pdf Let’s sign Senator Chris Murphy’s (D-CT)
petition telling Congress to save lives from gun violence: http://action.chrismurphy.com/page/s/smart-gun-laws
Marches/events/teleconferences/Twitterstorms
to attend/organize
1.
We can still register for The Women’s Convention being held
in Detroit, October 27-29. Here’s the
link that provides several registration options including general,
student/youth, institutional, and day passes:
http://www.womensconvention.com/register.html
2.
The Women’s Convention is still in need of
volunteers. When we volunteer, we get
free admission for the rest of the day. We
can sign up here: https://liveunitedsem.galaxydigital.com/aem/corp/event/?doc_id=4485&key=a07caa6d6d98caa618d4da204d16ef09
Reading/Watching
1.
Some fascinating insight into why “Why American Workers
Pay Twice as Much in Taxes as Wealthy Investors” - https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2017-09-12/why-american-workers-pay-twice-as-much-in-taxes-as-wealthy-investors
2.
“I am writing ‘me too’ so my children don’t have to” - https://www.mother.ly/life/i-am-writing-me-too-so-my-children-dont-have-to
3.
“The 2017 Hurricanes Didn’t Just Hit Puerto Rico—They
Hit the Caribbean - https://www.thenation.com/article/the-2017-hurricanes-didnt-just-hit-puerto-rico-they-hit-the-caribbean/
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