Beginning
tomorrow there will be no Rogan’s List
on
Saturdays or Sundays.
Contact Federal Government Officials
Find
your legislators here: https://www.theloyalopposition.net/rep-finder/
OR
OR
OR
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Accounts here:
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here:
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If
your senators and reps aren't saved in your phone yet,
text
your US postal address to (520) 200-2223 and get a text back with your
STATE
& FEDERAL legislative rep phone numbers.
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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.
The House passed its 2018 budget
resolution Thursday in a 219-206 vote. Among other things, this
resolution shields the GOP tax bill from a filibuster in the Senate: http://thehill.com/policy/finance/354028-house-passes-budget-paving-way-for-tax-reform
We are, once again, at the mercy of the few responsible Republicans, who might
deprive McConnell of the 52 votes he will now need to pass his
tax-"reform"-for-the-wealthy: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/09/27/us/politics/six-charts-to-explain-the-republican-tax-plan.html
We must call on our senators--especially moderate Republicans--to refuse to
grant this windfall to the rich: 202-224-3121
2.
As Puerto Rico continues to face devastation following
Hurricanes Maria and Irma, let's remind our MoC that we need a waiver from the
Jones Act that lasts longer than ten days http://theatln.tc/2xFnPDO Our
Revolution has a great tool we can use to call our MoC, which includes talking
points and phone numbers:
3.
Right now, members of Congress, including members of
the GOP, are building momentum for legislation that would prohibit the sale and
use of bump stocks, an accessory which enables semi-automatic firearms to
operate as fully automatic http://bit.ly/2yqSKqA
Automatic guns are currently illegal for civilians, except for manufacturers
and dealers, or in the case of firearms made before 1986 http://slate.me/2xXlWnZ In
order for these discussions to continue at the legislative level, our MoC need
to know that they have our support, especially for republican MoC who would be
going against the NRA and many of their GOP colleagues. Let's contact our MoC
and let them know that, as Republican Rep. Bill Flores stated, "There’s no
reason for a typical gun owner to own anything that converts a semi-automatic
to something that behaves like an automatic."
4.
From Chop
Wood/Carry Water: In the last few
years, we've made a lot of progress in improving the efficiency of our nation's
vehicle fleet. The Obama Administration rolled out higher fuel economy
standards under the Clean Air Act, which led to more efficient cars, improved
technology like hybrid/electric vehicles, and less greenhouse gas emissions.
These standards are now at risk - Trump's EPA wants to roll them back. https://www.ecowatch.com/epa-clean-car-standards-2493242811.html But they can't do so without going through
the rulemaking process, and the comment period is open NOW! Take a minute to tell the EPA that you
support fuel economy standards to reduce greenhouse gas emissions!!!! Comment
in the Federal Register here. (Use your own words--even one or two sentences will
help!)
5.
Without much fanfare, the Trump administration has been
quietly rolling back gun control measures.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/the-trump-administration-has-already-been-rolling-back-gun-regulations/2017/10/04/5eaad7d6-a86b-11e7-8ed2-c7114e6ac460_story.html?utm_term=.73ccfb090f66 Let’s make sure our MoCs know that we want
them to do whatever they can to keep us safe from guns.
6.
The Senate Judiciary Committee vote yesterday moved the
nomination of Eric Dreiband, to serve as assistant attorney general for the
Civil Rights Division, to the full Senate.
More than 70 civil rights groups are objecting to him: http://www.npr.org/2017/09/06/548985268/civil-rights-division-nominee-eric-dreiband-appears-before-senate-panel Our senators need to know that we oppose
Dreiband’s nomination and urge them to vote no.
7.
H.R. 953,
a bill that would undercut the Clean Water Act and make it easier for
pesticides and toxic materials to leech into our oceans and drinking water, passed
the House and is up for Senate approval (https://www.bna.com/pesticide-spraying-bill-n73014451519/).
We need the Senate to strengthen, not weaken, environmental protections. Let’s
contact our senators and ask them to publicly commit to opposing this bill.
8.
Governor Jerry Brown (D-CA) yesterday signed multiple
measures to protect our immigrant friends and neighbors, including the “Dignity
Not Detention” legislation prohibiting the state government from entering into
new contracts with private companies seeking to detain immigrants for pay and
blocking private property from being used to build new detention centers. This
is a key step towards ending for-profit detention centers in California, and
it’s the first law of its kind in the country (http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/10/05/jerry-brown-signs-california-immigration-bills-into-law/).
Let us take this as a model for our states, and contact our
state legislators and governors and ask them to pass legislation similar to SB29.
9.
In one breath, the NRA said that it will support
regulations on bump stocks, but in the next breath advocates for Congress to
pass a national right-to-carry reciprocity, thereby gutting state laws, in the
guise of making citizens safer. http://www.newsweek.com/nra-seeking-more-guns-even-it-gives-bump-stocks-679148
Let’s let Congress know that we them to ban assault rifles, conduct extensive
background checks, limit the number of guns a
person can own or much ammunition, and to create a national database to
keep track of all this.
10. Lest
we forget, there are still an ongoing investigations into Russian meddling in
our election with new insights daily: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-04/russia-needed-help-targeting-u-s-voters-two-ex-cia-chiefs-say
and http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/opinion/the-conversation/sd-senate-russia-interference-collusion-20171004-htmlstory.html Let’s let our MoCs know that we support these
investigations and want them to create an independent commission (http://thehill.com/opinion/national-security/353418-the-2018-midterms-are-coming-and-russia-is-ready) that would “systematically catalogue the
methods of Russian interference and then to recommend ways to counter and
defend against them.”
11. With
the GOP budget passing in the House, we need to step-up our fight to keep our
Senators from slashing valuable programs. The Union of Concerned Scientists
has provided a tool to help us contact our Senators with messages showing our
support for the endangered programs, with photos of ourselves in the field or
lab or visiting local landmarks that would be affected by budget cuts.
State Actions
1.
FL: Tonight! On Friday, Oct. 6 at
8:30pm, Sierra
Club Florida kicks off its Florida anti-fracking campaign with a call
with actor, film-maker and activist Mark Ruffalo. We
can join Mark Ruffalo and the Floridians Against Fracking Coalition
on this Friday evening as we kick off the fight to pass the ban
fracking bills in the 2018 legislative session. To join, call
in 8:30pm on Friday at 877 369 0926 and enter Meeting ID: 933 890 949
We can read more information and follow the movement on
Facebook. Let's be inspired by recent news that after
pressure from public opposition Scotland has banned fracking. We can do this!
2.
MS: HB1523, the anti-LGBT law that goes into effect
today would allow government officials and businesses to deny services,
based on religious beliefs or moral convictions, to gay couples wishing to get
married. The 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals denied a request to keep
Mississippi House Bill 1523 from going into effect while opponents of the bill
appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. Let's read more at the Clarion-Ledger. If we are denied service in
Mississippi for being a person who is LGBTQ, let's be sure to reach out to these
advocate organizations: Mississippi Center for Justice and Lambda Legal who are bringing this issue to the
Supreme Court. Let's donate to support their efforts if we are able.
3.
AL: Let's read this AL.com article, "Too poor to vote: How Alabama's 'new
poll tax' bars thousands of people from voting" about Alabama's
disenfranchisement of some of our citizens. Change needs to happen at a
local level. Let's contact our state legislators to find out what they plan to
do to fix this problem and let them know that we want it fixed.
Other Actions
1.
In case it was not already clear why Roy Moore has no
place in the US Senate (Republican candidate in Alabama to replace Jeff
Sessions), his Facebook page makes it crystal clear with hideous racist memes: http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/353891-roy-moores-facebook-page-shares-messages-attacking-nfl-players-over-anthem If
we live in Alabama, let’s join get out the vote efforts and talk with friends
and family about what is at stake if he gets to go to the US Capitol. Then,
let’s all contribute to his Democratic challenger Doug Jones as we are able:https://dougjonesforsenate.com
2.
Three former Obama staffers/speechwriters (Jon Favreau,
Jon Lovett, and Tommy Vietor – and no, these are not the actor Jon Favreau and
the comedian Jon Lovett) launched a media company after the election called
Crooked Media which hosts the adored podcasts: Pod Save America, Pod Save the
World, Pod Save the People, and others which give great news commentary and
have fantastic interviews (reader heads-up: they swear a lot). On
Wednesday, they launched a new website with plans for more written work and
more podcasts. For the launch, Jon Lovett wrote this very stirring piece about
how routine and numbing the mass shootings in our society are becoming and how
we fall into a rhythm with each one: https://crooked.com/article/the-death-loop/ Let’s
read it as a way to guard against numbly moving on from the need for common
sense gun control in our society.
3.
Flippable.org works to identify the seats most likely
to "flip" to Democrats in an election. Then they "POOL AND
DIRECT RESOURCES TO HELP DEMOCRATS WIN." They have just launched new,
easy-to-use web page for those of us who want to join and help Democrats win
local races. The organization is gathering up steam and represents a very
important factor in our fight to win our democracy back. Let’s join here:
4.
For our younger activists out there who may not be old
enough to vote yet, there are still ways to get involved! Students for Science
is an advocate group whose goal is "to empower young people to engage with
and advocate for science in the public and private sectors" https://www.studentsforscience.org/what-we-do/ There
are walk-throughs on how to start a Students for Science club at school, as
well as how to advocate for good science education with our local school boards
(including tips on public speaking)
https://www.studentsforscience.org/advocacy Let's
check it out and support activism at every age level!
5.
For educators, Southern Poverty Law Center's Teaching
Tolerance offers some great resources we can use to help empower our youth in
their citizenship and activism. There are resource materials like film kits,
lesson plans, and teaching strategies https://www.tolerance.org/classroom-resources For
educators themselves, we can also register for their webinars, which cover
topics such as bullying, bias, class, gender and sexual identity, race and
ethnicity, religion, and activism. Let's take advantage of these tools, then
empower our young activists https://www.tolerance.org/professional-development/webinars
6.
We know that Trump has made some changes and
limitations have been made in the ACA enrollment period this year, including
enrollment time, Marketplace availability, and advertising. https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2017/09/changes-to-open-enrollment/541263/ Let’s share this link to let people know it
is soon time for ACA open enrollment: https://www.healthcare.gov/quick-guide/dates-and-deadlines/
7.
To put “representative” back into our democracy, we
need to end gerrymandering, and that means an end to politically biased
redistricting commissions. Canada started using independent commissions in
1955, and has been enjoying fairer elections ever since: https://www.vox.com/2014/4/15/5604284/us-elections-are-rigged-but-canada-knows-how-to-fix-them So let’s ask Eric Holder and the National
Democratic Redistricting Committee to include this in their strategic plan. Email
the link to the Vox article to info@democraticredistricting.com,
and use the subject line, “Independent Redistricting Commissions Work!”
8.
"Attorney General Jeff Sessions is
reversing course on the Justice Department's policy that a 1964 civil rights
law protects transgender individuals from discrimination. In a memo to U.S.
attorneys dated Wednesday and obtained by BuzzFeed, Sessions said that the Justice
Department will no longer interpret Title VII of of the Civil Rights Act
to mean that the law's protections extend to discrimination based on gender
identity." We can read the full article at The Hill. Let's be creative in our response to this and
let's all ask our employers what they are doing to protect LGBTQ workers and
demand a written response. Let's start by contacting the head of
human resources. Give them a commitment date for a response and hold them
to it. Let's escalate if they do not
respond by contacting the company president and/or CEO. We can also do this if
we are shareholders of companies.
9. “In
late September, Donald Trump released a tax plan that would give away massive
tax cuts to the rich, including over one billion dollars in tax cuts for Trump
himself. The last thing we need is for the tax code to be even more rigged in
favor of millionaires, billionaires, and corporate insiders. Instead, we need
to fight for a tax code that makes the economy work better for working
families. Even more tax breaks for the super rich will undermine our commitment
to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, and make it impossible to invest in
the middle class.” Let’s take the Not
One Penny pledge to “Not One Penny in
Tax Cuts for Millionaires, Billionaires, and Wealthy Corporations”: https://notonepenny.org/
10. Long
a gun control advocate, NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced on Twitter that
he will match all donations to Everytown for
Gun Safety. https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/04/mike-bloomberg-offers-to-match-every-donation-to-fight-gun-violence.html
Let’s donate here: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/ab-everytown-default
11. As
part of our struggle against prejudice, we need to ensure that we’re bringing
more voices to the table. WeNeedDiverseBooks helps to promote children’s
literature that reflects the diverse lives of all readers. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/hashtag-movement-book-weneeddiversebooks-publishes-first-anthology-n703606 Let’s
check-out the resources they provide to see how we can promote diversity,
whether we’re readers or writers.
Writers, let’s also look around for conferences (like MadCap’s 2018
Writing Cross-culturally Workshop) and other resources
to help us hone our skills to write stories that sensitively and accurately
portray diverse lives.
12. An
activist for Americans for Financial Reform and Public Citizen made
headlines on Wednesday by appearing at a Congressional hearing on the
Equifax data breach dressed up as Rich Uncle Pennybags from the board game
Monopoly. This creative tactic drew public attention to an important issue
while at the same time making a critical point about the increasingly
oligarchic nature of American politics.
http://www.newsweek.com/monopoly-man-made-appearance-equifax-and-wells-fargo-hearings-heres-why-677984 As
the weeks go by, our energy flags along with our ability to capture the
public’s interest. So let’s check out http://www.creativeresistance.org/ for
ideas for protest art, music, poetry, flash mobs, puppets and more. Let’s
create with purpose!
13. Get
paid for working in the Resistance! Flippable,
an organization dedicated to gaining progressive electoral ground in the
states, is hiring. They’re looking for a Director of Marketing and
Communications, an Operations Manager, a Product Designer, and a Product
Manager. Let’s check out the job descriptions and apply here: https://jobs.lever.co/flippable
14. The
inaugural The
Women's Convention will be in Detroit from October 27-29 and there
will be a Women’s Market, where we'll celebrate and uplift design and
production with a social justice mission, made by independent makers and small
business owners working within the Women’s March values. We are invited to
apply to participate, either with our own solo or curated booth, or by
wholesaling through our shop partners The Outrage. Application is at bit.ly/WomensMarket and
the deadline is Monday, October 9, 2017.
15. Facebook
and Google have become the largest purveyors of news in the world. Yet both
corporations are still failing to grapple with the growing problem of fake
news, and seem reluctant to don the mantle of responsible journalistic
standards that reputable publishers have worn for generations. https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2017/10/5/16410912/illusory-truth-fake-news-las-vegas-google-facebook.
So, let’s encourage them to “put on their grownup pants” by leaving them
feedback about their News features here
https://www.facebook.com/help/contact/268228883256323 and https://news.google.com/news/headlines?hl=en.
Petitions
1. Last July, EPA whistleblower Joel Clements
was demoted to a position well beneath his education and training. On Wednesday, he resigned citing the failed leadership of Ryan Zinke: https://apps.washingtonpost.com/g/documents/national/read-joel-clements-resignation-letter/2566/ Let’s show we stand with Clements against
what is happening in the EPA by signing this petition from Climate
Truth: https://act.climatetruth.org/sign/climate_whistleblowers/
2. Let’s join the League of Conservation Voters in
asking Pruitt not to roll back Obama’s clean car standards: http://p2a.co/j5SmaXF?p2asource=c4gawbclca
Marches/events/teleconferences
to attend/organize
1.
The Hyde Amendment, which bars the use of federal funds
to pay for abortion except to save the life of the woman or if the pregnancy
arises from incest or rape, has now been in place for 41 years. In January
2017, as soon as Trump took office, the House passed H.R. 7 "No Taxpayer
Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of 2017";
in August, the Trump administration radically cut federal grant programs to
prevent teen pregnancy (http://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/346122-abrupt-trump-cuts-to-teen-pregnancy-program-surprise-groups); on
Tuesday, the House passed a ban on 20-week abortions (http://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/353709-house-passes-20-week-abortion-ban) If either of the pending bills is passed by
the Senate and signed by the president, womens' right to safe, legal,
affordable abortions would suffer and the Hyde Amendment would become
permanent. Forward Together is organizing reproductive justice meet-ups
nationwide to “celebrate” the anniversary of the Hyde Amendment. If we
can host one of these, we should:
2.
The NewFounders Conference in Chicago, October 18, is
“for anyone that wants to reshape the future of politics in America. We are ALL
NewFounders. This is past calling reps and resistance. We're going to directly
bridge you into teams solving critical problems based on your skill set, so you
can work alongside leaders as a leader to make the change we need.” Let’s learn more here: http://www.newfoundersconference.com/#DONE
Reading/Watching
1. ‘Statistics show that since 1982,
the majority of mass shootings — 54 percent — were committed by white
men, according to data from Mother Jones. Black people were the second largest perpetrators of mass
shootings based on ethnic background, but only accounted for roughly 16 percent
of the total incidents during the same time period.” http://www.newsweek.com/white-men-have-committed-more-mass-shootings-any-other-group-675602
2. American’s for Tax Fairness’ summary of the worst features of the
Trump-Ryan tax plan: https://americansfortaxfairness.org/worst-features-trump-ryan-tax-plan/
3. “How the Elderly Lose Their Rights” https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/10/09/how-the-elderly-lose-their-rights
Rogan’s
List is a participant in and strategic part ner 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.
******
Rogan’s List is also part of RISE Stronger’s United States of
Resistance
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