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Contact Federal Government Officials

Find senator’s contact info here: https://goo.gl/RLiotu

Find representative’s contact info here: https://goo.gl/5i7SXC

Fax legislators for free:  Reps:  https://faxzero.com/fax_congress.php

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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 has already passed their version of the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act (H.R. 36) and Mitch McConnell (R-KY) plans to bring the Senate version (S. 1922) to a vote today, perhaps in time for the State of the Union address and in a calculated move to target Democrats before the midterms:  http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2018/01/senate_to_vote_on_new_abortion.html  Let’s read this woman’s story: 
https://www.womenshealthmag.com/health/20-week-abortion then, contact our senators and tell them we believe this is an issue between a woman and her medical and support team, not the government.  It’s very unlikely to pass given the number of pro-choice senators, but let’s be sure to call in anyways and tell them we’re watching this attack on women’s rights very closely. And let’s also remind them that we will hold them responsible at the ballot box for their votes for anti-choices federal judges, not just anti-choice laws.  Even the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists is against it:  https://www.medpagetoday.com/obgyn/pregnancy/70792
2.      U.S. Border Patrol agents may stop us within 100 miles of the border and ask us if we are US citizens. Two hundred million people—2/3 of the US population—live within this zone. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/two-thirds-americans-live-border-zone-what-are-their-rights-n841141 People have recorded videos of their encounters with these checkpoints. www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-teacher-border-patrol-20170724-story.html Let’s A) learn more: https://www.aclu.org/other/constitution-100-mile-border-zone  B) know our rights:
https://www.acluaz.org/sites/default/files/field_documents/aclu_border_rights.pdf , and C) tell our MoCs that we want Congress to investigate what’s going on at interior border checkpoints.

3.      Trump and Ryan Zinke started off the year with a late holiday gift to Big Oil, announcing they want to open huge swaths of our public waters to offshore drilling. This comes over the objections of Republican and Democratic governors alike: https://www.axios.com/six-coastal-governors-wants-offshore-drilling-e-1515619586-92590bda-e098-4425-a015-9aacf7a6ee45.html Today is the FINAL day the Department of Interior is accepting comments on this destructive plan. Let’s let them know that progressives and conservatives stand united in saying no at this link: https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=BSEE-2017-0008.

4.      Following on the heels of the news that Trump tried to fire Robert Mueller last year, CNN is reporting that Trump has expressed the desire to fire Rod Rosenstein as well: http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/371009-trump-talking-about-firing-rosenstein-report It’s clear that the ones who really deserve to be fired are the members of Congress who are not demanding action on legislation to protect the investigation from being obstructed.  Let’s call our members of Congress and tell them we want immediate action on proposed bipartisan bills to protect the special counsel, like the Graham-Booker Special Counsel Independence Protection Act or the Tillis-Coons Special Counsel Integrity Act, and a commitment to vote to override any vetoes of these bills by Trump if they’re passed. (And let’s commit to rallying in protest if Trump fires Mueller at this link.)

5.      Adding onto the news from last week that Trump actively tried to fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller, news has come out that he has been pushing to release the classified Russia memo that has been making headlines of late:  https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-sought-release-of-classified-russia-memo-putting-him-at-odds-with-justice-department/2018/01/27/a00f2a4c-02bb-11e8-9d31-d72cf78dbeee_story.html?utm_term=.140f6c4ea330  The Washington Post and The Guardian both published thoughtful editorials/op-eds on these issues: 
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/shall-we-protect-robert-mueller-now-mr-mcconnell/2018/01/26/54f9c0a2-02da-11e8-9d31-d72cf78dbeee_story.html?utm_term=.76883c2929d5 and https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jan/27/trump-fbi-us-constitution Let’s let Senator Majority Leader Mitchel McConnell know that we are disgusted with Trump flouting the rule of law and that we expect him to protect Mueller:
 https://www.mcconnell.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contactform or on Twitter: @SenateMajLdr and then let’s be clear about the same with our MoC

6.      Mass shootings are back in the spotlight, and with that, a reminder of Congress' stagnancy in passing gun control legislation. Thankfully, state governments are picking up the slack, by passing legislation to ban bump stocks (devices which accelerate a firearm's rate of fire, utilized by the Las Vegas shooter) http://wapo.st/2DJKtNz Let's call our U.S. MoCs and remind them that this still matters to us. We can ask them to cosponsor and support the Automatic Gunfire Prevention Act (S. 1916/H.R. 3947) , if they have not already done so. We can also call Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (202) 224-2541) and House Speaker Paul Ryan (202) 225-3031) and ask them to bring these bills to a vote.

7.      Today is the last day to submit a comment regarding the USDA Secretary's proposed rule which would lower nutritional standards for school meal programs:
 http://read.bi/2B59dxu The American Heart Association has been vocal in its opposition to this rollback http://bit.ly/2FmPhbY If we have not already done so, let's be sure to leave a comment, voicing our opposition to this unnecessary, regressive rule http://bit.ly/2Ajm7JE

8.     While many are touting the victory in Congress finally funding CHIP, Dreamers are being left behind http://reut.rs/2Ga4v5y We need more than empty promises- we need our MoC to take action. We help them do this by demonstrating how important a clean Dream Act is to us. Indivisible has a helpful toolkit that can help us plan a "Thank You/Accountability" action https://www.indivisible.org/resource/dream-action-planning-guide/ We can also check out the resources available with We Are Here to Stay, where we can tweet or call our MoC directly from the website http://weareheretostay.org/

9.      “To report that two students were killed in their school was once the kind of story that would dominate the news of a week. And to be sure, the deplorable deaths and bright lives of those two youngsters have received intense attention. But the killings in Kentucky were the 11th school shooting of the year, and the first month of the year is not over. There have been almost 300 school shootings in the United States since 2013, according to the gun control advocacy group Everytown for Gun Safety.” 
https://www.npr.org/2018/01/27/581216851/school-shootings-are-sad-but-no-longer-surprising  Let’s continue to pressure the Congress and our own state governments to make common sense gun laws.

Election 2018 - General

1.       Last week with only four (4) days into Postcards to Voters' Campaign 50, more than 1500 volunteers had written 37,000 postcards to voters in Pennsylvania's 18th congressional district (PA18).  Democrat Conor Lamb is running for this Southwestern PA US congressional seat.  We can support the Democrats and Conor Lamb by writing five (5) postcards to Democratic voters in PA18. We can join the fun by emailing: JOIN@TonytheDemocrat.org or check the Postcards to Voters website for texting instructions.  Let's make sure we tell our friends and family about this national postcard campaign, especially those in Pennsylvania. 

2.      When, against all odds, voters in Alabama's special election rejected the Republican candidate Roy Moore late last year, it was due the votes of black women. 98% of black women voters voted for Doug Jones, as compared with 63% of white women voters (https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2017/politics/alabama-exit-polls/?utm_term=.cbc57b1acaa6). Let's thank black women and help realize the political potential of women of color by choosing a candidate that speaks to you and donating to their campaign. This database of black women candidates is being compiled by activists and is fully searchable: http://database.blackwomeninpolitics.com/

3.      “… the millennial generation, now 44 percent minority, is the most diverse generation in American history. While its lasting legacy is yet to be determined, this generation is set to serve as a social, economic, and political bridge to chronologically successive (and increasingly) racially diverse generations.”   https://www.brookings.edu/research/millennials/  Let’s do what we can to help get millennials registered and voting.

Election 2018 – By State

Other Actions

1.       One of the best ways to combat racism and white supremacy is to expose our (white folks) children to diverse and challenging books and media. Even very young children internalize the subtle messages they see and hear around them. Here are some suggestions for books we can borrow from our local libraries or purchase (preferably from local book shops):
http://www.booksforlittles.com/silence-is-violence/  It's also important to think about how different subjects are handled in our children's books so we can have meaningful discussions with our children. Making conversations about race and privilege commonplace in our (white folks) day-to-day lives is one way to combat systemic racism and white supremacy. Here is an example from Oakland Public Library of how to unpack the way police interactions are portrayed in children's books: http://bit.ly/2FmLKup

2.      Trump’s Immigration deal, designed by extremist nativist Stephen Miller, is an unacceptable “white supremist wish list” including using the Dreamers as bargaining chips to get his wall. We can tweet against it here:  https://docs.google.com/document/d/19g0muQjEVJBmk6nS47n4mKy9YwYi58j6w_Wxy9Vz8HQ/mobilebasic  We can draw from these talking points to write our own tweets, or just to become more informed.  Talking points:

3.      In honor of the fifth anniversary of Moms Demand Action, host a peace potluck or bake sale.  All the proceeds go to Everytown for Gun Safety to support the work of Moms Demand Action.  Let’s find out here:  http://www.bakeamericagreat.org/

4.      New Jersey’s new governor, Phil Murphy (D), has stepped into support a church’s offering sanctuary to an ICE victim.  http://www.newsweek.com/phil-murphy-new-jersey-immigration-and-customs-enforcement-immigration-792373  If we live outside NJ, let’s ask our governors if they are willing to do this as well.  Let’s also thank Governor Murphy:  Office of the Governor, PO Box 001, Trenton, NJ 08625, and let’s also thank the church, The Reformed Church of Highland Park, 9 S 2nd Ave, Highland Park, NJ 08904.  Let’s donate to their cause if we can.

5.      Story-telling is central to success in issue advocacy and campaigns. Personal videos, shared friend-to-friend on social media are especially powerful. This father's video about his daughter in the Alabama election, for instance got over 5 million views. High costs and complexity have made recording and collecting such videos out of the reach for many campaigns. A new app from Democracy Labs has changed all this and making it affordable for even the smallest campaigns. It allows you to create a link which includes background information and the question you want to be answered. The link can be distributed through email, Facebook or Twitter to supporters who can record their own video clip on a laptop or smartphone. The clips include the campaign's hashtag and website. They can share their video with their friends on social media increasing the awareness of your campaign. The campaign manager gets all the videos and can choose the best clips to amplify further. This short video shows how easy it is to use to create a Link and start collecting videos for your campaign. It costs just $29/month (including support) and is already in use by several campaigns.

6.      As January comes to a close, let's take a look ahead to see what may happen in the next month https://www.indivisible.org/blog/what-could-happen-in-february/

7.      Rebekah Mercer, “a leading Trump donor who supports groups that deny climate science,” has joined the board of trustees of the American Museum of Natural History, inspiring an outcry from scientists and tenured curators.https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/26/arts/design/natural-history-museum-rebekah-mercer.html  Let’s contact the American Museum of Natural History urging them to remove Mercer from the board: https://www.amnh.org/about-the-museum/contact-us/visitor-comments or American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street, New York, NY 10024-5192.

8.     In response to recent reports that ICE may soon conduct immigration raids in Northern California cities, a school superintendent issued a reminder of the Board of Education’s safe haven policies:   https://www.wccusd.net/Page/10781 and  https://www.wccusd.net/site/handlers/filedownload.ashx?moduleinstanceid=11572&dataid=14988&FileName=Res%2054-1617-02172017103923.pdf Let’s be in touch with the officials overseeing the public schools in our districts and ask them what policies are in place to protect and educate all children regardless of immigration status.

9.      From Suit Up Main:  Trump’s plan to appoint ultra-conservative, extremist judges to lifetime positions in the federal court system is a weapon that will continue to harm Americans long after he is out of office. Trump inherited 100 judicial vacancies and is expected to get many more as current judges retire, and he is methodically filling these vacancies with the most conservative and least diverse group of candidates seen since Reagan held office. While many vacancies have already been filled, there is still time to stop others that should be disqualified from judicial service. The three most concerning nominees right now are Kyle Duncan, David Stras, and Thomas Farr, all of whom are expected to have imminent senate votes. https://www.suitupmaine.org/unqualified-and-extremist-judicial-appointments-demand-their-opposition/  Let’s make sure our senators know that these are not the judges we need in any position.

Marches/events/webinars/Tweetstorms to attend/organize

1.       Tomorrow is Trump’s first State of the Union address. There is a push to encourage people not to watch it to not give him the ratings he feels are so important.  It will be important to watch Rep. Joe Kennedy (D-MA) give the Democratic response following, however )https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/politics/2018/01/26/representative-joseph-kennedy-iii-deliver-democratic-response-state-union-address/OohmntAyR3J49lwV9HNomK/story.html), as it will be to watch Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) give her response on “Angela Rye’s State of the Union” on BET:   http://thehill.com/homenews/house/371002-maxine-waters-will-respond-to-trump-after-state-of-the-union

2.      An alternative to watching the State of the Union is to participate in the State of OUR Union which is also happening on Tuesday at 8pm.  Let’s see how we can watch at home or attend an event:  https://actionnetwork.org/forms/the-state-of-our-union

3.      If we are on Twitter, on Tuesday night we can also take part in the State of the Union #MamaState Tweetstorm sponsored by Mothering Justice.  Here is the link to the event:  https://www.facebook.com/events/582004578805972

4.      Another alternative is happening tonight.  “Mark Ruffalo, Lee Daniels, Michael Moore and Whoopi Goldberg are among celebrities who plan to attend an evening of speeches and music at “The People’s State of the Union,” billed as a “public alternative” to President Donald Trump’s first State of the Union address.”  https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/people/2018/01/26/mark-ruffalo-alyssa-milano-plan-peoples-state-union-counter-events/1070650001/ “Host organizations include unions, organizers of the Women’s March and Planned Parenthood. The event will be live-streamed at peoplessotu.org

5.      While Trump delivers his State of the Union address, we can join the Digital #StateOfTheDream address instead, supporting our dreamers and immigrants, call for and expressing our vision for a more inclusive, progressive America. We can create our own brief videos describing our dream for America, or we can use the social media Toolkit which will be provided closer to the 30th. We can post our videos simultaneously at 6pm PST/9pm EST with the hashtag #StateOfTheDream on all of our social channels. After the video blast, we can proceed to post tweets from the toolkit or our own messaging, continuing the unifying tweetstorm with the #StateOfTheDream hashtag.  We can learn more about the event here
https://t.co/Y6NTRO5YjE?amp=1  Alyssa Milano is promoting this event on twitter. We can follow her at  @AlyssaMilano, to learn more about this and other Resistance actions on twitter.

States

1.       Many states are looking at changing voting laws, some to open voting and others to suppress.  Let’s take a look at what’s happening so we can keep on top of our state legislators: https://www.brennancenter.org/analysis/voting-laws-roundup-2018

Reading/Watching

1.       “Marianne Williamson asked white people to apologize. She got it right.” -

2.      Experts in authoritarianism advise us to keep a list of things subtly changing around us, so we’ll remember.  Amy Siskind is keeping that list for us. Amy writes, "The fabric of our country is changing at an alarming pace, although in the chaos, related news is garnering little media coverage or attention. Trump’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is becoming increasingly active and emboldened, using Gestapo-type tactics to target immigrants living lawfully in our country, as Trump and his regime continue to openly target and disparage marginalized communities."  Let's review Amy Siskind's list week 63

3.      And, as always, our weekly dose of Small Victories:  https://www.celebratesmallvictories.com/




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