Rogan's List

1/12/17  To-do List                                                            

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1. In another dead-of-night move, the Senate voted to move forward with the repeal of the ACA, at least procedurally at this point.  All Senate Republicans voted against amendments that would:  1) Allow young people up to 26 to stay on insurance; 2) Lower prescription drug cost by allowing importation of pharmaceuticals from Canada; 3) Guarantee that women do not pay more for insurance than men because of their gender; 4) Guarantee that rural hospitals will stay open; and 5) Guarantee that those with pre-existing conditions will not be charged more and will be protected.  In addition, GOP has passed rules to block the Congressional Budget Office from showing the impact of ACA repeal on the deficit (spoiler: it's trillions of $$).  GOP senators seem to believe they have a mandate from Americans to repeal the ACA without a single word about what will replace it. Other than mentions of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), neither the GOP nor the Trump people have any real replacement plan in the offing. There are a few things you can do:  1) Call your Senators today (on both sides of the aisle) and say you strongly oppose the Senate vote on healthcare and that you demand that they delay any and all efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act until Republicans present and have a debate on a full replacement. Find your legislators here:  https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials  2)  The watchdog group RISE (https://www.facebook.com/RISEWhenWeFall/) is looking for people all over the country to help with this cause by asking people to fill out this form:  https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScyCF5I2BTwId0vOufloJGjtG4zhXAhl8VcSqdQueokpwlMGw/viewform?c=0&w=1  3) Call your insurance companies to find out what their response will be if the ACA is repealed.  Start finding out what your realities may be. 

2. Add your name with the DCCC to stop the repeal of the ACA:  http://action.dccc.org/petition/stop-attacking-obamacare

3. If you’ve not already done so, please sign the OFA’s petition to no repeal the ACA:  https://www.barackobama.com/protect-obamacare/

4. Sign the AFL-CIO’s petition asking Congress to support a public option for healthcare:  https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/sign-the-petition-to-support-public-option-healthcare

5. Let’s join Issue On, an American nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that seeks to reduce the role of money in politics, in their quest to have the actual confirmation of nominees delayed until the committees have all crucial disclosures on the nominees’ financial backgrounds or potential conflicts of interest as is the regular protocol.   http://act.issueone.org/page/s/delay-trumps-cabinet-hearings

6. Let’s also tell our legislators to keep their hands off our Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid!  https://actionnetwork.org/letters/tell-congress-hands-off-medicare-social-security

7. Trump announced that he will not divest from his business, not even his international holdings. This is totally unacceptable and will place him in violation of the Constitution from Day One. Elizabeth Warren introduced the Presidential Conflicts of Interest Act to force him to divest. Add your voice in support of this important act now: http://act.standupamerica.com/trump-corruption

8. Trump's nomination of Tillerson, ExxonMobil's CEO, for Secretary of State is another sign that he is putting the interests of the oil and gas industry ahead of the interests of the American people.  Like us, the Environmental Defense Fund does not think this is in our country’s best interest.   Sign here:  https://secure2.edf.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=2870

9. Write and call Sen. Rubio (R-FL) to thank and support him for continuing to question Tillerson, a man whose primary goal is wealth over humanity.  Rubio may be the deciding factor in the confirmation, as we need one Republican and all Democrats to vote no against Tillerson.  Sen. Rubio’s contact info is here: https://www.rubio.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contact

10. VoteVets.org, the Voice of America’s 21^st Century Patriots, wants us to add our names to the thousands of veterans, military family members, and VoteVets supporters who have signed our petition calling for a full Congressional investigation into Russian attempts to influence our presidential election. http://action.votevets.org/page/s/hack-investigation

11. During World War II, George Takei and his family were rounded up to live in an internment camp because they were Japanese.  History has shown us that this was wrong.  Join your voice with George’s to let the Muslim community know we support them and oppose any policy targeting them based on their religion or national origin.  http://www.thepetitionsite.com/882/936/102/sign-george-takeis-petition-against-the-internment-of-muslims-in-the-u.s./

12. If you are going to a Women’s March, here is some advice from the ACLU on interacting with law enforcement:  https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/local/wp/2017/01/12/aclu-releases-a-guide-on-how-to-interact-with-police-for-inauguration-demonstrators/?tid=hybrid_collaborative_1_na