Rogan's List

4/6/17 To-do List   

Contact Government Officials

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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.

1. From Do a Thing:  If you live in a sanctuary city, call your mayor's office and thank them for taking a stand. If you don't, call your mayor and tell them you support the rights of all local citizens, and would love to see your local government declare its commitment to protecting those rights  [Then] Today, make a call or two to defend funding for sanctuary cities. First, call the Department of Justice (202-353-1555) to express your opposition to defunding sanctuary cities. 5 Calls has a great script for this:  https://5calls.org/issue/recOfZFEcuzgi9JPM

2. Rep. Jayapal (D-WA) and Sen. Sanders (D-VT) have introduced a bill that would make college free for many families and change how student debt works. http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/education/bernie-sanders-pramila-jayapal-introduce-bill-to-make-college-free-for-many/   Let’s contact on legislators and tell them we support this effort to make college more accessible to more students.

3. A study by researchers at Oxford University reveals the influence of Russian-generated fake news on the voters in Michigan prior to the 2016 election:  http://politicalbots.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/What-Were-Michigan-Voters-Sharing-Over-Twitter-v2.pdf  We need to continue to let our legislators know that an independent investigation is needed for the Russian involvement in our election and in the dealings of the current administration.

4. It is welcome news indeed to have Steve Bannon no longer on the National Security Council!  https://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2017-04-05/bannon-removed-from-national-security-council-role-in-shakeup  Now, since we can already see signs of his touch in “destroying the administrative state”  let’s call the White House and ask that he be removed from the administration altogether.  https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/write-or-call 

5. Let's keep the pressure on and ask GOP senators not to change the rules to push Gorsuch through for the Supreme Court.  https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/politics/2017/04/04/elizabeth-warren-gorsuch-has-shown-contempt-for-our-constitution/KtE4k0qAlIM39FGvwFN2jI/story.html  Color of Change has a great toolkit that provides phone numbers, a script, and call tips: http://bit.ly/2nbAOey

6. Some are calling this administration a kleptocracy.  “On Monday, ProPublica, the investigative news site, reported that someone had changed the terms of the trust that Trump established before he entered the White House. The trust controls the four hundred or so businesses that Trump owns, and a new clause says that its trustees—Trump’s two sons, Eric and Don, Jr., and a family lawyer, Allen Weisselberg—“shall distribute net income or principal to Donald J. Trump at his request, as the Trustees deem necessary for his maintenance, support or uninsured medical expenses, or as the Trustees otherwise deem appropriate.””  http://www.newyorker.com/news/john-cassidy/trump-kleptocracy-watch-an-update This is not normal for a sitting President.  We need to keep asking for Trump’s tax returns as Presidential candidates have done for decades.

7. From Inspired Jen:  Republicans got around voting for Garland because they kept it about the position, not about the person. Democrats are diluting the issue whining about Garland and ripping Gorsuch to shreds. While both are technically accurate, the message lacks a solution. We need to focus on what outcome we want. We need a moderate SCOTUS nominee. Here's what I'm sending out today and tomorrow, feel free to use or edit: @GOP @SenateGOP Stop bullying America. Give us a moderate SCOTUS nominee we can support

8. Here's a summary of last week in science & technology policy from Rise Stronger.  Note the actions we can take: https://risestronger.org/newsroom/week-10-in-science-technology-trump-and-republicans-target-environmental-protections

9. While Trump is confident enough to say that he thinks that Bill O’Reilly did nothing wrong, he apparently is not confident enough to respond the Newton School Board which has asked him to denounce deniers of the Sandy Hook killings that claimed the lives of many of their students and staff.  http://www.courant.com/politics/hc-newtown-school-board-trump-letter-20170403-story.html On behalf of the families of those lost, let’s send postcards to Ivanka at the White House asking her to convince her father to speak up and denounce these naysayers and acknowledge the tragedy. 

Other Actions

1. Sleeping Giants, who have worked diligently to have advertisers remove their presence on Breitbart, is now working on getting advertisers to stop advertising on Fox News during Bill O’Reilly’s show.  We can help:  https://docs.google.com/document/d/1bhtSv0d5eQRttZd0zry-4ntztuWK7PfisgxgkNxYjPM/edit  Here is their current list that is being updated:  https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1q_ZNcml-rN7I6XRakgXZdRQAxygVeB5P45zQYsZEQ_A/edit   Most of their work is on Twitter (good time to join!), but you can follow them on Facebook, too:  https://www.facebook.com/slpnggiants/

2. We know that the NCAA decision was ‘reluctant’.  http://www.journalnow.com/news/local/ncaa-reluctantly-agrees-to-let-north-carolina-host-events/article_446064c8-fa71-5791-abf5-feedfd7ef575.html  Let’s keep up the pressure on the NCAA to stand up against North Carolina's non-repeal of HB2, and withhold the championship games from North Carolina until a real repeal takes place. Let's give NCAA President Mark Emmert a call to voice our concerns: (317) 917-6905

3. For the educators among us:  check out the toolkit created by United We Dream and commit to participating in “National Institutions Coming Out Day: Institutional policies and programs with and for undocumented students”:  http://bit.ly/2oDBYiH  Take the pledge to be part of the program:  http://bit.ly/2nEP6j4

4. Last night was the first session of Resistance School.  “Resistance School is a free four session practical training program to sharpen the tools we need to fight for our values at the federal, state, and local levels.  Our goal is to keep the embers of resistance alive through concrete learning, community engagement, and forward-looking action.”  If we missed last night, hopefully it is not too late to sign up for the next three sessions:  It is available online or in-person:  https://www.resistanceschool.com/ 

Petitions to Sign

 

1. Trump’s proposed budget would most likely end Amtrak’s long-distance routes to 23 states and Canada.  Let’s sign this Change.org petition against that:  https://www.change.org/p/trump-wants-to-cut-amtrak-service-to-23-states-and-canada-help-us-save-their-train-service

2. Anyone close to Trump should not be chairing the committee that is investigating him and his ties to Russia.  Rep. Nunes has to go.  Let’s sign our agreement here:  https://act.credoaction.com/sign/Remove_Nunes

3. If Republicans don’t have the traditional 60 votes required to confirm him, they should change the nominee, not the Senate rules.  Let’s show we think so, too!  https://act.myngp.com/Forms/-7384928621203945472 

Learning

1. A very interesting read on how Fox News works: “One Nation Under Fox:  18 Hours with a Network that Shapes America”  https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/25/business/media/fox-news.html

2. Here's a summary of last week in science & technology policy from Rise Stronger:  https://risestronger.org/newsroom/week-10-in-science-technology-trump-and-republicans-target-environmental-protections

3. A little not-so-funny humor:  http://politicalprof.tumblr.com/post/159114988868/im-just-saying 

Rogan’s List is a participant in and strategic partner of the Action Alliance,

a federation of more than 70 #resistance sites located throughout the nation,

each with its own methods and approach.  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

https://risestronger.org/resist