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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.
Let's take a look at the Senate Hearing and Meeting Schedule for this week so
we know what they plan to discuss and contact any committees that are working
on issues we are personally following.
2.
While it’s important to work toward a future of
“Medicare for All,” we must not lose sight of the fact that the ACA (Obamacare)
is once again under direct threat *right now*. Republicans think they have the
votes to pass the Graham-Cassidy ACA repeal bill—but they must do so before the
reconciliation process expires on Sept 30. This terrible bill will destroy
Medicaid, leave coverage for pre-existing conditions to the whims of the
marketplace, undermine treatment for opioid addiction, and deliberately grab
money from Blue states and give it to Red states. Senate Democrats can stop
Graham Cassidy—but to do so they must play hardball, and they need to know that
we, their constituents, are behind themhttps://www.cbpp.org/research/health/like-other-aca-repeal-bills-cassidy-graham-plan-would-add-millions-to-uninsured If our Senators are Democrats, let’s contact
them ASAP and tell them: For the next two weeks, ensuring that millions of
Americans don’t lose their healthcare is the most important issue facing you.
You must slow Senate business down to a crawl. Withhold consent. On everything.
Withhold consent on amendments, place holds on nominations, object to all
unanimous consent requests on every single piece of Senate business. Keep it up
until the reconciliation period expires. We can use this guide from
Indivisible: https://www.indivisibleguide.com/resource/last-push-trumpcare-tell-dems-run-clock/
3.
A US Air Force Reserve Chaplain, Sonny Hernandez, has
asserted that Christians in the military “serve Satan” if they tolerate other
religions:
http://www.newsweek.com/chaplain-urges-service-members-reject-religious-tolerance-665614 Let’s
remind the Air Force that this nation was founded on religious freedom and that
the plurality of the military is a feature of its strength: http://www.af.mil/Contact-Us/
4.
California Republican Congressman Dana Rohrabacher has
been trying to connect with Trump about pardoning Julian Assange (of Wikileaks
infamy):
http://www.newsweek.com/who-dana-rohrabacher-russia-defending-pro-weed-congressman-wants-assange-666350 Rohrabacher
wants this pardon to happen in exchange for Assange providing information that
the Russians were not the source of the Democratic National Convention email
leaks. Rohrabacher has a long history of connections with Russia and has been
accused of violating our sanctions against them:
http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-rohrabacher-russia-timeline-20170804-htmlstory.html Let’s
let Rep. Rohrabacher know that we expect our representatives to serve OUR
country: https://rohrabacher.house.gov/contact/offices
5.
Senator John McCain is backing a bill to support the
presence of transgendered people in the military (by blocking Trump’s
ban): http://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/350919-mccain-backs-bill-to-block-transgender-troops-ban?amp Knowing
that many in the Senate look to McCain for his leadership on military issues,
let’s say thanks to Senator McCain for taking this important stand:
https://www.mccain.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/office-locations or
on Twitter at @SenJohnMcCain
6.
“Donald Trump’s inaugural committee raised an
unprecedented $107 million for a ceremony that officials promised would be
“workmanlike,” and the committee pledged to give leftover funds to charity.
Nearly eight months later, the group has helped pay for redecorating at
the White House and the vice president’s residence in Washington. But nothing
has yet gone to charity.” https://apnews.com/0756ba7480444895b4fabc9a2f0909b3 Where
is that money, how was it spent and why hasn't he kept his promise to donate
the remainder to charities? Since it is a private fund we can't request an
accounting. So why should we care, it shows us another unplanned mess from an
unprepared White House that chooses people who don't have the proper experience
even for planning a party!
7.
"U.S. Army recruiters have abruptly canceled
enlistment contracts for hundreds of foreign-born military recruits since
last week, upending their lives and potentially exposing many to deportation, according
to several affected recruits and former military officials familiar with
their situation. Many of these enlistees have waited years to join a troubled
recruitment program designed to attract highly skilled immigrants into the
service in exchange for fast-track citizenship.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2017/09/15/army-kills-contracts-for-hundreds-of-immigrant-recruits-sources-say-some-face-deportation/?utm_term=.ca5c7be98894
We know trump whose family members have never served in the military can't make
the right decisions for our troops and our protection. Let's tell the White
House we need these brave men and women to protect us.
8.
On Monday, Sept. 18 at 3:0 p.m,.the
Senate will convene and resume consideration of H.R.2810, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for
Fiscal Year 2018. Among the many amendments submitted to the NDAA
is Lindsey Graham's amendment SA1047 which would violate the
Fifth Amendment by authorizing the Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) to
take away the citizenship rights of Americans and legal permanent residents --
based on accusations alone -- without due process, a court conviction, and most
importantly, absent a formal declaration giving up one’s citizenship. Without a
formal declaration that one is giving up his or her U.S. citizenship, it cannot
be taken away. “Citizenship is a right, not a privilege to be taken away
without due process and based on unproven accusations,” said CAIR
Government Affairs Department Director Robert S. McCaw. “The courts can convict
those who have violated the law -- but no bureaucrat may take away an
American’s citizenship without their consent or adequate due process.”
Let's join The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the
nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, in contacting
our own Senators to oppose Sen. Lindsey Graham’s (R-SC) proposed amendment
(SA1047) to the NDAA.
9.
Last Thursday, Senators Patty Murray (D-WA) and Bob
Casey (D-PA), and Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA) introduced the Child Care for
Working Families Act in order to make quality child care for affordable, and to
make it an entitlement similar to Social Security or Medicare http://bit.ly/2w2IQXc http://bit.ly/2xdsez3 The
legislation would also increase compensation for child care providers, support
inclusivity for children with disabilities, and expand availability for those
with non-traditional schedules. Let's call our MoC and make sure that they
cosponsor and support the Child Care for Working Families Act. We can also use
the form letter over at MomsRising to help get our message across: http://action.momsrising.org/sign/MurrayScott
10. The
Indivisible Guide's TrumpCare Ten is back to help us fight the Graham-Cassidy
bill. We can find the Graham-Cassidy explainer, local events to help put
pressure on our MoC, and state-specific stats and call scripts. Let's check it
out and get to work! https://www.trumpcareten.org/
11. With
Trump pushing to expand his unconstitutional Muslim ban, we need to make sure
we’re pushing back just as hard (http://www.cnn.com/2017/09/15/politics/donald-trump-london-terrorist-attack/index.html).
The #NoMuslimBanEver campaign is continuing to gain strength as we head towards
the D.C. mobilization on October 10th. Let’s join in the Twitter town hall
under that hashtag on Tuesday, September 19th at 1pm Eastern to
continue to spread the word, and check out the website at https://www.nomuslimbanever.com/ to
endorse the campaign, find events near us, or host them if there are none
scheduled.
12. One
of the longest-lasting legacies of the Trump administration will be the judges
he puts on the federal courts. Senate Republican are trying to make it easier
for him to stack the judiciary with right-wing extremists by eliminating a
long-standing rule that gives senators from the minority party more power to
block inappropriate nominations (http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/senate/350956-gop-eying-rule-change-to-help-trump-fill-the-courts).
Let’s contact our senators and tell them that they need to let the blue slip
rule stay in place, stop undermining the integrity of the judiciary and press
Trump to appoint judges who will be able to win support across the aisle.
13. While
Trump bemoans “the utter weakness and incompetence” of the United Nations (which
he will address on Tuesday), Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is
decimating the US diplomatic corps. He has named C-FAM, the Center for
Family and Human Rights, identified for the past 5 years as an anti-LGBTQ hate
group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, to attend the UN Commission on the
Status of Women--
https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/us-sends-anti-gay-hate-group-un-fueling-fears-over-n734441 And apparently totally ignorant of the importance of international diplomacy, he has eliminated entirely the delegations addressing democracy and human rights, human trafficking, oceans and the environment, cyberissues, military issues, and foreign assistance. Moreover, he has dramatically cut those from the bureaus on Africa and South and Central Asia:
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/15/us/politics/tillerson-state-department-united-nations-general-assembly.html We must inform Tillerson (202-647-4000 or State Dept, 2201 C Street NW, DC 20520) and the White House that this utter diplomatic failure does not represent the will of the people, nor does it serve the national interest.
https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/us-sends-anti-gay-hate-group-un-fueling-fears-over-n734441 And apparently totally ignorant of the importance of international diplomacy, he has eliminated entirely the delegations addressing democracy and human rights, human trafficking, oceans and the environment, cyberissues, military issues, and foreign assistance. Moreover, he has dramatically cut those from the bureaus on Africa and South and Central Asia:
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/15/us/politics/tillerson-state-department-united-nations-general-assembly.html We must inform Tillerson (202-647-4000 or State Dept, 2201 C Street NW, DC 20520) and the White House that this utter diplomatic failure does not represent the will of the people, nor does it serve the national interest.
State Actions
1.
PA: The Pennsylvania Democratic Party is asking
state representative Aaron Bernstine (R-District 10) to apologize for his
tweets saying he would “not stop under any conditions” if he encountered
protesters on a highway, per CBS Pittsburgh. Let's join them in asking for an apology
and letting him know that his constituents think differently: Aaron
Bernstine, 438
Line Ave, Ellwood
City, PA 16117 or call: (724) 752-2120.
Other Actions
1.
Franklin Township (in Ohio) volunteer firefighter Tyler
Roysdon has been suspended for making very racist remarks on Facebook about how
he would rather save one dog than “a million n******”:http://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2017/09/13/volunteer-franklin-township-firefighter-suspended-racist-remarks-posted-facebook/664664001/ Franklin
Township officials plan to meet with Roysdon behind closed doors on September
27th. Let’s be in touch with them before then to say that there is no place for
this kind of hatred and racism among people we trust with our lives:
2.
Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government keeps digging a
deeper hole in their handling of their visiting Fellows program at the
Institute of Politics. They have extended and rescinded an invitation to
Chelsea Manning but have extended and retained invitations to Sean Spicer and
Corey Lewandowski:https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/harvards-dishonorable-treatment-of-chelsea-manning-and-michelle-jones/amp and
this strong editorial by the Boston Globe digs into the nuance of this issue:
3.
https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/editorials/2017/09/16/double-standard-harvard/sxKWuhxJQecGeuP0kYIq3J/amp.html Dean
Douglas Elmendorf attempted to explain the Manning rescinding with these words:
“But I see more clearly now that many people view a Visiting Fellow title as an
honorific, so we should weigh that consideration when offering invitations. In
particular, I think we should weigh, for each potential visitor, what members
of the Kennedy School community could learn from that person’s visit against
the extent to which that person’s conduct fulfills the values of public service
to which we aspire.” Let’s ask him how Spicer and Lewandowski fill the criteria
he has laid out: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/more/contact-us
4.
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, "Front and center this week were
reports on Russia’s use of social media to influence the US election, possibly
with help from the Trump regime." Let's review Amy Siskind's list week 44.
5.
The Santa Fe City Council voted 8-1 last week to
prohibit traveling wild and exotic animal acts, making Santa Fe the latest in a
growing number of localities nationwide and globally to take a stand against
the use of animals in circuses and similar exhibitions that are increasingly
viewed as cruel forums for exploitation. We can read more at the Santa Fe New Mexican. We can thank
the ordinance's cosponsors Councilors Signe Lindell and Peter Ives at: City of
Santa Fe, PO Box 909, Santa Fe NM 87504-0909. Let's also contact our own
local city officials to encourage them to adopt a similar ordinance.
6.
Fewer than 1 in 10 of the 2.2 million people
incarcerated in the US are in federal prison; 60% of those in local jails have
not been convicted of a crime—they just can’t afford cash bail. The
Massachusetts Bail Fund (https://www.massbailfund.org/about.html) has just announced
that it is out of money and unable to take more referrals for bail from the
many languishing in jail for lack of cash: https://www.massbailfund.org
It is incumbent on us to help as much as we can to keep their important work
going.
Petitions
1.
Let’s stand with Senator Warren. “Wells Fargo is completely broken. It
seems like every few months, a new scandalous report emerges of Wells Fargo
defrauding customers.” It is time to
replace the Wells Fargo board: https://act.credoaction.com/sign/wells_fargo_board
2.
Let’s join Senator Stabenow (D-MI) in telling Senate
Republicans that we are not backing down on our fight against their health care
plan that will hurt so many of us: https://stabenow.bsd.net/page/s/stand-up-for-health-care---again2
Marches/events/teleconferences
to attend/organize
Reading/Watching
2.
Actress Amber Tamblyn has been a in war of words with
actor James Woods about him hitting on her when she was a teenager (after he
criticized someone else) and she has written a very powerful op-ed for the New
York Times about the ways in which women are silenced and not believed. It is
well-worth the read: :https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/09/16/opinion/sunday/amber-tamblyn-james-woods.html
3.
“America’s vitriol towards Clinton reveals a nation
mired in misogyny” -- https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/sep/15/america-hillary-clinton-misogyny
4.
“Bilingual: Speaking both Liberal and Conservative” -- http://charlottevaughancoyle.com/2017/07/bilingual-speaking-both-liberal-and-conservative/
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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