Special Announcement
Rogan’s List is thrilled to announce a new
partnership with RISE Stronger whose “mission is to build a
dynamic, strategic movement of politically engaged communities that demand a
responsible and accountable government which serves the interests of the
people. RISE Stronger is made up of
passionate people from all walks of life who are committed to protecting and
advancing freedom, equality, and justice, and ensuring a transparent, responsible
and accountable government for all.”
Just like us. Stay tuned in the days and weeks to come for some tweaks and changes, but Rogan’s List will continue to be the quality source of daily calls-to-action you rely on, but as part of the RISE Stronger organization. In the meantime, if you are not already a member of RISE Stronger, sign up here and join this wonderful organization: https://risestronger.org/sign_up
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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.
With Puerto Ricans struggling to recover from the
devastation of this hurricane season, President Trump is tweeting ominous
threats about pulling back federal government support for relief efforts,
nevertheless, “the U.S. House of
Representatives on Thursday approved $36.5 billion in emergency relief for
hurricane-hit Puerto Rico and other areas that have suffered recent disasters.” https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-puertorico-congress/u-s-house-approves-disaster-funds-as-trump-criticizes-puerto-rico-idUSKBN1CH1A7 Now we need to convince our senators to move
on this bill quickly when they return next week. Puerto Ricans are American citizens
who are desperate for help from this administration and it is severely failing
them. Would Trump be doing this if it were one of the 50 states?
2.
As Robert Mueller continues his investigation, it
remains to be seen whether Trump will use his power to fire the special
counsel http://trib.in/2yj3w0U Let's
make sure that Congress is doing all that it can to protect Mueller from the
whims of Trump. We can ask our representatives and senators to cosponsor and
support H.R.
3771/S.
1741: Special Counsel Integrity Act.
3.
President Jimmy Carter has offered to go to North Korea
to promote peace between that country and ours. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/10/jimmy-carter-offers-to-talk-peace-with-north-koreas-kim-says-academic
Let’s tell Trump that this would be a positive move toward peace.
Contact White House: https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact
Let's also thank Carter for his generous offer and his good works: https://jimmycarter.info/about/contact-us/
4.
Trump is taking his attacks on the press to brazen new
heights by suggesting that NBC should have their license yanked: http://www.politico.com/story/2017/10/11/trump-nbc-broadcast-license-243667 This
prompted Republican Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska to ask Trump if he is
recanting his oath of office to preserve, protect, and defend the First
Amendment. http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/355060-gop-senator-to-trump-are-you-recanting-of-the-oath-of-office Let’s
thank Sen. Sasse for speaking up: on Twitter @BenSasse and https://www.sasse.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/email-ben and
then let’s ask our own MoC to stand up for the First Amendment.
5.
From one of our own: The EPA has released a
draft of its 4 year strategic plan and, surprise, surprise, climate change is
NOT EVEN MENTIONED! The public comment period is open through October 31 - it will
be sent to Congress for approval early next year. This is the link to the
draft, where you can submit a comment. Please take a minute and urge Congress
not to approve this plan, which would be disastrous for our environment! https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=EPA-HQ-OA-2017-0533
6.
The New York Times has been tracking all the ways that
the Trump administration has been undermining the ACA. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/10/12/us/trump-undermine-obamacare.html Our MoCs need to know that the message we
were all trying to give them is that the legislated ACA needs to be improved,
and with a bipartisan approach, in Congress, not unilateral actions by the
White House.
7.
Last week, "the House approved a 2018 budget
resolution that includes a provision calling for billions of dollars in new revenue
from the sale of oil and gas leases—a veiled move to allow oil extraction in
the Arctic refuge. Also ... the Senate Budget Committee approved a budget that
would open the way for drilling in the largely untouched northern wilderness;
the full Senate will begin considering the proposed budget the week
of October 16." “This is the most dire threat the Arctic refuge
has ever faced,” says Lydia Weiss, government relations director for the
Wilderness Society. “This entire administration has made clear that they have
one use for our shared public lands, and that is taking them from the people
and giving them to their billionaire oil industry friends. “The Arctic National
Wildlife Refuge is one of the few remaining wild places in the United States
where biological processes continue much as they have for millennia. The vast
sweep of mountains, tundra, and braided rivers flowing to the Arctic Ocean is
home to grizzly bears, musk oxen, dall sheep, wolves and foxes, and the
110,000-member porcupine caribou herd that makes a massive migration through
the refuge annually. In the summer, huge flocks of birds—including species that
migrate over thousands of miles—congregate in the refuge." Read the
full story at the Sierra Club. Environmental groups are working
together to protect the Arctic refuge. Let's support their efforts, stay
informed, and tell our Senators, "No drilling in the Arctic refuge."
8.
Representative Rob https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/3990Bishop
(R-UT) has introduced the National Monument Creation and Protection Act,
HR3990, which would dismantle the Antiquities Act. We can read more at 1) The Hill and 2) this press release from the Center for Biological Diversity. “This legislation is
an appalling, unprecedented attack on our national monuments and public lands,”
said Randi Spivak, public lands director at the Center for Biological
Diversity. “The Grand Canyon, Grand Teton, Zion and nearly every national
monument created over the past hundred years wouldn’t have been possible under
Bishop’s bill. Extreme doesn’t begin to describe how reprehensible his scheme
is.” The bill already has 5
Republican co-sponsors. Let's tell our own representatives that we
oppose HR3990.
9.
Betsy DeVos has not divested from Neurocore , "a
company that offers its [neurofeedback] therapy for, among other conditions,
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), depression, stress, anxiety —
and autism. The notion is that people with autism can learn to recalibrate
their aberrant brain rhythms. The therapy has been available for decades,
but drew intense scrutiny this past year because Neurocore is financially
backed by billionaire Betsy DeVos, the U.S. Secretary of Education. DeVos and her
family have invested millions in the company, and she is a former member of the
company’s board...There’s no solid evidence that neurofeedback works as a
treatment for autism...In the U.S., at least two government agencies have
regulatory authority over companies that offer neurofeedback. The U.S. Food and
Drug Administration (FDA) polices medical devices, although it exempts devices
(including those used for neurofeedback, such as EEG machines) when they are
used for relaxation training or other non-medical applications. The Federal
Trade Commission (FTC) enforces rules that prohibit deceptive advertisements of
treatments not covered by the FDA." Let's read more at Spectrum News whose mission is to be the leading
source of news and expert opinion on autism research. We can contact:
1) US Food and Drug Administration, 10903
New Hampshire Ave, Silver Springs MD 20993 and 2) Federal Trade Commission, 600
Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington DC 20580. Let's find out what they
are doing to stop deceptive practices.
10. We
have until October 18th to comment on Homeland Security’s new rule
that would allow DHS to include “social media handles, aliases, associated
identifiable information, and search results” in the immigration files of all
immigrants--including permanent residents and naturalized citizens: https://www.buzzfeed.com/adolfoflores/people-are-worried-about-dhs-plans-to-gather-social-media The
entry for this rule change in the Federal Register is here: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2017/09/18/2017-19365/privacy-act-of-1974-system-of-records.
Comments--of which we should have many--can be sent by FAX to 202-343-4010 or by letter to Jonathan R.
Cantor, Acting Chief Privacy Officer, Privacy Office, Department of Homeland
Security, Washington, DC 20528-0655.
State Actions
1.
MI: The Lansing chapter of
Black Lives Matter has submitted testimony opposing House Bills 4585, 4590,
and 4591, as the legislation is unnecessary and looks to "falsely portray
peaceful protests and protesters as inciting violence rather than the true
purpose of peaceful protests across the country which are a call for accountability
for the police killings of civilians," http://bit.ly/2yir2vg These bills have already passed
out of committee, and are expected to head to the House floor soon. Let's join
BLM-Lansing, and make sure that we call our state reps to ask that they oppose
H.B. 4585, 4590, and 4591
2.
NH: Huge
budget cuts crippled outreach that lets people know when, how and where to
sign up for the ACA, so Indivisible ACA Signup Project is spreading the word
through social media. They have only 6 days to get as many
supporters as possible. Help them reach their goal by October
19 to set off a Thunderclap, a social media flash mob message blast.
Please click, add your social media support on Twitter, Facebook and
Tumblr. THEN cut, paste and share - thanks! https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/62807-new-hampshire-aca-signup
3.
FL: Floridians
for a Fair Democracy and the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition are looking
to get the Voting Restoration Amendment on the Florida ballot in 2018 http://bit.ly/2tILp3o Under
current law, Florida felons are permanently barred from voting, leaving 1.6
million Floridians without the right to vote http://bit.ly/2fIXyxI In
order to get the amendment on the ballot, 700,000 Floridians need to sign the
petition by February 1st, 2018. If we are Florida residents, let's make
sure we sign the petition. We can print it out, then send it in: https://www.floridiansforafairdemocracy.com/sign-the-petition For
those of us who do not reside in Florida, but who want to support the ballot
proposal, we can donate instead:
4.
MI: As the
anti-gerrymandering petition drive gets going, volunteers all over the state of
Michigan are working night and day to support the Voters Not Politicians ballot
initiative and we need your help! If you are interested in volunteering as
a petition circulator or on one of our planning committees, please fill out the
information here: http://www.votersnotpoliticians.com/volunteer
Other Actions
1.
As the Trump administration rescinds the Clean Power
Plan, Michael Bloomberg's charity donated $64 million to the Sierra Club’s
Beyond Coal campaign and other organizations with the goal of cutting the
number of US coal-fired plants by two thirds by 2020. https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-usa-coal-bloomberg/bloombergs-charity-donates-64-million-to-war-on-coal-idUKKBN1CG2M5
Let's thank Bloomberg Philanthropies for helping to bring about this
needed change: 25 E 78th St, New York, NY 10075
2.
Another ACA benefit we can thank Obama for: improved
access to healthcare reduces crime: https://thecrimereport.org/2017/10/06/medicaid-expansion-tied-to-reduction-in-crime/
The research estimates that significant
drops in violent and nonviolent crime, attributable to Obamacare’s Medicaid
expansion, saved almost $400 million. If we agree that this should be part of
the cost/benefit debate swirling around the ACA, let’s fire up those social
media accounts and spread the word about this study, and other reporting on the
links between crime and healthcare access (e.g. https://www.vox.com/2014/8/13/5996191/obamacares-secret-crime-fighting-potential).
3.
Dismayed by how low environmental concerns like climate
change, pollution and pipelines rank on surveys of voter priorities, Stinnett
founded the nonpartisan Environmental Voter Project three years ago on the
hunch that a substantial number of people care about environmental issues and
are registered to vote, but don’t show up on Election Day. Nathaniel Stinnett’s
two-year-old Environmental Voter Project is expanding this month into four new
states: Colorado, Florida, Nevada and Pennsylvania. We’re laser-focused on creating
an army of environmental super voters who will drive the agenda at the local,
state and federal levels,” Stinnett told HuffPost. “Driving all of these
environmentalists into the electorate is going to have an enormous impact on
policy-making.” https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2015/10/31/environmental-group-goes-door-door-search-non-voters/splEps90zjSHrD1mimvNIM/story.html We can help by making a donation to his
project here. Let's get those voters to the polls!
4.
If we are a Mary Engelbreit fan, she is offering a
print made for Puerto Rico. "Proceeds from the sale of this print go
to Unicef USA for hurricane relief efforts in Puerto Rico
from today through the end of the month (October 31st)." https://www.maryengelbreit.com/products/coconuts-for-puerto-rico-fine-print
5. HeadCount is a non-partisan organization
that works with musicians to promote participation in democracy by staging voter registration drives at concerts and run programs
that translate the power of music
into real action. Let’s check them out
and see how we can volunteer: https://www.headcount.org/
6.
From one of our own:
Bud Light’s brand parent company Anheuser-Busch InBev — one of the NFL’s
biggest sponsors — is rethinking their NFL sponsorship, and they want your
input. So, the company set up a hotline
for fans to call and give their thoughts about the protests and
Anheuser-Busch’s sponsorship of the NFL. The number for the hotline is:
1-800-342-5283. Background info: http://fortune.com/2017/10/04/budweiser-nfl-players-national-anthem-protests/
7.
Postcards to Voters continues making strides and
adding technology. Over 4000 volunteers have written more than 200,000
postcards! The Amplify app now alerts volunteers to the latest Postcards to
Voters Campaign while Abby the Address bot let's us text to request addresses.
(If we are lower tech, we can still request addresses via email.) In
campaign updates: a) Zainab
Baloch did not win her election in Raleigh as most incumbents kept
their seats per the News and Observer. b) Campaign 18 is for Dr. Kathie Allen who
is running for Congress, Utah's 3 district, the seat previously held by Jason
Chaffetz. We can read about this special election at BallotPedia c) Campaign 19 - Casey Conley for NH State Representative
and d) Campaign 20: Candidates #24 through #36. -a 13-person slate in Glastonbury, Connecticut. Let's
check out some of Postcards to Voters statistics on previous campaigns here. If we are returning Postcarders-to-Voters,
let's text Abby for another 5. If we are new to Postcards to Voters,
let's send an email to JOIN@TonyTheDemocrat.org for our first 5 addresses.
We can use the same postcards we send for our other Rogan's List
actions.
8.
Numerous professional sports teams across the NBA, MLB,
and NHL have all stopped staying at Trump properties since the start of his
political career. “The Post reached out
to all 123 teams in the four major U.S. sports leagues to find out how many
men’s teams are still Trump customers. A total of 105 responded. Not a single
team confirmed its players stay at Trump properties.” http://www.businessinsider.com/pro-sports-teams-stopped-using-trump-hotels-2017-10 Hitting
Trump in his wallet is a good way to send a message to him. If we have a
favorite team member on any of these teams you might send a thank you Tweet to
them.
9.
The Working Families Party’s Progressive Heroes 2017
project is ramping up to elect hundreds more progressive candidates to local
office over the next 26 days. They’ve already helped young progressive leaders
like Randall Woodfin, Timothy Keller and Vernetta Alston advance, and they are
looking for more support to help create even more victories https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2017/10/04/backed-by-sanders-progressives-advance-in-alabama-new-mexico-and-california-races/?utm_term=.039e5cef4928)
We can sign up to help on their campaigns at this link.
10. From
@planetscape. (who made the tool
with memes from @2018ACASignup)
For those of us who tweet and are concerned about getting the word out about
ACA enrollment dates, here is a pair of tweetsheets we can use. In English:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/14eKxWnjNk5iUwUZKWYngqMzxZT8FAMMiBsmSdPWdoCk/edit#gid=0
and in Spanish: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1caKBpYQwDui81Kyn99n0wTwTGiiiNTC6pUw32PQc-3E/edit#gid=0
Petitions
1. Let’s join Save the Children and encourage our
senators to cosponsor and pass the bipartisan Protecting Girls’ Access to
Education in Vulnerable Settings Act (S. 1580).
2. From ACLU: Trump’s new rules threaten to
gut the benefit ensuring that all insurance plans cover birth control at no
cost – all under the guise of religious “liberty.” No one should have to pay
for their bosses’ religious beliefs. That’s why the ACLU is suing the Trump
administration – and why we need you to take action now. Submit your public comment now and put
your values on the record: https://action.aclu.org/secure/birth-control-rule
Marches/events/teleconferences/Twitterstorms
to attend/organize
1. Hosted by Action Together Network: Join this Sunday's Tweetstorm (8-9
ET) supporting Michele Edwards for Virginia House of Delegates. Since
their off-year election results often predict how the next national midterm
election will go, Virginia's elections matter to us all. If Virginia
has a strong Democratic showing, things look up for 2018 and we can make that
happen. Lifelong Virginian Michele Edwards fights for working families,
fully funded public education, protecting the environment and promoting economic
growth and development. A victory for Michelle Edwards is a victory for
all of us. Tweetstorm Link here: https://www.facebook.com/events/916805735135593
Reading/Watching
1. A fascinating article that includes a
fascinating video (with Sally Yates and Preet Bharara) on the legal aspects of
what is happening in Washington:
2. “The bizarre situation where only retiring Republicans
will talk about Trump’s fitness for office:
Partisanship and careerism have badly warped this discussion” -
https://www.vox.com/platform/amp/policy-and-politics/2017/10/10/16447276/bob-corker-trump-world-war-iii
3. In this article, the executive director
of PEN American Center Suzanne Nossel discusses how "The best
prescription against the epidemic of fake news is to inoculate consumers by
building up their ability to defend themselves." http://foreignpolicy.com/2017/10/12/the-pro-free-speech-way-to-fight-fake-news/. PEN American has actually published an
extensive and informative report on the fake news crisis we face, Faking News: Fraudulent News and the Fight for Truth, which is available here: https://pen.org/faking-news/. A highlight is the “News Consumers Bill of Rights and Responsibilities”, which empowers us to demand more from our
news, and ourselves as consumers of it: https://pen.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/PEN_America_Consumer_Rights.pdf
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