2/22/18
Contact Federal Government Officials
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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.
"Russia hacked into state voter systems in the 2016 election, successfully
penetrating several of the systems in the 21 states they attempted to
hack." Voting won't mean much if the results can be tampered with,
but states need funding to run secure elections. SO: "Call your members of
Congress and urge them to act quickly to provide money to the states to upgrade
their voter systems to ensure a paper trail that can be audited." Easy
talking points on this underreported but extremely urgent issue here: https://www.theloyalopposition.net/daily-ctas/demand-congress-provide-funds-to-states-to-upgrade-voting-systems/
2.
In 2005,
after intensive lobbying from the NRA, Congress passed the Protection
of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act
(PLCAA) which prevented victims from suing gun manufacturers for
wrongdoing. Last October, Senators Blumenthal (D-CT) and Murphy (D-CT), and
Rep. Schiff (D-CA) introduced the Equal Access to Justice for Victims of Gun
Violence Act (S.1939/H.R.
3894),
which would repeal PLCAA and allow victims of mass shootings to hold the gun
industry accountable. https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/blumenthal-murphy-and-schiff-introduce-legislation-to-give-gun-victims-their-day-in-court-and-end-gun-industrys-liability-shield. It’s time to tell our MoCs to support this
repeal. Congress should be protecting children from mass shootings, not gun
manufacturers from lawsuits
3.
When
Congress resumes next week, the Senate will still have the issue of the
DREAMers to address. “The Senate’s
protracted debate last week deadlocked with a predictable flurry of
finger-pointing and insults. But the chamber will likely reprise the fight
ahead of the next and presumably final deadline to avoid another government
shutdown on March 23.” https://www.politico.com/story/2018/02/21/daca-dreamers-congress-republicans-trump-417427 Let’s
make sure our MoCs know that we want the DREAMers and their families saved.
4.
The FCC
rules reversing net neutrality are expected to be published today. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-internet/fcc-reversal-of-net-neutrality-rules-expected-to-be-published-thursday-sources-idUSKCN1G42TO. This means we have only 60 days to overturn
this regulation in Congress. Currently 50 Senators (49 Democrats and Susan
Collins R-ME) have registered their opposition. We need just one more senator’s
support to push forward a Congressional Review Act resolution that protects the
free and open Internet and ask them to stand with the 83% of the American
people and 75% of Republicans who support net neutrality http://thehill.com/policy/technology/364528-poll-83-percent-of-voters-support-keeping-fccs-net-neutrality-rules . Net neutrality advocates are planning an
Internet-wide day of action for our next big push, Operation: #OneMoreVote,
on February 27th (https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/16/all-of-the-senate-democrats-support-net-neutrality-bringing-total-to-50.html). Let’s sign up and commit to getting involved
here: BattleForTheNet.com/OneMoreVote
5.
After a report by Alliance for Justice revealed Trump’s judicial nominee Ryan
Bounds had a history of expressing alarming views about the LGBTQ community,
people of color, sexual assault and the rights of workers, both Oregon’s U.S.
senators announced they will not support his nomination moving forward (http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2018/02/oregons_us_senators_say_federa.html). Let’s contact our senators and let them
know that we want them to listen to Senators Merkley and Wyden and oppose
Bounds’ confirmation.
6.
Marco
Rubio and allies are drafting a paid parental leave bill based on a proposal
put forward by the Independent Women’s Forum, a right-wing nonprofit purportedly
focused on the economic policy concerns of women. The seductive claim of
this proposal is that it is “budget neutral”; it would allow parents to borrow
against their Social Security to pay for parental leave, in exchange for which
they would be required to defer retirement benefits. Aside from the
damage it would do to recast SS as an individual account, this plan would
undoubtedly increase the already appalling number of women, particularly, left
destitute in old age: http://www.businessinsider.com/ivanka-trump-marco-rubio-paid-family-leave-plan-2018-2 We must make sure our MoCs are not
taken in by this latest Republican attempt to undermine the social security
system.
7.
Using
the information available at the Center for Responsive Politics' Open Secrets (http://bit.ly/2CnxRdo), Resistbot has created a simple tool which
allows us to see how much the NRA has contributed in support of or opposition
to our members of Congress. Let's text "NRA" to 50409, then use the
information provided as we call out our MoC if they have accepted any money
from the NRA.
8.
The
bipartisan Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act (S
1917)
was recently approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee, despite the objections
of Attorney General Jeff Sessions. According to The Hill, the bill “reduces mandatory minimum penalties for
nonviolent repeat drug offenders, eliminates the three-strike mandatory life in
prison rule and gives judges discretion to sentence certain low-level offenders
below the 10-year mandatory minimum.” http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/374045-prison-sentencing-bill-advances-over-sessions-objections. Let’s contact our Senators and ask them to
bring this bill to a floor vote and support these fairer sentencing policies
9.
Among
the atrocities in the President’s budget is a $4 billion cut to student aid
programs that Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) claims could increase the cost for those
who borrowed money for higher education by more than $200 billion in the next
ten years. https://www.denverpost.com/2018/02/13/trump-devos-college-student-aid-programs-cuts/?preview_id=2951346. Key losers in this proposal are teachers
and social workers, who would no longer be eligible for loan forgiveness--in
other words, those on the front lines who choose to make lower than average
salaries in order to help people in our society. Let’s tell our MoCs to support
our public servants and keep the student aid budget intact.
10. “Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-N.Y.) said Wednesday that
many mass shooters “end up being Democrats.” Tenney made the claim in an
interview with radio host Fred Dicker, exactly one week after the mass shooting
at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. Obviously there’s a
lot of politics in it,” Tenney said. “And it’s interesting that so many of
these people that commit the mass murders end up being Democrats, but the media
doesn’t talk about that either. http://thehill.com/homenews/house/374941-gop-lawmaker-many-mass-shooters-end-up-being-democrats. Wow, talk about making this about
politics. Rep. Tenney offered no sources or data for her comment. Let’s ask her
to provide the data or revoke it and apologize for that comment. Contact her
here. 512 Cannon House
Office Building Washington, DC 20515 Phone: 202-225-3665 Fax: 202-225-1891
Election 2018 –
General
1.
Some
more good blue wave news: Democrats in Kentucky picked up a House seat on
Tuesday in a special election in a district that went for Trump in 2016 by 49
points!http://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/374777-dem-wins-ky-state-house-seat-in-district-trump-won-by-49-points And Linda Belcher won by 36 points, so
the total swing was 85 points (no, not a typo). Let’s let this fuel us that no
district should be considered out of reach. What races can we get involved in
where we live? The blue wave is function of our efforts.
2.
2018 can
be a big year for progressive candidates, but to turn this country blue, we
need people to run in every district, for every office. As more people step up
to run campaigns, often with very little funding or experience, they need
support and The Candidate Toolkit can help them find it. The kit
has information about over 60 organizations, from Active Resist to Veteran
Campaign, that can help campaigns win. If we are running for office,
thinking about running about it, or know someone who is, we can click on this
link to find out more about deciding to run, getting training,
funding and running a campaign, managing data, and registering voters. We can
learn which organizations can help us, what they do and what they charge.
Informed and ready, we can ride the #BlueWave2018 to victory! Check it out here: http://bit.ly/2oncgwR
3.
Some
young people may not know that they are eligible to register to vote before
they are 18. If you’re 17 and
will be 18 by Election Day, chances are you can. Check out this chart that
details when you are eligible to register or preregister in your state, and
when you can start voting: https://www.headcount.org/think-youre-young-register/
Election 2018 –
By State
Other Actions
1.
What's
in a name? When we're talking about immigration, quite a lot. When Trump
tweeted about stopping "chain migration" last September, he took what
had been a neutral synonym for family-reunification based immigration, one that
had been commonly used since the 1960s and turned it into a rallying cry for
immigration restrictionists. That term now carries the taint of racism and
xenophobia, and journalists need to note its new role as a dog-whistle to
racists when writing immigration reportage. http://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-chain-migration-trump-daca-deal-democrats-family-reunification-immigration-2017-9
However, usage of "chain migration"
in both stories and online search strings has spiked since the infamous tweet,
so let's tell our favorite media outlets to update their editorial style guides
and privilege the term "family-reunification immigration" (which is
the official name for our current immigration policy, after all).
2.
The
paper edition of the NY Times yesterday,
contains a two-page ad (pg. A12-13), paid for by Bloomberg’s, Everytown for Gun
Safety, and Moms Demand Action. It lists, by state, all the members of
Congress who take NRA money, how much, and their phone numbers. http://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/2-page-ad-in-the-new-york-times-calls-out-nra-backed-members-of-congress/ We
should copy and circulate this ad (in article) widely.
3.
Film
executive Franklin Leonard put out the call on social media that someone should
do an hour by hour comparison of Obama’s reaction to Sandy Hook and Trump’s
reaction to Parkland. The Washington Post took up the call with this four
minute video: https://www.washingtonpost.com/video/editorial/opinion--an-hour-by-hour-comparison-of-trump-and-obama-responding-to-school-shootings/2018/02/20/6fa06f66-165b-11e8-930c-45838ad0d77a_video.html?utm_term=.c7c643ae8cbf Let’s share this on social media and be
in touch with our MoCs about Trump’s unfitness (and his lack of interest) in
serving as President.
4.
“A
superintendent in a Texas school district is warning that students will be
suspended if they cause any disruptions to protest gun violence. Needville
Independent School District (ISD) Superintendent Curtis Rhodes said in a letter
that was sent to families and posted on social media that students would be
suspended for three days if they took part in the protests happening following
the deadly Florida high school shooting, The Houston Chronicle reported. We
will discipline no matter if it is one, fifty, or five hundred students
involved," the statement said. “All will be suspended for 3 days and
parent notes will not alleviate the discipline.” http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/374812-texas-school-district-threatens-to-suspend-students-who-protest. Let’s call and write to superintendent
Curtis Rhodes and let him know our next voters have the right to peaceful
protest and to walk out of school to ask for sensible gun laws so they are
safe. Our Congress needs to hear their voices. He should be joining the students in their
quest for better laws to be safe in school rather than threatening punishment. Let’s
ask him to consider making arrangements to do a gun reform event as a school,
making sure to have a supervised place for students who chose not to
participate. Perhaps he could learn how some schools are working together
with students, like this school district in Kentucky: http://www.kentucky.com/news/local/education/article201265999.html It’s
a teachable moment, so let’s teach the superintendent. Let’s phone 979-793-4208 or write to Rhodes here at P.O. box
412, Needville, TX 77461
5.
For more
information on how the net neutrality repeal will affect us, we can check out
this short, funny video from Burger King, where the people who do not want to
pay $26 for a Whopper have to stand in the slow line. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltzy5vRmN8Q.
Let’s share this to help others understand what we may be up against
when it comes to Internet service if the FCC ruling is not overturned by
Congress.
6.
After
one of his aides contacted the media to accuse two of the Parkland students of
not being students at all, but "actors that travel to various crisis when
they happen," Representative Shawn Harrison immediately consulted with
House Speaker Richard Corcoran, who then fired the aide http://wapo.st/2ofQfRs Let's send a quick "Thank
you" to Representative Harrison and Speaker Corcoran for taking swift
action. We can also remind them that they could further support the Parkland
students by voting in favor of gun regulations. Representative Harrison:
Mailing address: 417 House Office Building 402 South Monroe Street
Tallahassee, FL 32399-1300 Phone: (850) 717-5063 Speaker of the House Richard Corcoran:
Mailing address: 420 The Capitol 402 South Monroe Street Tallahassee, FL
32399-1300 Phone: (850) 717-5000
7. From one of our own: "Peter Wang,
15, who was one of 17 killed in the 14 February attack, was admitted to the
class of 2025 at his dream school, West Point Academy.”
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-43132215 Let’s
thank the West Point Superintendent: https://www.usma.edu/Superintendent/SitePages/Home.aspx
8.
The
Border Patrol members are upping their quasi-legal searches and surveillance now that
Trump has given them the green light. Among the most disturbing of their
practices (detailed here http://comment-news.com/source/www.nytimes.com/2018/02/21/us/politics/trump-border-patrol-searches.html/ --is demanding citizenship documents
from domestic passengers on Amtrak and on Greyhound buses. Let’s contact
the Greyhound corporate offices (513-241-2200 or 600 Vine St., Ste. 1400, Cincinnati,
OH 45202) and Amtrak’s (202-906-3000 or 60 Massachusetts Ave NE, Washington
DC) and invite them to join the resistance to Trump’s anti-immigrant policies.
9.
“The
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School’s website has suggested ways the public can
help their school and staff to heal.” http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/parkland/florida-school-shooting/fl-florida-school-shooting-how-to-help-20180219-story.html Let’s
see how we can help.
Marches/events/webinars/Tweetstorms to
attend/organize
1.
Update on April 20, a Day of Action to Stop
Gun Violence in Schools: https://networkforpubliceducation.org/2018/02/update-april-20-day-action-stop-gun-violence-schools/
2.
Update on March for Our Lives on March 24: We are so inspired by your marches being
organized all over the country (and the world). For now, we are compiling
marches on Facebook. However, we are working with key partners to develop a
landing page for you to register your marches (coming soon!). If we have
a march to add, let’s let the organizers know here: https://www.facebook.com/marchforourlives
States
1.
MOST: Since the FCC reversal of net neutrality, 22
states have introduced legislation to address the issue on the state level. https://www.fastcompany.com/40510095/snubbing-fcc-states-are-writing-their-own-net-neutrality-laws. So far, only a few of these bills have made
it all the way through the legislature. Lets contact our state reps at https://openstates.org/find_your_legislator/ to make sure our state has legislation in
process to preserve net neutrality, and ask them to get this legislation passed
quickly.
2.
FL: In
its first opportunity to take legislative action following the Parkland, FL
school shooting, the Florida House has voted against considering a bill (HB
219)
which would ban assault rifles and large-capacity magazines http://bit.ly/2C8zksz If we are Florida residents, let's
check to see how our representative voted, and if they voted "no",
ask them why they were not willing to debate this important legislation.
Reading/Watching
1. A
psychiatrist explains why the mental health system can’t stop mass
shooters:
2.
“Here
are the tools that could be used to create the fake news of the future” - https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/politics/wp/2018/02/12/here-are-the-tools-that-could-be-used-to-create-the-fake-news-of-the-future/?utm_term=.2250a69ea5e8
3.
“From
Birmingham to Parkland: Celebrate the Power of Young Voices” - https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/from-birmingham-to-parkland-celebrate-the-power-of-young-voices
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